The 2023 entrance exam will be even tougher than the previous year. Will English departments of the 2024 entrance examination “general selection” be the target?

The final results of the 2023 entrance examination have been published on the website. A total of 1 private women's universities in Tokyo and 3 prefectures (all 30 universities) show that the enrollment capacity for the 2022 entrance examination was 97.5%, but for the 2023 entrance examination, it has deteriorated to 91.4%.

Among the women's colleges, the toughest results were in three departments: English departments, nutrition departments, and children's departments.Especially for English departments, even women's universities with high deviation scores have a difficult result in terms of capacity sufficiency rate.One reason is that the number of applicants for this field has decreased due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, but it is also thought that there is a flow of applicants to the "International Studies Department", which also includes elements of social sciences.However, from this year onwards, the situation has returned to what it was before the COVID-2024 pandemic, so from the next academic year onwards, applicants for English departments may return.For prospective students, English departments may be a target in the general selection for the XNUMX entrance examination.

In 2023, 1 out of 3 women's universities in Tokyo and 30 prefectures have reached capacity. Joshibi University of Art and Design will increase the number of students in 13, and Jissen Women's University will increase the number of students in 2023.

For the 2023 entrance examination, 1 out of 3 private women's universities in Tokyo and 30 prefectures have secured their enrollment capacity (see the table below).It is true that recruitment is becoming stricter for women's colleges as a whole, but there are also colleges that are actually increasing their enrollment capacity. In the 13 academic year, Joshibi University of Art and Design will establish a new department of co-creative design with 2023 students, increasing the number of students. In the 60 academic year, Jissen Women's University will newly establish the Faculty of International Studies and reorganize the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.

2024 and 2025 are likely to be major reform years for women's universities

The following is a summary of the 3 and 2024 reorganizations and entrance examination changes of major women's universities in Tokyo and 2025 prefectures, including national universities.Nationwide, there are more and more reorganizations of science, engineering, and agriculture fields that receive financial support from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, but women's universities are not only reorganizing existing faculties, but also undergoing major changes in entrance examinations.Kagawa Nutrition University, Showa Women's University, Kyoritsu Women's University, and Tokyo Women's Medical University have yet to announce any plans to reorganize. In 2025, the number of 18-year-olds will increase, albeit slightly, and the entrance exams for new courses will be held, so plans for new establishments and reorganizations are expected to be announced in the years to come.

●Ochanomizu University
2024 Co-Creative Engineering Faculty established

●Tsuda College
AY 2024 New Comprehensive Selection System in the Department of Multicultural and International Cooperation, Faculty of Arts and Sciences
AY 2025 Allow transgender students (women with gender identity) to be eligible to take entrance exams at all undergraduate and graduate schools

● Tokyo Women's Christian University
Academic Year 2024 Common Curriculum Reform
2024 Faculty of Contemporary Liberal Arts Department of Mathematical Science Department of Information and Mathematical Science Established
2025 University-wide department restructuring

● Japan Women's University
2024 Establishment of Faculty of Architectural Design
2025 Faculty of Gastronomy Established
2025 entrance examination change [general selection (university entrance common test type (5 subjects in the first semester)) new]

● Otsuma Women's University
2024 entrance examination change
2025 Establishment of Faculty of Data Science (Chiyoda Campus)

Jissen Women's University
2024 New Faculty of International Studies (Shibuya Campus)
In 2024, the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences will be reorganized into a three-department system (New Department of Social Design & Change of name from Department of Contemporary Sociology to Department of Business Sociology & Increase in number of students)
2025 Establishment of Faculty of Environmental Design

●University of the Sacred Heart
2025 entrance examination change [New introduction of common test]

● Seisen Women's University
2024 Comprehensive selection <exclusive application system> newly established
2024 General A schedule New 3 subject selection method added to the existing 2 subject type General B schedule (common test combined type) newly established
2025 Reorganization of the Faculty of Letters (choose from the humanities and social sciences)

● Gakushuin Women's College
2025 entrance examination change [general A method mathematics selection possible, etc.]
After 2026 Integration with Gakushuin University

● Ferris University
2024 entrance examination change (comprehensive selection II new, general selection entrance examination schedule change)
2025 University-wide Reform

● Joshibi University of Art and Design
2024 Reorganization of the Faculty of Arts Establishment of the Art and Design Department of Expression, Space Expression, etc.

Shirayuri Women's University
2024 Self-recommendation entrance examination newly established, general selection divided into three types, etc.

● Atomi Gakuen Women's University
2024 Faculty of Tourism and Community, Department of Urban Development (department name changed from Department of Community Design)

●Jumonji Gakuen Women's University
2024 benefit special treatment challenge entrance examination newly established (implemented in December)

● Seitoku University
Fiscal 2024 Establishment of a new “global special treatment” system for comprehensive selection and school recommendation selection

*As of August 2023, 8, researched by US Research Institute for Advanced Studies

1 Entrance Examination for Private Women's Universities in Tokyo and 1 Prefectures

Shirayuri Women's University and Phyllis Jogakuin University have moved forward their entrance examination dates or set new entrance examination dates for the end of January in the 1 entrance examinations for women's universities in Tokyo and three prefectures, following the same trend as the 3 entrance examinations.As a result, the number of January entrance examination schedules has increased, and 2024 out of 2023 universities (Tokyo Women's College of Physical Education, Otsuma Women's University, Sacred Heart Women's University, Joshibi University of Art and Design, Japan Women's University, Jissen Women's University, Tokyo Women's University, Tsuda College, Japan Women's College of Physical Education). The entrance examination date for the 1 general selection will begin on January 1, one week after the common test is conducted, and many universities that have general selection by January 2 will start the entrance examination for coeducational universities29. The result will be announced one day before.

The number of science, engineering, agriculture, and information departments is increasing at women's universities

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's subsidies for the expansion of science departments and scholarships for private science, engineering and agriculture departments under the new study support system, although there is an annual income limit, have been added. It is active.In addition, many women's quotas have been announced, mainly in the mechanical and electrical departments of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and science-related women in particular are attracting attention.

Nine women's universities nationwide have been selected as support 9 (conversion to specific growth fields through reorganization of faculties, etc.) of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's "Support Project for Strengthening the Functions of Universities and Technical Colleges."Faculty of Data Science, Otsuma Women's University (planned to be established in 2025), Department of Architectural Design, Faculty of Architectural Design, Japan Women's University (to be established in 2024), Department of Information Design, Faculty of Information Society, Sugiyama Jogakuen University (application for establishment in 2024), Ohka Gakuen University Department of Educational Data Science, Faculty of Information Science (coeducational from 2024, year of establishment unknown), Faculty of Food and Agriculture Science, Kyoto Women's University (year of establishment unknown), Kyoto Koka Women's University Department of Food and Life Science (year of establishment unknown), Mukogawa Women's University Faculty of Environmental Symbiosis, Department of Environmental Symbiosis (unknown year of establishment), Faculty of Information Design, Notre Dame Seishin Women's University (application for establishment in 2024), Faculty of Science and Technology, Yasuda Women's University (Department of Biological Science, Department of Information Science, Department of Architecture, planned to be established in 2025) .Applications can be made from the next academic year onward, so it is expected that the number of science, engineering, agriculture, and information departments will continue to increase at women's universities.

At national universities, the Faculty of Co-Creative Engineering at Ochanomizu University is scheduled to be newly established in April 2024. The feature is that "mathematics" is not required.

In this way, especially in the case of information-related departments, there may be multiple entrance exams that do not require mathematics. Application guidelines for new faculties in 2024 will be announced after September 2023.In particular, the entrance exam subjects for information-related departments are attracting attention.