Near the center of Okayama City, Okayama University is located only two kilometers from Okayama Station. Though in the middle of the city, the spacious campus with abundant greenery provide a quiet environment conducive to study and research. Travel to Okayama Station by Shinkansen takes about three and a half hours from Tokyo Station, or about 45 minutes from Shin-Osaka Station.

Those admitted to a regular course can petition for exemption from admission fees and tuition fees. The decision on whether to provide or withhold the exemption will be based on the petitioner’s financial status, school performance and other factors, and may provide exemption to all or half of the fees. In recent years the criteria have become stricter. Moreover, the tuition exemption for international students at undergraduate level has become unavailable since the 2020 academic year. 
The entrance and tuition fees are as follows;

• For regular students
  Admission Fee: 282,000 yen
  Tuition Fee: 535,800 yen (Tuition is to be paid half in May and half in November.)
• For research students
  Admission Fee: 84,600 yen
  Tuition Fee (for 6 months): 178,200yen

You can check the page Scholarship for OU international students. Scholarships that can be applied for outside of Japan before coming to Japan include the Japanese Government Scholarship from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) and JASSO scholarships, both of which are highly competitive. Most scholarships can be applied for after arriving in Japan.

JASSO PamphletScholarship for International Students in Japan 2022-2023

Okayama University has four dormitories for international students, with boarding fees of from 14,000 to 28,000 yen per month. They can accommodate up to 300 people, but when they are in high demand, there are times when not all international students can be accommodated there. Whether or not to provide accommodation in the dormitories for international students will be decided based on Okayama University’s criteria. For more information on Okayama University’s dormitories for international students, please see the page for Housing. 

In general, aside from academic expenses such as entrance fees and tuition, at least 80,000 yen per month is needed.
For reference, rent on apartments near the university run from 25,000 to 40,000 yen per month, and the cost of food and utilities is about 30,000 to 50,000 per month.

International students enrolled in Okayama University can take the Japanese Language Course which is run by the Department of Japanese Language, Center for Liberal Arts and Language Education, Okayama University. There are seven levels of Japanese courses, from elementary to advanced, assignment to which is determined based on the results of a Placement Test. The Japanese Language Course includes both integrated classes, in which students learn reading, listening, speaking and writing skills while strengthening their knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, and separate skills-based and topic-based classes. 

For the exchange program, one applies through the office in charge at the university in which one is enrolled (the sending university). Please consult with the office in charge of study abroad at the university where you are currently enrolled. 

At the undergraduate level, the EPOK program for partner universities and one of the undergraduate programs (Discovery Program for Global Learners) offer classes in English. In certain cases, this can be handled in undergraduate programs aside from these, but it is necessary to adjust the subjects being studied on an individual basis. There are no programs in English for exchange students in our graduate level exchange program, so as a general rule study is done in Japanese, but in some cases it is possible to have instruction in English, depending on the research laboratory or class subject.

As a general rule at Okayama University, students choose from among class subjects specified by the school or faculty they are enrolled in or the program that has admitted them. Anyone wishing to take a class aside from the specified ones needs to obtain approval from the class instructor. Depending on one’s language proficiency, limited capacity in the class or other conditions, it may not be possible to take the class.

Upper limits on the number of hours or credits of classes that can be taken differ depending on the admitting school or faculty. In addition, it is necessary to be taking at least 10 hours of classes a week to qualify for residence on a student visa.

Check the page International Exchange for the details. 

Check the page International Students Studying at Okayama University for the details.