Overview
Koukou nyushi (高校入試) is the entrance examination junior high school graduates in Japan sit to move on to senior high school (koukou). Senior high school is not legally compulsory, but a place depends entirely on passing this gate, taken at the end of grade 9 (the third and final year of junior high school). Two separate systems run side by side: public high schools, where each prefecture's board of education sets and administers a standardised test used across its own public schools, and private high schools, where each school designs and marks its own entrance test independently. A student's junior high school channels the whole process — applications, recommendations and the school transcript — rather than the student applying alone. This file covers senior high school entry; the separate entrance exams some students sit earlier, to move from elementary into a private or national-university-affiliated junior high school, are a distinct, earlier gate and are not covered here.
Note
This file was researched from English-language prefectural guidance documents (Tokyo, Saitama) and secondary educational summaries, not a direct certificate-verified fetch of a national MEXT page in this session — there is no single national koukou nyushi authority to cite, since each prefecture and each private school runs its own process. Exact subjects, weighting and dates vary by prefecture and by school; confirm the current cycle with the specific prefecture's board of education or the target private school before relying on figures here.
Who can apply
Students completing grade 9 of junior high school (chuugakkou), normally around age 15, are eligible to sit koukou nyushi for admission the following April. A student applies through their junior high school, which forwards the application, the school transcript (naishinsho) and, where relevant, a recommendation to the receiving high school or prefectural board. Public high school admission is generally organised around the prefecture a student's junior high school is registered in, though some prefectures allow applications across prefecture borders under specific conditions. Private high schools set their own eligibility and application rules and can be approached directly, regardless of prefecture.
Exam pattern
Two broad admission routes exist for public high schools, and private high schools run their own separate process:
| Route | Who it's for | Based on |
|---|---|---|
| Recommendation (suisen nyushi) | Students recommended by their junior high school principal, applying to the school as their first choice | School transcript (naishinsho), an interview, and often a short essay — no written achievement test |
| General (ippan nyushi) | All other applicants to public high schools | A written achievement test plus the school transcript (naishinsho) |
| Private school exam | Applicants to a specific private high school | A test the school designs itself, plus often an interview |
For public high schools' general route, the written test is typically 5 subjects set at the prefecture level: Japanese language, mathematics, English, science and social studies, each usually marked out of 100. Private high schools commonly test 3 subjects — Japanese, mathematics and English — though the exact subjects, number of papers and use of an interview are each school's own decision. Some private schools hold more than one test date for the same intake, including a later date if places remain open after the first round.
Marking and results
Public high school admission combines two separate inputs: the written test score from the exam day, and the naishinsho, the junior high school's confidential cumulative report on the student's grades, attitude and conduct, and extracurricular record built up over junior high school. Subject grades inside the naishinsho are commonly recorded on a 5-point scale per subject; summed across a student's subjects this becomes a single transcript score that is combined with the exam score into one admission total. How heavily the transcript counts against the exam score is set by each prefecture and can also depend on the course or school applied to — it is not a fixed national ratio. For the recommendation route, there is no separate written test score; the decision rests on the naishinsho together with the interview and essay. Private high schools set their own weighting between their own test, any interview, and the junior high transcript they request.
Important dates
Timing is set by each prefecture (for public schools) and each school (for private schools), so dates shift by region and by year, but the general shape of a school year ending March repeats:
Around October–November of grade 9: students and families narrow down target schools.
December: junior high schools finalise the year's transcript (naishinsho) figures used in applications.
Early January onward: private high school exams begin, generally running from late January into February.
January–February: public high school recommendation-route (suisen) applications and exams are held, typically before the general route.
February–March: public high school general-route (ippan) written exams are held, with results and enrolment procedures following before the new school year starts in April.
How to apply
For public high schools, a student applies through their own junior high school, which submits the naishinsho and the application to the prefectural board of education or the receiving school, following that prefecture's published guidance and deadlines. Most prefectures limit how many public schools, or which combination of course types, a student can apply to in one cycle. For private high schools, a student (with their junior high school's support in preparing the transcript) applies directly to the school, which sets its own deadlines, required documents and number of exam dates. Students frequently sit a private school exam as a backup or first-choice option ahead of, or alongside, their public school application, since the two systems run on overlapping but distinct timelines.
After the exam
A student who passes is admitted to that senior high school's incoming class, starting the 3-year senior high (koukou) track from April. Senior high school itself is not compulsory, but entry depends on this gate — MEXT figures cited in related guidance put the advancement rate from junior high into some form of senior high schooling at around 98%. A student who does not gain a place in their first round may apply to schools with remaining places in a later recruitment round, where prefectures or schools offer one. Admission to university after senior high school is a separate, later gate (university entrance examinations) and is not decided by koukou nyushi.
Preparation tips
Confirm the current cycle's subjects, test dates and the exam-to-transcript weighting with the specific prefecture's board of education (for public schools) or the school itself (for private schools) — none of this is set nationally.
Keep track of the naishinsho across junior high school rather than only in the final year, since in many prefectures it is built from grades recorded over more than one year.
Decide early whether a private school exam will be sat as a backup, a first choice, or alongside the public school application, since private exam dates often fall earlier than public ones.
If applying for the recommendation route, check the specific requirements (grade thresholds, conduct record, or activity record) the target school sets, since it replaces the written test rather than supplementing it.
How is this different from Japan's junior high school entrance exams?
Koukou nyushi is sat at the end of junior high school (grade 9, around age 15) and decides admission to senior high school. A separate, earlier set of entrance exams exists for students applying from elementary school into a private or national-university-affiliated junior high school — that is a distinct process with its own schools, timing and tests, and is not covered in this file.
Do all students have to take a written exam?
Not necessarily. Students admitted through a public high school's recommendation route (suisen nyushi) are assessed on their school transcript, an interview and often an essay, without a separate written achievement test. Students applying through the general route, or to most private high schools, do sit a written test set by the prefecture or the individual school.
Does the exam score alone decide admission to a public high school?
No. Public high school admission combines the written exam score with the naishinsho, the junior high school's cumulative transcript of grades, conduct and activities. How much weight each part carries is set by the prefecture and can vary by school or course, so the exam score by itself is not the whole decision.
Can a student apply to both a public and a private high school?
Yes. Public and private admission run as separate processes with their own applications and, usually, different timelines, so students commonly sit a private school's exam — often earlier — alongside their public school application, using the private offer as a backup or as their actual first choice.