It depends on your individual circumstances, so we are unable to provide a general answer.
Please first refer to the flowchart and FAQ on enrollment timing for foreign applicants available on our graduate school website.
If you would like to consult about your specific situation, please use the inquiry form provided under "3. Contacts and inquires" on the same website.
Students enrolling in April will enter the school in April, and students enrolling in October will enter the school in October. The expected completion date also depends on the enrollment period.
You have to declare the entrance month at the time of application. It is not possible to change the enrollment period after the date of the oral examinations. In addition, you must meet the admission requirements at the time of admission.
We believe that there is no significant difference between April and October enrollment, but for the convenience of prospective students, the differences that come to our mind are as follows:
The University of Tokyo does not deliberately set any systematic differences between April and October enrollment.
However, Japanese schools, from kindergarten to university, basically start the academic year in April. For this reason, students everywhere in Japan are anticipated by (the society) to enter school in April. There may be various direct or indirect disadvantages and benefits arising from this.
In our department, elementary lectures tend to be offered in the semester starting in April and more advanced lectures in the semester starting in October. Students who enroll in October may need to wait 6 months if they want to take certain elementary courses.
Graduation ceremonies in March might look more lavish because of the larger number of students enrolled in April; graduation ceremonies in September may look simpler and less lavish. Similarly, the April entrance ceremony might look more lavish.
The end of March is moving season in Japan, and rents are higher; you may be able to find better housing at the end of September. This may be an advantage of October enrollment.
Let's talk about the case when you want to find a job in Japan after completing the program. In the job market for new graduates in Japan, many companies are recruiting with the anticipation that they will join a company in April. We see some international students who entered a master's course in October extend their stay at school for six months and to join a company in April. Students in the doctoral course usually find it difficult to control the timing of acceptance of doctoral thesis, so it is not always possible to complete the program at the targeted date and time, so we have the impression that fewer students intentionally try to extend their stay at UTokyo.
Getting a student visa in a timely manner is becoming more and more difficult due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Having six months before your enrollment after you pass the entrance exam will give you more time to prepare for living in Japan and makes it easier to be in Japan right on the very first day of the first semester. In the case of Schedule A (summer exam), students residing abroad as of the examination date will not be admitted in October.
No. We do not consider the timing of enrollment when we decide acceptance.
It is difficult to say anything about the difference in difficulty although the pass rate is different between the two schedules, but the distribution of examinees is also quite different.
The number of applicants for Schedule B is limited, so if you are able to take Schedule A, please take the entrance exams in Schedule A.
