University entrance exam in Japan for international students

 University entrance exam in Japan for international students

Most universities in Japan have entrance exams specifically for international students and often require you to submit EJU scores for first-round consideration.

Mr. Nguyen Duy Anh is currently the President of the NPO organization of the Vietnamese Association in Fukuoka and the President of the GAG ​​Japanese Language Institute in Japan. Mr. Duy Anh is the first Vietnamese principal in this country.

According to the 34-year-old teacher, most Japanese universities use the results of the EJU (exam for international students) for admission, especially national and top universities. Candidates can take the test in their own country without going directly to Japan for the entrance exam.

GAG has 100-150 students participating in EJU depending on the year. The number of students who pass into university accounts for 30%-40%, colleges about 5%, 40% attend professional intermediate schools, the rest work at Japanese companies.

After two years of the epidemic, the number of international students (from Vietnam, China, Nepal, Srilanka, Mongolia...) has decreased due to the policy of restricting entry to fight the epidemic. As a result, the number of people taking the exam in Japan has decreased, leading to a decrease in the rate of admission to the top universities, and an opportunity for those who want to take the exam to the top schools in Japan.

What is EJU?

EJU stands for Examination for Japanese University Admission, to assess academic ability to attend universities and graduate schools in Japan. The Examination for Studying in Japan (EJU) is held both inside and outside of Japan twice a year (June and November), starting from 2002.

Most universities in Japan have an entrance exam specifically for international students, and this exam usually requires the submission of EJU scores for first-round consideration. After that, you usually have to take a separate exam, write an essay and/or interview at the school.

Example: Submit EJU score + written exam + interview

Submit EJU score + English score (TOEFL,TOEIC, IELTS) + written test + interview

Submit EJU score + school's own exam

You'll need to check the specific requirements listed on each school's admissions file. Anyone can register for the EJU exam without age or number of exams. You can take the test multiple times and submit the highest score. Typically, EJUs are valid for two years. Since it is held twice a year in June and November, when you submit your results for the university entrance exam, you can submit the results of up to four exams (the highest scoring period can be selected). However, some schools only receive EJU results within the past year.

What subjects does EJU take, for how long, and what is the maximum score?

Except for Japanese subject, which must be taken in Japanese, the remaining subjects you can choose to test in Japanese or English (corresponding exam questions will be written in two languages). But because almost all exam preparation materials are in Japanese and many schools only accept test results in Japanese, most candidates choose the test language as Japanese.

Exam subjects for the Examination for Japanese Students (EJU):

- Japanese: Assessment of Japanese language proficiency (Academic Japanese) required to study or research at Japanese universities. The test is 125 minutes long and consists of three parts: reading comprehension (0-200 points), listening comprehension - listening and reading comprehension (0-200 points) and essay (0-50 points).

Sequence and time: Essay (30 minutes) → Reading Comprehension (40 minutes) → Listening Comprehension → Listening Comprehension (55 minutes total).

Natural subjects:

Assessment of the basic knowledge level of natural science subjects (Physics, Chemistry, Biology) required to study in the fields of natural sciences in Japanese universities. The test time is 80 minutes and the score is 0-200. Candidates choose two of the three subjects above (100 points each) to take the exam depending on the requirements of the university that wants to take the exam.

General Sociology

Assessment of the basic knowledge of social sciences, especially the thinking and reasoning abilities required to study at Japanese universities, including knowledge of history, geography, and politics , Socioeconomic. The test time is 80 minutes and the scale is 0-200 points.

Math

Assess the level of basic knowledge of Mathematics required to study at Japanese universities. There are two types of Maths: Math 1 and Math 2 (choose one of them). If you are studying social science, candidates will take the Math 1 exam, and those who study nature will take the Math 2 exam. The test time is 80 minutes and the score is 0-200 points.

Since EJU's Japanese language test is considered more difficult than JLPT N1 (the highest level of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test), if you want to get a high score in this subject to be able to take the national university entrance exam, you should have JLPT N2 level before you start studying for EJU. This also makes it easier to learn the remaining subjects like Math, Society, and Nature.

Note, EJU does not have pass or fail results, only scores. Depending on how high or low your score is, the university you can apply to will also change. There are schools that require your EJU score to meet certain requirements to receive your application, so when you make an application, you need to carefully review the specific requirements of each school.