The tenth session of the Japanese Politics Online Seminar Series (JPOSS) took place on February 11, 2021. Yusaku Horiuchi (Dartmouth) chaired the seminar and moderated the question and answer session.
The sessions included discussions of the experiences of Japanese scholars working in the US, and foreign scholars working in Japan. Saori Katada (University of Southern California) reflected on her experiences launching an academic career in the US and highlighted many contrasts between Japanese and American universities in terms of what students, colleagues, and administrators expect from professors. Gill Steel (Doshisha University) complemented remarks made by Katada as she discussed her experiences working as a foreign academic working in a Japanese university. Ellis Kraus (University of California, San Diego) discussed how researchers can ethically and strategically study controversial topics in Japan and provided many valuable insights applicable to political science as well as social science more broadly. The panel also explored non-academic career paths available to Japan scholars, Sheila Smith (Council on Foreign Relations) discussed her experience working outside the academic world as a Japan expert at the Council on Foreign Relations.
The session attracted over seventy participants and included an active Q&A session on said topics. The organizers would like to thank the presenters, discussants, and participants, as well as the staff at the Harvard Program on U.S.-Japan Relations, who provided administrative support. We look forward to seeing you at the next session of JPOSS: https://jposs.org/