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Japan says 10 med schools altered admissions, some kept out women
TOKYO, Dec 14, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A Japanese government investigation
sparked by a row over medical school admissions has found improper practices
at 10 institutions, including four that tried to keep women out, a report
said Friday.
Authorities began their inquiry after Tokyo Medical University admitted it
had systematically lowered the scores of female applicants to keep the number
of women in the student body at around 30 percent.
The education ministry called the situation “grave” and “deeply
regrettable” and urged the universities to take action and support affected
students.
The report said female applicants were discriminated against at four of
the 81 schools it studied.
Tokyo Medical School, Juntendo University, Kitasato University have
admitted the issue and apologised, while St. Marianna University of Medicine
has denied the claims.
Juntendo University said this week that its admissions process had raised
the bar for women in entrance exams in order to “narrow the gap with male
students”, arguing women “have higher communication skills” and were
therefore at an advantage in the interview portion of their applications.
The investigation found a range of other improper practices, including
discrimination against students who had previously failed to gain admission,
and bias in favour of the children of alumni.
The ministry apologised to students taking entrance exams this fiscal year
for the four months the investigation took to complete, saying it was “deeply
sorry we caused students anxiety for a long time”.
Tokyo Medical University admitted in August that it had been lowering the
test scores of female applicants since 2006, reportedly in the belief that
women would leave the profession soon after graduation when they married and
started families.
An independent probe later found the school had rejected about a quarter
of female applicants who took the 2017 and 2018 exam and achieved scores that
should have qualified them for admission.
A group of 24 women has demanded 100,000 yen ($880) each in compensation
from the school, citing “mental anguish” as well as requesting a refund of
exam and travel fees.
The university has decided to accept 44 applicants from the past two years
after contacting 101 candidates to see if they were interested in attending
next year.
BSS/AFP/MR/ 1437 hrs