November 28-29, 2006
At Hotel New Akao in Atami
The Autumn General Meeting was attended by 24 individuals representing 32 companies (11 of which were present by proxy). Beginning with the JAOS office, each task team reported on their activities of the past 6 months as well as their plans for the second half of the fiscal year. The topics and activities presented were actively discussed by those present. At the meeting, JAOS also presented the new 3-volume, 600-page textbook set for its JAOS Certified Counselor Training Course, a joint project with ALC-Press that is planned to open to the public in June of 2007. In addition, it was announced that the FELCA office has requested all FELCA member organizations to adopt the EN 14804 Guidelines concerning ‘Standards for Overseas Language Studies in Europe’, which were presented last spring. Lastly, one new organization was admitted to JAOS’ office as a ‘special supporting member’. Another organization was also admitted as a regular member.
October 14-15, 2006
at Tokyo International Forum
Taking part in the British Overseas Study Fair for the third time, JAOS presented the merits of using a study abroad agency to book overseas study travel. The presentation explained that agencies are not merely an application service acting on the behalf of schools, but service providers that offer a wide sphere of support and coverage, such as giving clear and precise information and explanations on study abroad expenses, etc.
June 23, 2006
at Mainichi Shinbun Headquarters in Tokyo
After listening to remarks by Mr. Manabu Horie, Director of the Overseas Study Center at JASSO (Japan Student Services Organization) and Mr. Takeshi Shindo, President of CIEL, the Homestay Division of JATA (Japan Association of Travel Agents), an active floor discussion was held to consider and comment on the themes presented. As this public seminar was also open to members of the non-profit organization, JAFSA (Japan Network for International Education), the valuable opinions of JAOS non-members were also heard. Since the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan announced their report on overseas study related service troubles in May of last year, it has stressed that organizational activities such as JATA’s discussions on ‘legal aspects of overseas study travel’ and the Fair Trade Commission’s ‘Investigation of Overseas Study Services’ are necessary to combat the problems in the industry, which are becoming increasingly evident to the general public. At this seminar, agents and representatives of overseas study organizations discussed the above problems even after the seminar’s intended finishing time, offering diverse opinions, posing questions and proffering numerous pieces of advice on how JAOS and other industry leaders should handle these problems. JAOS has already made plans to discuss this theme more concretely by holding another seminar at a future date. 44 individuals participated from 36 different organizations.
June 21, 2006
at Mainichi Shinbun Headquarters in Tokyo
The Spring General Meeting was attended by representatives of all 33 member companies (11 of which were present by proxy). Beginning with the JAOS administration office, each task team reported on their activities and financial account balances for the past fiscal year, as well on their plans for the upcoming year. Those in attendance participated in an active discussion concerning these issues. At the meeting, JAOS announced the formal name of its overseas advisor training course created in collaboration with ALC-Press, ‘JAOS Certified Counselor Training Course’. It was also announced that this course will be offered to the counselors of member organizations possibly as early as October, and to the general public in January of 2007 at the earliest.. Furthermore, it was reported that JAOS intends to adopt the ‘Standards for Overseas Language Studies in Europe’ created by FELCA. Currently, there is a need to cooperative with other organizations in order to conduct careful research on how to handle overseas study trouble. Lastly, 1 new supporting member was admitted to JAOS.
February 10, 2006
at Mainichi Shinbun Headquarters in Tokyo
At this annually held meeting, JAOS and FGER (Foreign Government Educational Representatives) met in order to present their perspectives on the current study abroad climate and actively exchange information. Within the meeting, the newly established Bureau for Overseas Studies at the French Embassy announced its intentions to join FGER. Furthermore, JAOS reported on the current state of its ‘JAOS Certified Counselor Training Course’ as well as information on the EN14804 Guidelines for ‘Language Study Tour Providers in Europe’. The meeting was attended by 42 JAOS members and 12 individuals from the following FGER organizations (American Embassy, Japan-U.S. Educational Commission, Australian Government’s Organization for International Education, Ireland’s Governmental Bureau for Business Affairs, New Zealand Embassy’s Section for Business Affairs, the British C