Requirements
Bachelor's (Gateway College)
Applicants need to have completed, or be on track to complete, 12 years of school education recognised as equivalent to Japanese upper secondary school. The October intake does not require Japanese ability; the April intake is conducted mostly in Japanese and assumes stronger Japanese proficiency.
Bachelor's (general international admission)
Applicants generally need to sit the EJU in June or November of the year before entry and meet the minimum scores set by their chosen faculty, alongside any faculty-specific written test or interview.
Master's and PhD
A relevant Bachelor's degree (or Master's degree for doctoral study), recognised as equivalent to a Japanese degree, is required; each graduate school sets its own further requirements and deadline.
Documents
For Gateway College: an online application, secondary school transcripts and certificates, an English proficiency test score or medium-of-instruction certificate, and any required essays; the October intake's screening is conducted online. For the general EJU route: EJU score reports for the subjects each faculty requires, school transcripts and certificates, and any faculty-specific documents. For graduate applications: degree certificates and transcripts, a research plan, and a language test result, with exact requirements set by the individual graduate school.
How to apply
- Decide between Gateway College's April intake (mostly in Japanese, in-person) and October intake (entirely in English, online), or the general EJU-based route into a regular faculty.
- For Gateway College's October 2027 intake: apply between 15 December 2026 and 14 January 2027, complete first-stage screening by 5 February 2027 and second-stage screening on 21 to 22 February 2027, with results announced 24 March 2027.
- For the general route: register for and sit the EJU in June or November, then apply to your chosen faculty within its own deadline.
- If accepted, Tohoku University's admissions centre helps with your Certificate of Eligibility; use it to apply for a student visa at a Japanese embassy or consulate before travelling.
- Enrol, arrange health and accident insurance (a university requirement), and register your address in Sendai.
English test waiver
Gateway College accepts IELTS 6.0 or above, TOEFL iBT 80 or above, Duolingo English Test 110 or above, Cambridge English (B2/C1/C2) 169 or above, or EIKEN Grade Pre-1 or 1 with a CSE score of 2,400 or above. A certificate confirming English as the medium of instruction in prior schooling is accepted instead of a test score.