JAGAM

In general, higher educational institutions in Japan announce their application procedures from June to August every year, for courses beginning in April.

Certain university departments (approx. 40 in total) allow students to commence programs in the second semester (in September or October.) The Information Center maintains a list of universities that accept student enrollments at times other than April. Inquire to the center for further information.

Each university has its own application procedure. In general, however, the documents that are required are as follows:

Application deadlines, procedures, application period and application documents differ by university and department, so you will have to check directly with the university you wish to attend for specific details. The earliest deadlines are in August of the previous year. When applying from overseas, bear in mind the time needed for postal mail delivery so that you can meet the deadline.

The Information Center maintains a list of institutes that give entrance permission before arriving in Japan. Inquire to the center for further information.

To enter a Japanese university, a student must pass that university’s entrance examination.

A large number of universities are adopting a special process for selecting international students, but in most cases they require applicants to sit for an examination in Japan. Approximately 70 faculties accept applications directly from outside Japan, 30 universities carry out entrance examinations in some areas outside Japan and 20 universities grant permission to enter based on documentation screening only. However, only a few universities are practicing it. Many universities base their selection decisions on the “Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students (EJU)” as explained in (1) below.
For information about each university’s examination date, examination subjects and treatment of results in the above-mentioned examinations, either request it from the university of your choice or see the “Shihi Gaikokujin Ryugakusei no tame no Daigaku Nyugaku Annai (Guide to University Entrance for Privately Financed International Students),” published in Japanese language every August by JASSO. (Refer to Chapter 16)

(1) Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students (EJU)
The EJU is a new examination introduced in 2002 by JASSO, and is considered as a part of the entrance examination for international students who wish to study at universities or other higher educational institutions in Japan. This examination is conducted in Japan twice annually in June and November, and is scheduled to be held in about 11 cities outside Japan mainly in the Asian region.
The examination subjects are “Japanese as a Foreign Language,” “Science (choice of two subjects from physics, chemistry and biology),” “Japan and the World” and “Mathematics (choice of Course 1 or Course 2).” The exam questions are available in Japanese and English. Applicants will take the examination on the subjects and in the language designated by the respective college or university.
JASSO will forward the examination results to the college or university to which the student makes an application, on the request of that institution.

Examinations in 2003 are scheduled on Sunday, June 15, and Sunday, November 16. Guidelines for the 2003 Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students are on Chapter 14.
Some of the universities consider the “Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students (EJU)” result and grades at senior high school without having students to sit for the university’s entrance examination*. Therefore, if you apply to such a university, you could receive permission to enter that university without leaving your home country and prior to arriving to Japan. For the list of such universities, refer to list of schools that offer admission before arriving Japan.
(https://www.jasso.go.jp/examination/efjuafis_baij.html)
*Examination to select privately financed international students.

(2) Japanese Language Proficiency Test
The Japanese Language Proficiency Test, which evaluates and certifies non-natives’ proficiency in the Japanese language, is organized by JASSO in Hokkaido, Miyagi, Tochigi, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Toyama, Nagano, Shizuoka, Aichi, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Hiroshima, Kagawa, Fukuoka, Oita and Okinawa, and by the Japan Foundation in 89 cities in 38 countries and territories around the world.
In 2003, the examination will be held on Sunday, December 7.
The results of the examination as part of the criteria to select applicants to be admitted to Japanese universities and other higher educational institutions has been discontinued as of the end of 2001. From 2002, in principle, the Japanese as a Foreign Language in “Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students (EJU)” has been replaced.
However, some universities do require this examination in selecting applicants for master’s courses and doctor’s courses.

(3) Examination of the National Center for University Entrance
Japanese students who wish to enter a national or local public university and some private universities are required to take the Examination of the National Center for University Entrance. Most universities exempt international students from this examination, but some universities, mainly medicine, dentistry and education departments, may require international students to comply.

(4) University examinations
Universities organize their entrance examinations by combining various kinds of examinations such as
1) document screening,
2) university-set scholastic ability tests,
3) interviews,
4) essays, and
5) competence and aptitude tests, etc.
Some applicants may have to take some of the examinations listed above. For further details of the examinations, please inquire as early as possible with the universities whose entrance examinations you wish to take.
Application deadlines, procedures, application period and application documents differ by university and department, so you will have to check directly with the university you wish to attend for specific details. The earliest deadlines are in August of the previous year. When applying from overseas, bear in mind the time needed for postal mail delivery so that you can meet the deadline.

