EJU Exam Guide: Subjects, Scores, 2026–2027 Dates and Where to Sit It

The EJU (Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students, 日本留学試験) is the entrance exam international applicants take for Japanese-taught degrees at Japanese universities. JASSO, Japan's student services organisation, holds two sessions a year, in June and November. You sit only the subjects your target faculty asks for — Japanese as a Foreign Language, Mathematics, Science or "Japan and the World" — and receive scores rather than a pass or fail. Scores stay valid for two years. There is no single pass mark, and the exam is held only in Japan and 17 Asian cities: the Russian venue closed in 2024, and there is none in Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan.

The practical questions come first: where to sit the exam without a venue at home and what it costs, whether your route needs it at all, which session to choose and how to plan for an April 2028 start, and how to register. After that: how the exam is built, how scores work and how universities use them.

EJU at a glance

Dollar amounts use the ECB reference rate of 29 September 2026 (USD 1 ≈ JPY 157.1), rounded.

Where to sit the EJU from Russia, Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan

JASSO's overseas venue page states that the EJU has not been offered in Russia (Vladivostok) since 2024. There are no venues in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan or anywhere else in Central Asia. Outside Japan it runs in 17 cities in 13 countries and regions, all in Asia: Hong Kong, New Delhi, Jakarta and Surabaya, Kuala Lumpur, Ulaanbaatar, Yangon, Manila, Seoul and Busan, Singapore, Colombo, Taipei, Bangkok and Chiang Mai, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

There are three realistic options.

1. Sit it in Japan while at language school. The most common path: you arrive on a student visa and take the EJU at a Japanese venue. Schools often register students as a group and help with payment and the exam voucher. See our overview of Japanese language schools.
2. Travel to an overseas venue such as Seoul, Busan or Ulaanbaatar. JASSO allows this if you have a proxy in that country to collect the form, pay the fee and receive the voucher; you understand the language used for instructions in the exam room; and you arrange entry yourself. Neither JASSO nor its representatives issue visa documents.
3. Fly to Japan just for the exam. JASSO permits it, but vouchers for exams in Japan are mailed only to Japanese addresses, so someone in Japan must receive it for you, and you arrange a short-term visa yourself. For applicants from Russia this is the costliest and riskiest option.

There is also a workaround: for applicants from countries where the EJU is not offered, some universities accept JLPT results instead. JASSO mentions the practice, but the decision rests with each university, so check its guidelines before planning a trip to an exam venue.

How much it costs

The Japanese fee includes postage for the voucher. Once paid it is not refunded or transferred to a later session, and changing subjects during the application period means paying again. Two and three subjects cost the same. Korean fees are converted at the ECB rate of 29 September 2026 (USD 1 ≈ KRW 1,353).

Does your route need the EJU?

If you are still choosing a route, start with our guides to a bachelor's in Japan and English-taught degrees in Japan.

2026–2027 dates: which session to choose

Overseas application windows match Japan's, but each local representative sets the exact procedure. The window lasts about a month and opens three to four months before the exam.

Choosing a session: most Japanese universities select April entrants over the winter, so the November session of the previous year is usually the last chance. The June session suits autumn intakes and works as a rehearsal. Results must be out before the university's application deadline.

A 12-month plan to the November session

Example for an applicant targeting a Japanese-taught bachelor's from April 2028 and sitting the EJU in November 2027.

Many applicants from Russia take the subject tests in English so that their effort goes into the Japanese section rather than into terminology — possible only where the university allows English questions.

How to register

In Japan, you apply through EJU Online during the application period, uploading a face photo without a hat or background taken within the last six months. Payment is by card, at a convenience store or by bank transfer. Schools and organisations can apply as a group; the group coordinator may see members' scores only with their written consent.

Outside Japan, you get the form from the local JASSO representative in the exam city and submit it in person or by post (online in a few cities) with three photos of 4 × 3 cm taken within six months. After submission you cannot change subjects, question language or venue.

Step by step:

1. List the EJU requirements of 3–5 target programmes: subjects, maths course, question language, accepted sessions.
2. Merge them into one set; where they differ, choose the combination that covers the most programmes.
3. Pick the venue and session so that results arrive before university deadlines.
4. Apply within the window and keep the exam voucher: you need it to enter the exam and to apply to universities.
5. Check your scores in EJU Online and quote your registration number in applications.

What the exam consists of

Three rules that trip people up:

• Science and Japan and the World are in the same time slot, so you can take only one of them.
• Science means two of three subjects (physics, chemistry, biology), chosen on the exam day. Answer only one and the section is not graded.
• The maths course is also chosen on the day. Course 1 covers Japanese high-school Mathematics I and A; Course 2 adds II, B, III and C.

The question language for Mathematics, Science and Japan and the World is fixed in your application and cannot be changed afterwards. Many universities prescribe it, so read the faculty's rules first.

The exam day in Japan runs: Japanese 9:30–12:00, Science or Japan and the World 13:30–15:00, Mathematics 15:40–17:10. Within the Japanese test, writing (30 minutes) comes first, then reading (40 minutes), then listening and listening-reading (about 55 minutes).

