Annual Unified University Entrance Exams Start in Japan

Tokyo, Jan. 17 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s annual two-day unified university entrance examinations started on Saturday at 650 venues across the country. A total of 496,237 final-year high school students and others are taking the exams. Applications for the exams were accepted online only in principle, starting this time. Geography, history, civics and language tests are scheduled for the first day, and science, math and informatics tests for the second day. According to the National Center for University Entrance Examinations, 813 schools, including 81 national universities, will use the results of the unified exams to make admission decisions. Preliminary average scores will be announced on Wednesday, and final figures will be released on Feb. 5. The test operator will also announce score adjustments among selective subjects, if necessary, to ensure fairness on Friday. Makeup exams will be held on Jan. 24-25 at a total of five venues in Tokyo and Kyoto. These exams will be available for those who could not take the exams this weekend due to accidents or illness. The exam operator has warned that, if it detects cheating, it could invalidate exam results and report to police. Holding smartphones and wearing earphones, smart watches and smart glasses can be considered as cheating. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]