The Information Center maintains a list of institutes that give entrance permission before arriving in Japan. Inquire to the center for further information.

Higher educational institutions in Japan conduct almost all their lessons in Japanese with a few exceptions. Some universities offer special courses aimed at obtaining degrees or short-term study programs in English.

A list of universities offering such courses is available from JASSO’s web site (https://www.jasso.go.jp) as well as its Chapter 18.

Auditors are students who attend specific subjects to study without obtaining credit. In some universities they are known as “departmental research students.” Unlike auditors, credit-earning students will earn credit in the subject they study.

The participation requirements for such students and the number of subjects (credits) offered vary from university to university. However, to obtain the status of residence of “college student,” special students such as auditors and credit-earning students are required by law (the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act) to attend at least 10 hours (600 min.) of classes per week.

The Information Center maintains a list of universities that offer special student enrolment. Please inquire to the center for further information.

Transfers from one university to another are not common in Japan. Approximately 40 national, 10 local public and 140 private universities have a transfer system that targets international students. Among those, about as few as 50 universities hold special transfer entrance examinations for international students, and others impose the same examination as for Japanese students wishing to transfer.

Occasionally junior college graduates, college of technology graduates, who obtained the qualification of “technical associate” by completing a postsecondary course at a specialized training college, those who have completed one or two years of general education at institution, and graduates of four-year universities transfer to another university to enter a degree course (transfer as a junior-year undergraduate) to change their major, but details of acceptance of transfer students differ according to university, including some universities not recruiting transfer students depending on the year although they have such systems.

The Information Center maintains a list of universities that have transfer systems. Inquire to the center for further information.

The majority of short-term study programs in Japan are less than one year. Students coming to Japan for short-term study are mostly on exchange programs based on student-exchange agreements, but there are individual students who come to Japan for specific purposes.
The contents of the short-term study programs are various.

1. Levels:
1. Undergraduate departments
2. Graduate courses

2. Language of instruction:
1. Japanese only
2. English only
3. Japanese and English

3. Subjects:
1. Japanese
2. Research subjects on Japan
3 .Humanities and social studies subjects
4. Natural science subjects
5. Science and engineering subjects
(Some universities have established special classes for short-term international students while others accept them in regular courses offered in faculties and departments. The status of students is diverse, such as exchange student, auditor or credit-earning student.)

(1) Exchange programs
Recently Japanese universities are increasingly establishing short-term study programs (exchange programs) to enable international students to study in Japan for one semester or one year with the purpose of earning credits while maintaining student status of their university back home. Students who wish to join such programs must apply through their universities at home. Inquiries concerning application procedures, costs and other details should be made to the relevant office of your university.

In the case of international students coming to Japan to study on the basis of a student-exchange agreement between universities or similar accord, the “JASSO Short Term Student Exchange Promotion Program” scholarships are available. JASSO provides round-trip travel expenses, scholarships and other assistance to international students. Application for this program has to be made through a university in a student’s home country.

(2) Other short-term studies
In the case of a short-term study program that is not an exchange agreement between universities, or research students or auditors, etc., inquiries should be made to the school of one’s choice after obtaining the list of universities from JASSO’s web site (https://www.jasso.or.jp) as well as Chapter 18.

It is recommended to confirm with one’s home institution concerning the handling of credits earned.
Only a few students are eligible to receive scholarships if they are studying in Japan not on the basis of a student-exchange agreement between universities.

An undergraduate student must study at a university for four years (six years in the case of medicine, dentistry and veterinary science) and acquire the necessary number of credits to graduate.

Most universities require at least 124 credits (in principle, medicine and dentistry departments require at least 188 credits, and veterinary departments require at least 182 credits) for graduation. Upon graduation, students receive a “bachelor’s degree.”

Generally speaking, degrees obtained in Japan are on a par with those obtained in other countries, although this rule varies by country or major field. Students who wish to seek employment with their home government as public servants or employment with private companies should consult their appropriate offices, as they may have their own rules about authorizing foreign degree recognition, and make decisions accordingly.