This article analyzes a recent initiative of Japan’s Ministry of Education, which aims
to internationalize higher education in Japan. The large-investment project “Top Global
University Project” (TGUP) has emerged to create globally oriented universities, to increase
the role of foreign languages in higher education, and to foster global human resources. The
TGUP identifies 37 universities: 13 as “top global universities” intended to compete in the top
100 university world rankings and 24 “global traction universities” intended to lead the
internationalization of higher education in Japan. Despite the substantial funding behind this
initiative, little research has been conducted to evaluate the potential impact of this policy on
language planning in higher education in Japan. This paper addresses this gap in its exploration
of the TGUP, including key changes from previous internationalization policies. It then presents
an analysis of publicly available documents regarding the policy, collected from all 37 of the
participant universities. Findings indicate a positive departure from older policy trends and the
emergence of flexible, unique forms of English language education in Japan’s universities

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• Japan’s English-medium instruction initiatives and the globalization of higher education