Planned behaviour during university-to-work transitions: lived implications for Japan’s Support Project for creating social impact through the internationalisation of universities

Drawing on the Theory of Planned Behaviour and employing Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis, this study investigates how nine Japanese students at a Top Global University Project-affiliated college interpret and navigate educational-vocational transitions amid the nation’s ongoing internationalisation reforms. More specifically, by centring their lived experiences, we aim to generate recommendations for Japan’s Support Project for Creating Social Impact through the Internationalisation of Universities that better align with the realities and aspirations of globally minded learners. Despite attending an institution positioned to produce globally competent graduates, participants frequently described the systematic graduate recruitment process as constraining, homogeneous, and constrained by prevailing cultural norms. As such, a disjuncture emerges between policy rhetoric and lived experience. Additionally, while some participants expressed an intention to pursue alternative or global pathways, their perceived behavioural control was diminished by rigid expectations, institutional hierarchies, and limited support. We thereby argue that Japan’s Support Project must provide alternatives to conventional models, particularly through global career planning and entrepreneurial education. Although the idiographic design limits generalisability, the study nevertheless offers policy-relevant insights into the socio-cultural and institutional forces shaping trajectories in Japan’s ‘global’ educational landscape.