On August 28, 2026, the Council for the Establishment of Universities and School Corporations submitted its recommendations to the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology regarding the establishment of new universities, faculties, and departments in fiscal year 2027. The following were approved: 2 universities (2 private), 8 faculties (1 public, 7 private), 3 departments (3 private), 1 distance learning program within a junior college department (1 private), 6 graduate schools (2 public, 4 private), and 7 graduate schools (2 public, 5 private) to establish specializations or change their curriculum.
The two universities approved for establishment are Ota University of Medical Science (Ota City, Gunma Prefecture) and Chuo University of Medical Sciences (Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture), both of which will establish medical-related faculties. Of the eight universities approved for establishment of faculties, three are information science faculties, two are agriculture faculties, one is a semiconductor faculty, one is a regional development faculty, and one is a nursing faculty. Many of these faculties fall under the "digital and green fields," which the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology provides financial support for in order to cultivate science and engineering talent to lead growth sectors.
In this report, 11 schools (1 public and 10 private) are still under review (on hold), a trend similar to the 16 schools (1 public and 15 private) last year, indicating a high number of applications being put on hold. In addition, 21 schools (22 cases) (1 public and 20 private) withdrew their applications during the review process, a significant increase from the 10 schools (11 cases) (10 private) last year.
<Those that will be approved for establishment in fiscal year 2027> *Excerpt
●University establishment
Ota University of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences (Ota City, Gunma Prefecture)
Chuo Medical University, Faculty of Medical Sciences (Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture)
●Establishment of Faculty
Kumamoto Prefectural University, Faculty of Semiconductor Engineering (Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture)
Hokkaido University of Science, Faculty of Regional Creation (Sapporo, Hokkaido)
Hokusei Gakuen University, Faculty of Information Science (Sapporo, Hokkaido)
Seisen University, Faculty of Agriculture (Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture)
Ohka Gakuen University, Faculty of Information Science (Toyoake City, Aichi Prefecture)
Otemae University, Faculty of Human Information Science (Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture)
Hiroshima Shudo University, Faculty of Agriculture (Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture)
Kyushu International University, Faculty of Nursing (Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture)
●Department establishment
Showa University School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Medical Technology (Fujiyoshida City, Yamanashi Prefecture; Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture)
Fujita Health University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Biomedical Engineering Collaboration (Toyoake City, Aichi Prefecture)
Hijiyama University, Faculty of Contemporary Culture, Department of Fine Arts (Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture)
