Private University Admission Fees: Explore System With Which Applicants Can Be Satisfied

Editorial

13:59 JST, November 11, 2025

With rising prices straining household budgets, many families feel burdened by the cost of sending their children to university. Universities are urged to reevaluate their admissions systems, with greater consideration for students.

Currently, it is standard practice for a student who is accepted to two or more universities to pay an admission fee to each institution. Recently, however, some universities have begun refunding these fees to students who decide to attend a different school.

Niigata Institute of Technology in Niigata Prefecture will refund the remainder of its ¥200,000 admission fee, after deducting administrative costs, for students who decide not to enroll during the admission process this academic year. In Osaka Prefecture, Momoyama Gakuin University will refund ¥180,000 of its ¥230,000 admission fee.

Many test takers and their parents will welcome such measures. According to an Education, Culture, Sports Science and Technology Ministry estimate, 20% of those who ultimately enroll in a university have also paid admission fees to other institutions they declined, creating a persistent issue known as “double payment.”

In 2006, the Supreme Court ruled that an admission fee is “a fee that gives a person the status to enter a university” and that universities do not have to refund such payments.

In contrast, the education ministry issued a notice to private universities nationwide in June this year, urging them to devise measures to reduce the burden of admission fees for people who decline to enroll. In the notice, the ministry encouraged such measures as refunding fees when the student’s place is expected to be taken by someone else or allowing applicants to pay in installments.

It used to be standard for entrance exams to be held after the New Year for April enrollment. However, different admission processes have recently become more widespread, such as evaluating applicants from a number of perspectives, and successful applicants are often determined before the New Year. The government likely grew concerned over the fact that students were applying to more universities and had to pay admission fees to a growing number of institutions.

For financially struggling families in particular, the burden of admission fees is significant. A survey covering university students found that over 10% of respondents opted not to take entrance exams that would require potential double payments.

Applying to universities also incurs tens of thousands of yen in test-taking fees as well as transportation costs and lodging expenses. It is undesirable for students to abandon their preferred institutions because they cannot afford to pay admission fees to more than one school.

However, refunding admission fees is a serious issue for universities. The admission fee signifies a successful applicant’s intent to enroll. If such applicants do not enroll and the university must also refund the fee, it represents a major financial blow.

It is crucial to explore a reasonable solution for both applicants and universities. For applicants, there is the benefit of securing enrollment at a school they were accepted to. One possible approach could be to refund half the admission fee.

The ministry has said it will soon survey how universities are handling this situation. This should serve as an opportunity for each university to consider anew the meaning and necessity of the admission fee.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 11, 2025)