
Gradual Rise in Women Passing Professional National Examinations in Japan
Society Gender and Sex Education- English
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According to data published by the Gender Equality Bureau of Japan’s Cabinet Office, 3,110 women passed the National Examination for Medical Practitioners, representing 33.7% of all successful candidates. In other national examinations, 389 (27.7%) women passed the National Bar Examination, 327 (22.5%) the Certified Public Accountant Examination, and 60 (31.1%) the Patent Attorney Examination.
The chart below shows the change in percentages of women who passed national examinations over the last three decades. This shows a 10-percentage point rise in the rate of women who passed in medical practitioner exams in 2022, compared with 1995. A 7.9-point rise was seen for the pass rate in bar exams and a 21.6-point increase for patent attorney exams. The percentage of women who passed CPA exams remained relatively steady.
As of 2020, women accounted for 22.8% of all doctors, 24.8% of dentists, 65.2% of pharmacists, and 33.3% of veterinarians. In 2000, the percentage of women veterinarians was at 14.8%, but the next 20 years saw an 18.5-point rise.
In contrast, the rate of women serving on the boards of professional associations remains low. At 24.0% of board members, the Japan Federation of Bar Associations has the highest participation by women. Involvement of women in the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants is 18.0%, followed by 9.4% for the Japan Pharmaceutical Association, 8.8% for the Japan Medical Association, 8.3% for the Japan Veterinary Medical Association, and 7.4% for both the Japan Dental Association and the Japan Patent Attorneys Association.
(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)