Nihon University’s Applicant Struggles Widen Gap with Toyo University

Applicant numbers have yet to recover

Nihon University’s applicant numbers for the general entrance exam stood at 79,600 as of January 27. While applications for all admission methods have not yet closed, the number of applicants at the point when most February exams had already closed was only 3,467 more than the previous year.

University entrance exam applications often follow a biennial pattern known as the alternate-year phenomenon, where applicant numbers fluctuate every other year. If applications rise one year, they tend to fall the next as students try to avoid high competition. Conversely, when numbers drop, the following year sees an increase as students perceive it as an easier opportunity.

Nihon University’s final number of applicants is expected to rise by more than 5,000. However, while the figure is higher than last year’s, it does not indicate the alternate-year phenomenon in action. The final tally is likely to remain far below the numbers from two years ago.

In 2023, Nihon University had 98,506 applicants. However, that year saw an American football team member’s drug scandal. At the time of the incident, University President Mariko Hayashi (70) completely denied the allegations, and an internal cover-up attempt was later exposed. This scandal led to a dramatic drop in applications for 2024, plunging to 75,839—a staggering decline of 22,667 applicants, an unprecedented figure for any university.

Nihon University’s football team had previously been involved in a dangerous tackle incident in 2018. This resulted in 14,344 fewer applicants for the 2019 entrance exams. However, by 2020, applications had increased by 13,049, returning to normal levels. Even in 2021, when the university faced an embezzlement scandal over a hospital reconstruction and former President Hidetoshi Tanaka (deceased) was charged with tax evasion, the following year’s entrance exam applications did not decline.

Given this history, the fact that this year’s entrance exam numbers show no sign of returning to past levels is a serious concern for Nihon University.

Scandal over 120 million yen embezzled across three departments

Of course, the cause lies with Nihon University. After the drug incident, a “Competitive Sports Center” was established within the university to strengthen governance, but no significant reforms have been made. On the contrary, since July 2024, further serious scandals involving sports clubs have emerged, throwing the university into turmoil.

The first to be exposed was the fraud in the weightlifting club. Incoming freshmen eligible for the scholarship program were falsely told, “Tuition exemptions (admission and tuition fees) start from the second year,” and were sent invoices accordingly. As a result, they transferred their first-year tuition fees— which should have been exempted— to the weightlifting club’s account, where the money was misappropriated. A total of 58 victims have been identified so far, with total damages exceeding 53 million yen. Most victims were admitted within the last decade, but even those who enrolled before that were affected.

Using similar tactics, the track and field club illegally collected over 44 million yen over 10 years, and the skating club siphoned around 24 million yen over 7 years, according to Nihon University’s investigation. As of December 19, 2024, the total amount of fraud across the three clubs exceeded 120 million yen. Under such circumstances, restoring trust seems unlikely.

Another factor contributing to the stagnant number of applicants is the admissions reform at Nihon University’s rival, Toyo University, which belongs to the “Nitto Komatsu” group (Nihon, Toyo, Komazawa, and Senshu universities).

Toyo University introduced a new “School Recommendation Entrance Exam with Basic Academic Test” this year, holding the exam on December 1. This test evaluates applicants based on two subjects, and if they withdraw by March 31, all tuition fees except for the admission fee will be refunded. In other words, students can secure an acceptance before the end of the year while still applying to other universities. More than 20,000 applicants rushed to take this new exam. Although the Ministry of Education has pointed out that conducting an academic test in a school recommendation-based entrance exam before the end of the year is a rule violation, similar admission processes have existed in private universities in the Kansai region since the 1990s. Toyo University’s new entrance system is also seen as a factor behind Nihon University’s sluggish applicant numbers.

As the largest university in Japan in terms of student population, Nihon University once attracted over 100,000 applicants in its general entrance exam. However, due to repeated scandals and admissions reforms by rival universities, its applicant numbers may continue to stagnate.