The Japanese architectural society has extremely degenerated, being controlled by the construction Mafia of Japan. About half of all building designers in Japan are employed by construction companies as "salaried staff", putting the profits of their companies before the best interests of clients. Furthermore, most Japanese independent architects’ offices have become "joint-stock companies" (designated by Co.Ltd, PLC, or Inc.), which the JIA (Japanese Institute of Architects) has long been promoting ! The CEOs or presidents of these companies should not be called "architects" at all, but "businessmen".
Japanese journalism such as newspapers, other publications including, needless to say, architectural magazines, and broadcasting, are also under considerable control of the construction Mafia that is tightly connected with politicians and bureaucrats through political contributions and parachuting. I have been persecuted for more than 20 years by this Mafia because of my criticism of such corrupt situations in Japan; my books, even in cases in which I wrote only a part, are pevented from being published.
I recommend that foreign students, who want to become architects, should never come to Japan in order to study Architecture in Japanese universities, as they have, fundamentally, only departments of constructional engineering, with "Architecture" in name only, not providing the architectural training courses to bring up students to be genuine architects, but to be employees of construction companies.