University entry (大学受験) in Japan: the basics for foreign families外国から来た家族の大学受験の基本
Only the basics our sources support: how universities select, what the national standard fees are, and what to check if your child is not at a Japanese high school.
Who: After high school
What it is
April 2027 university entry (令和9年度) is not one national exam that admits you.
Dates and deadlines
Our timeline rules stop at high school, so there is no deadline here. The dates are in the guides below.
What it costs
Published figures only, each with its source. An average is not a bill.
- National university tuition, standard for a year: ¥535,800
- Admission fee, standard, once: ¥282,000
- Application fee, standard: ¥17,000
- A standard, not a bill: each national university sets its own fee from it.
- Common Test fee: ¥18,000 for 3 or more subject areas, ¥12,000 for 2 or fewer
Source: 令和9年度大学入学共通テスト実施要項（7 検定料）
Free tools
- Route budget, to university
Kindergarten through high school from the ministry survey, then the national university fee standard.
- Your child's path, by birth date
Which school year your child is in, and every window and exam date from hoikuen to high school.
Every guide for this step
4 guides, grouped by topic. Each one is checked against an official Japanese source.
From an international or foreign school
How university entry works
People also search
What parents type into Google or ask ChatGPT about this step, and the page on this site that answers it.
In English
Questions parents ask
Who decides whether my child gets into a university?
Passing is the university's decision. A legal right to apply is not an offer.
What is the comprehensive selection (総合型選抜)?
The comprehensive selection (総合型選抜) is a public application the student files on their own.
What is the school-recommendation selection (学校推薦型選抜)?
The school-recommendation selection (学校推薦型選抜) starts from the high-school principal's recommendation and the report. The student cannot file it by themselves.
What does a national university cost?
The national standard is ¥535,800 a year in tuition, ¥282,000 to enrol and ¥17,000 to apply. Each national university sets its own fee from it.
How much is the Common Test (共通テスト) fee?
¥18,000 for 3 or more subject areas, ¥12,000 for 2 or fewer.
Source: 令和9年度大学入学共通テスト実施要項（7 検定料）
Can a student from an international school apply to a Japanese university?
The Ministry of Education's guide separates two questions that families often fold together. The first is whether the student has the legal qualification to enter a Japanese university (大学入学資格). The second is whether a particular faculty will accept that student this year.
Can my child get a JASSO grant for university?
The grant scholarship (給付奨学金, kyūfu shōgakukin) from the Japan Student Services Organization, JASSO, does not have to be paid back. The pre-enrollment route is called reserved adoption (予約採用, yoyaku saiyō). You apply through the high school before you start university, a junior college, or a specialized-training college.
The other steps
- Before this step: Kōkō juken (high-school entrance)
- Every step, from hoikuen to university
What to do next
- Find your child's path: the free juken check
Free, no sign-in. The route that fits, what it costs and the deadlines on the way.
- See the season pass
Verified dates and fees for every school, a reminder before each deadline, unlimited questions.