Education Osaka public high schools fail to meet enrollment quotas

[thomas]

Osaka's introduction of tuition-free high schools ahead of the national government appears to influence student preferences toward private schools. As a result, many public high schools are struggling to meet their enrollment targets: more students are now opting for private institutions, and public schools need to enhance their appeal to remain competitive.

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According to admissions data released last Friday by the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education, 65 out of 128 full-time public high schools failed to reach full capacity. Among them was Nekawa High School, a highly regarded institution with a history of over 110 years. Despite consistently high application numbers in the past, the school's admissions ratio fell below 1.0 for the first time—an unprecedented occurrence.

Notably, even high-achieving public schools were not spared from this trend. Nekawa High School recorded an application ratio of just 0.95, while Yao High School (founded over 120 years ago) saw its ratio drop to 0.99. In Sakai City, Daiei High School recorded a ratio of 0.9, marking its second consecutive year below full enrollment. [...] Many school administrators acknowledge that the tuition-free policy has significantly impacted public school enrollment. [...] Education experts argue that the competition between public and private schools is fundamentally unbalanced. "Private schools have more financial flexibility to invest in facilities and hire top teachers, whereas public schools operate under strict budget constraints and centralized staffing policies," one commentator explained.

Osaka Public High Schools Struggle as Enrollment Falls Below Capacity

Osaka’s policy of tuition-free high school education, which was implemented ahead of the national government, appears to be shifting student preference toward private schools. This trend has led to a growing number of public high schools failing to meet their enrollment quotas.

newsonjapan.com