Tokyo Medical University lowered women’s entrance-exam scores to allow in mostly men, according to a news report
Tokyo Medical University is looking to investigate an allegation that the school automatically lowered the entrance-exam results of female applicants for years to ensure that most of the entrants were men.
The allegations, first reported by the Yomiuri newspaper, could reveal shortcomings in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push to empower women and encourage more women leaders in society.
The Yomiuri said school leaders believed women doctors were less valuable than men because they might take time off for marriage or maternity leave, so they skewed the entering class in favor of men.
The school has nearly 750 students. In the academic year that began in April, the entering class had 97 male students and 23 female students, according to the school’s website.
In Japan, medical schools generally run six years and combine undergraduate and graduate-level training.
The university began lowering the admission-test scores of women in 2011, after the number of successful female applicants doubled to around 40% in 2010, the Yomiuri said.
The report was another blow to the school after its former top two leaders were indicted in July on charges of admitting the son of an education ministry official in exchange for the official’s help in winning a government grant. The official was also indicted.
The three men couldn’t be reached for comment, but Jiji Press reported that the ministry official has denied the charges. The school said on July 24 that it took the indictments seriously and apologized for causing concern.
The university has already opened a probe into the bribery allegation, led by outside experts.
Asked about the allegation of gender discrimination, a university spokesman said: “We are not still certain whether the ongoing internal investigation covers this issue. If it does, we will announce the results early this month. If not, we plan to ask for this to be looked into.”
The admissions manipulation, if true, goes against Mr. Abe’s efforts to bring more women into the workforce and improve the work environment so they can have families and continue their careers.
According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the share of female doctors was about 21% in Japan in 2016, the lowest among the surveyed countries. That compares with 35% in the U.S. and 46% in the U.K.
An education ministry official said schools are permitted to set gender ratios but are instructed to disclose any such policy in advance.
Source: The wall street journal
