Undergraduate physical education major programs in the United States and Japan were compared in terms of reform during the period 1972-74 to 1988-90. Two kinds of reform were studied: (1) change from single-track professional preparation to multiple-track preparation and (2) change from a nonacademic discipline-based program to an entirely academic discipline-based program. Data on 52 major programs in the United States were gathered from college catalogs. Data on 53 programs in Japan were gained from college catalogs and documents published by the Ministry of Education. Four programs in the United States sample had multiple tracks during the 1972-74 period, and 34 had multiple tracks during the 1988-90 period. Reform to multiple tracks had occurred in 30 (62.5%) of the 48 programs that were single-track in 1972-74. Two programs in the Japanese sample had multiple tracks during the early period, and 14 had multiple tracks during the later period. Reform to multiple tracks had occurred in 12 (23.5%) of the 51 programs that were single-track in 1972-74. No reform from a nonacademic discipline-based program to an entirely discipline-based program had occurred in either sample. One institution in the United States sample was in the process of changing to an entirely discipline-based program. A chi-square analysis tested the hypothesis that there was no difference between the samples in the proportion of programs that had undergone reform during the 15-year period. The analysis showed a significant difference between the samples at the .001 level, and the hypothesis was rejected. The most common major preparation emphasis for both samples during both periods was teacher education. Other tracks found in the U.S. sample in the later period included fitness specialization, sports management, sports communication, and athletic training. Other tracks found in the Japanese sample in the later period included social physical education, lifelong sports, and sports specialization. The current state of physical education programs in each country was discussed. It was concluded that currently, the main issue for U.S. programs overall is finding a balance between discipline-based academic education and professional career preparation. In Japan, the main issues were considered to be the creation of nonteaching professional tracks and the development of jobs for physical education graduates. / Graduation date: 1991