By RYUICHI HISANAGA/ Staff Writer
June 6, 2024 at 19:02 JST
This brown building houses the education ministry in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The education ministry on June 5 issued a notification to universities asking admissions offices not to penalize applicants for school absences caused by menstrual symptoms.
The notification was issued ahead of the entrance examinations for students entering universities in the 2025 academic year.
Every year, the education ministry discloses guidelines for university admissions that show minimum rules that each university must follow when carrying out entrance exams.
Universities are asked not to let an applicant’s health status negatively impact their chances of admission.
However, this is the first time the ministry has asked universities to be considerate of “menstrual symptoms” when making admissions decisions.
Data sheets that applicants' high school teachers must complete and send to universities include questions about the number of days applicants have been absent from high school.
However, there may be days when students can’t attend school due to severe menstrual symptoms, such as abdominal pain.
Concerns have been raised that such students may be treated unfavorably due to absences during the admissions process, or may be seen as not meeting the requirements for recommendation.
To address these issues, the education ministry has cited menstrual symptoms and the aftereffects of COVID-19 as valid reasons for school absences, and asked universities to ensure that applicants are not penalized for health reasons.
On the same day this notification was issued, the ministry also announced the dates for the national standardized test’s make-up exams.
The national standardized test will be on Jan. 18 and 19, and the make-up exams will be on Jan. 25 and 26.
Applicants who are unable to take the test for unavoidable reasons, such as illness or accident, can take the test on these later dates.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the make-up exams were scheduled two weeks after the original tests. However, this academic year the make-up exams will be held one week after the original tests.
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