Student Visa (留学)

Yes — up to 28 hours per week during term and up to 8 hours per day during holidays, with Permission to Engage in Activity Other Than That Permitted. You must apply for this permission at the immigration bureau after arriving in Japan (typically at the airport on arrival or at the local immigration office).

Yes. Graduates can apply for a change of status to Engineer/Specialist, HSP, or other work visas. There is also a "Designated Activities" (tokutei katsudo) post-graduation job-seeking status available for 6–12 months. Japanese companies conduct "shūshoku katsudō" (job-hunting) activities annually — foreign students at Japanese universities can participate in this structured recruitment cycle.

It depends on the programme. University degree programmes taught in Japanese typically require JLPT N2 (or pass the institution's own Japanese examination). Many top universities offer English-taught programmes — notably the G30 (Global 30) programme at 13 leading universities (University of Tokyo, Kyoto University, Osaka University, Tohoku University, etc.) does not require Japanese. Language school programmes obviously teach Japanese from beginner level.

National universities charge approximately ¥535,800/year (approximately USD 3,600) in tuition — among the most affordable in developed countries. Private universities range from ¥700,000 to ¥1,500,000+/year. Living costs are approximately ¥90,000–¥130,000/month in Tokyo and ¥70,000–¥100,000/month in other cities. MEXT (Japanese government) scholarships are fully funded and highly competitive.