This study is based on the belief that inquiry-based learning should be made an integral part of any student's learning, especially at university level. To find out the students' perceptions toward library user education, 426 questionnaire surveys have been collected from the Peking University (PKU), China and the University of Tsukuba (UT), Japan. The results of this study indicate that, compared with UT, PKU students on the whole expressed higher ratings in many areas toward the user education programs provided by their respective library, and they also had a more positive view about the professional competence of the user education (reference services) librarians. The researchers believed that the different perceptions found between the PKU and UT groups were a direct result of the distinctive learning practices and curricular requirements exercised between the two universities. There are not many articles that explore the relationship between inquiry-based learning and the library user education in Asia. The findings of this study are useful for identifying the different learning modes between these two groups of students, as well as other barriers that were preventing the library user education programs to be integrated into inquiry-based learning, and the university's core curriculum as a whole