JAPAN

Tokyo denied an increase in private university students

The education ministry has decided not to let enrolment rise at private universities based in Tokyo’s densely populated 23 wards, in principle, starting from next April, reports JIJI.

According to informed sources the ministry will shortly present the details of the regulatory change in a draft revision to a ministry notice regarding the establishment of universities, and solicit comments from the public. The move is aimed at rectifying the concentration of young people in the capital.

According to sources familiar with the ministry’s thinking, the draft revision will state clearly that no increase in private universities’ enrolment capacities will be permitted in the 23 wards. Universities that have already made formal decisions to raise enrolment limits and begun preparations for expansion, including land purchases, will be treated as an exception, the sources said.
Full report on The Japan Times site