What changed from 2026

From the first 2026 session, revised syllabuses apply to Science, Japan and the World and Mathematics, aligned with Japan's new high-school curriculum. In chemistry, enthalpy replaced thermochemical equations and solubility product was added; biology added ecosystems and human activities; both maths courses added expected value, and Course 2 added probability distributions. Japan and the World is essentially unchanged in scope, with new topic headings such as "Regions of the modern world" and "The post-Cold War world". If you study from older books, check them against the current JASSO syllabuses.

How scoring works

The EJU never says pass or fail. Every scale except writing uses equated scores: JASSO adjusts for the difficulty of each test version so that 80 points in June means the same as 80 in November. The share of correct answers therefore does not convert directly into your final score.

Writing is marked on fixed values: 0, 10, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 or 50. A blank or off-topic answer, among other things, scores zero.

Scores are valid for two years, so a university can see up to four of your latest sessions. Within that window it may accept only specific sessions — for example, only the November before entry. You check your own results in EJU Online, and universities request scores from JASSO directly.

What EJU score do you need?

There is no official pass mark. Each university decides, often combining the EJU with its own exam, an interview and school grades. Useful reference points from primary sources:

• Study in Japan (JASSO's portal) gives a benchmark for Japanese-taught undergraduate and junior college programmes: at least 250 on the EJU Japanese section plus JLPT N1 or N2.
• APU accepts, for its 2027 Japanese-basis track, an EJU score of at least 250 in reading and listening plus at least 30 in writing — both minimums apply. Alternatives are JLPT N1 with 100+ or N2 with 120+.
• JASSO publishes a pre-arrival admission table with the "acceptance level" and minimum scores for applying at universities that agreed to disclose them (July–October 2025 survey). JASSO itself notes that these are only part of the picture, since decisions also rest on documents and interviews.

Competitive faculties at national universities admit well above any published minimum. The practical approach is to look for past statistics or minimums in the university's guidelines and aim with a margin.

How universities use scores, and pre-arrival admission

"Using the EJU" means the university obtains your scores from JASSO and considers them in selection, often alongside its own exam, an interview or a document review. JASSO's lists show which institutions use the EJU and with which subjects, though JASSO warns that institutions not on the lists may use it too.

Some institutions decide before you arrive in Japan. As of August 2026 this pre-arrival admission is offered by 112 universities (24 national, 4 public and 84 private), 6 graduate schools, 51 colleges of technology, 83 professional training colleges and 14 other institutions. You sit the EJU abroad with the subjects and language the university specifies, send your documents and receive a decision without travelling for entrance tests. For applicants from Russia this still means sitting the EJU in an Asian city.

Scholarship for high scorers

Privately financed applicants with exceptionally high EJU scores are selected by JASSO for the reservation programme of the Monbukagakusho Honors Scholarship: $304 (JPY 48,000) a month, an amount that may change each academic year. You tick the option when registering for the EJU; there is no separate competition. For other funding see our guides to the MEXT scholarship and scholarships abroad.

EJU vs JLPT

JASSO stresses that the two cannot be compared in difficulty or converted into each other. An N1 or N2 certificate does not exempt you from the EJU Japanese test where a university requires the EJU. See our JLPT guide.

Common mistakes

• Registering for everything. Extra subjects do not help, while the wrong question language or maths course can disqualify you from a target programme.
• Mixing up EJU and JLPT requirements. One does not replace the other unless the university says so.
• Sitting the exam too early. Scores last two years and some universities accept only the latest one or two sessions.
• Counting on a venue in Russia. There has been none since 2024; plan travel, accommodation and entry in advance.
• Using old books without checking the 2026 syllabuses. Chemistry, biology and maths topics changed.
• Missing the application window. It lasts under a month and closes three to four months before the exam; fees cannot be carried over.

What StudyU does

Only the initial consultation is free, and you can book it via the link at the end of this guide. Shortlisting programmes, reconciling EJU and language requirements, choosing a language school and exam venue, the application timeline and application support are provided under an agreement with StudyU. JASSO issues scores, universities make admission decisions, and the Japanese embassy or consulate decides on visas. The full process is covered in our guide to applying to Japanese universities; for the wider picture see Study in Japan.

FAQ

Sources

• JASSO: EJU 2026 schedule, application methods, examination fee — checked 24 Sep 2026
• JASSO: subjects, timing, question language, revised 2026 syllabuses — checked 24 Sep 2026
• JASSO: 2026 overseas venues and the Russia closure, overseas FAQ, 2026 overseas bulletin — checked 24 Sep 2026
• JASSO: scoring, relation to the JLPT, use by universities — checked 24 Sep 2026
• JASSO: number of institutions using the EJU, pre-arrival admission and acceptance levels and minimum scores — checked 24 Sep 2026
• JASSO: Honors Scholarship reservation programme and Study in Japan: examinations — checked 24 Sep 2026
• Study in Japan: universities and Japanese requirements — checked 24 Sep 2026
• APU: 2027 eligibility and language requirements — checked 24 Sep 2026
• ECB reference rates, 29 Sep 2026: EUR 1 = USD 1.1355 = JPY 178.41 = KRW 1,536.74

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