In order to support students in orphanages who are in financial difficulty, the Japan Student Services Organization has decided to establish a new system to support the cost of taking the exam before enrollment.

It has been pointed out that securing examination fees, which are estimated to cost around 30,1 yen for students who grew up in orphanages or foster parents, is a barrier to going to university.

For this reason, the Japan Student Services Organization, which provides scholarships and other support to students nationwide, has decided to establish a new system to support the cost of taking the exam for such students.

The amount of support is 20,2 yen per person, and we will start accepting applications from May for students who graduate next spring or within two years of graduation on the condition that they do not get a job after graduating from high school and wish to go on to a university or vocational school.

Although the national system provides scholarships and tuition exemptions for students with financial difficulties, this is the first time that support for pre-enrollment examination fees has been provided on a nationwide scale.

According to a national survey, as of 5, 2020% of students go on to universities and vocational schools, but only 74% of students go on to orphanages.

According to the Japan Student Services Organization, "As the grade increases, the number of students in orphanages who wish to go on to higher education decreases, and we can support about 33,2000 students a year based on donations, so we would like to continue to support all students who wish to go on to higher education."

The active enrollment rate of students in orphanages is 33%

According to a survey conducted in 2020 by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on the rate of active enrollment in universities and vocational schools, 74.3% of all households and 33% of students in orphanages.

In addition, according to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in 2021, ▽ 66.5% of single-mother households and ▽ 57.9% of single-father households.

How much does the exam cost?

As a result of a survey conducted by the Japan Finance Corporation last fiscal year on how much it costs to take the entrance examination for universities, etc., it is estimated that the examination fee, transportation and accommodation expenses are ▽ 27,7000 yen for national and public universities, ▽ 31,3000 yen for liberal arts students of private universities, and ▽ 32,2000 yen for science majors of private universities.

Of these, the common test for university admissions is 3,1 yen for taking three subjects, the second exam for national and public universities is 8000,2 yen on average per school, and the average for private universities is 2,3 yen per school.

In a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare up to 2021, when students who grew up in orphanages were asked about their anxieties and worries before leaving the facility, 47.9% said "living expenses and school fees," 39.9% said "work," and 34.5% said "the future."

Even after leaving the facility, "living expenses and tuition fees" was the most common at 34.3%, and financial anxiety was consistently noticeable before and after going on to higher education.

In addition, in a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in 2018, when asked about their desire to go on to university, 3.37% answered "yes" in the third year of junior high school, but ▽ 6.3% of students in the third year of high school and the fourth year of the part-time system wanted to go on to higher education, which is about 4 points lower.

NPO Representative: "Children can challenge higher goals"

Keiko Hayashi, the representative of Bridge Force Mile, an NPO that surveys and supports young people from orphanages, said of the advancement of students who grew up in orphanages, "It is difficult to contribute money freely because they cannot rely on their parents and the facilities are operated at public expense. There were times when I narrowed down the schools I took the exam to or gave up on going on to higher education."

"I believe that this support will give children a big boost and will allow them to take on higher goals. If you are told from the elementary and junior high school stage that you can go on to higher education, you will naturally be able to go on to higher education, so it is important to continue to properly convey information to children."

He added, "Support after leaving institutions has expanded in the past few years, and some children who were not able to receive support before that time do not have the opportunity to properly build their careers without sufficient support.