Number of University Students in Japan Tops 3 M. for 1st Time

Tokyo, Aug. 26 (Jiji Press)--The number of university students in Japan exceeded 3 million for the first time as of May 1, according to a preliminary fiscal 2026 school basic survey released by the education ministry on Wednesday.

The figure stood at 3,000,542, up 28,130 from the previous year.

The number of undergraduates rose by 18,357 to a record 2,664,194 and that of graduate students grew by 7,670 to 284,802, also a record high.

The number of female undergraduates hit a record high of 1,237,086, up 16,757. Female students accounted for more than 90 pct of the increase in the total number of undergraduates in the country.

The number of female university faculty members also reached a record high of 55,342, up 921. Their share of the total number of university faculty members rose by 0.5 percentage point to 28.7 pct, marking a record high.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]