Tokyo Metropolitan Kokusai High SchoolTuition, Admissions & Curriculum
William Michihiko Akiyama
William Prep
Tokyo, Japan
A public school offering the IB Diploma at roughly a thirtieth of ASIJ's first-year cost. The admissions quota has conflicting figures across sources — we've reported both rather than picking one.
Last reviewed by William Prep: 2026-09-23
Kokusai High School is a Tokyo Metropolitan public high school (an Article 1 school) that separately admits a small IB course alongside its roughly 700-student main school. Because it is Article 1, graduating automatically confers domestic university eligibility — regardless of whether a student takes the IB course. Completing the IB Diploma opens an additional route for overseas applications.
At a Glance
| Legal Status | Article 1 (Tokyo Metropolitan public school)as of: 2026-09-23 |
| Tuition (standard rate) | ¥118,800 / year (not independently confirmed)2026-27 |
| IB Course Places | 25 (though one source puts the 2026 intake at 20) (not independently confirmed)2026-27 |
| Intake | April and Septemberas of: 2026-09-23 |
01Tuition & Fees
Cheap Tuition Is Not the Same Thing as a Cheap Total
Standard tuition for a Tokyo Metropolitan public high school is ¥118,800 a year — roughly a thirtieth of ASIJ's real first-year cost (≈¥5. 95M). But the school's own IB course Q&A separately states that materials and activity-fund contributions apply, and that IB Diploma-related costs are charged on top of that, without publishing either figure. So the tuition figure is genuinely low; the total is not necessarily "public-school cheap" once those unpublished costs are added.
Because two of the three fee components here have no published amount, we've deliberately not calculated a first-year total — ask the school directly for current figures.
academic year: 2026-27
| Tuition (standard Tokyo Metropolitan public rate) | ¥118,800 |
| Materials & activity contributions (varies by year) | not publicly confirmedThe school's own IB course Q&A states these additional costs apply, without publishing a specific amount. |
| IB Diploma assessment fees (IB course only) | not publicly confirmedExplicitly stated as an additional, separate cost for IB course students. No published amount. |
02Admissions
| Cycle | 4月入学・9月入学の年2回（受検資格が異なる） |
| Places available | 募集人員25名（ただし2026年度は日本人生徒15名＋外国籍生徒5名の計20名という情報あり — 要確認） (not independently confirmed)academic year: 2026-27The admissions quota has commonly been cited as 25 places, but one source specifically describes the 2026 academic year (令和8年度) as 15 Japanese-national places + 5 foreign-national places = 20 total. These figures don't agree, and the discrepancy is unresolved pending a direct read of the Tokyo Board of Education's own selection-guideline PDF. |
| Intake points | 4月入学生／9月入学生（併願不可） |
| English requirement | 選考の一部として英語力が問われる（詳細未確認） not publicly confirmed |
University Entrance Eligibility in Japan
| School-accreditation route | Yes |
| Student-qualification route (IB, etc.) | Yes |
Because this is an Article 1 school, domestic university eligibility is automatic regardless of the IB course — it isn't contingent on completing the diploma. The IB Diploma credential matters separately for overseas applications and for the small number of Japanese universities with IB-score-based admissions tracks. What happens to a student who doesn't complete the full diploma is not publicly confirmed.
What Japanese Families Should Know
Questions to Ask the School
1.What are the actual current-year figures for materials fees, activity-fund contributions, and IB Diploma-related costs?
Why this matters: Public information does not establish this clearly; confirm it directly with the school.
2.Is the 2026 (令和8年度) IB course admissions quota 25 total, or 20 (15 Japanese-national + 5 foreign-national)?
Why this matters: Published sources conflict; confirm the current position directly with the school.
3.If a student doesn't complete the full IB Diploma, how does that affect their graduation status or domestic university application eligibility?
Why this matters: Public information does not establish this clearly; confirm it directly with the school.
03Curriculum
University Pathways
Matriculation data (where students actually enrolled) is not publicly confirmed.
University matriculation outcomes for the IB course — destinations, cohort size, domestic vs. overseas split — are not publicly confirmed.
04School Features
The "25 Places" Figure Doesn't Fully Agree Across Sources
The IB course admissions quota has long been cited as 25 places across multiple sources. But one source describing the 2026 academic year specifically states 15 places for Japanese nationals plus 5 for foreign nationals — 20 total. We can't resolve which figure is correct, or whether it varies by year, without reading the Tokyo Board of Education's own selection-guideline document directly — so both figures are reported here rather than one being silently chosen.
Admission runs twice a year — April and September entry — and the school's own Q&A states applicants "cannot sit for both. " September entrants appear to face specific eligibility conditions around birth date and returnee/foreign-national status, based on search-result reporting of an official announcement; this wasn't confirmed against the Board of Education's own document directly.
What Makes This School Distinctive
A public school offering a genuine route to the IB Diploma
The IB Diploma Programme, offered at standard Tokyo Metropolitan public school tuition
Annual tuition of ¥118,800, against several million yen a year at private IB schools offering the same programme.
A realistic option for families for whom private international school fees are simply out of reach.
Who Might Find This School a Good Fit
Might suit — Families wanting the IB Diploma without private-school-level fees
Might not suit — Families who need cost predictability — materials and IB-related fees are unpublished and hard to budget for in advance
Might suit — Students comfortable navigating daily school life in Japanese, wanting English specifically for IB subjects
Might not suit — Students who want the whole school experience in English (a fully English-medium school like ASIJ would fit better)
Explore Other Schools
- American School in Japan (ASIJ)Chōfu
- Tokyo International School (TIS)Minato-ku (Mita)
- K. International School Tokyo (KIST)Kōtō-ku
Let’s Talk About Your Child’s Learning
Worried whether your child is on the right track? Start with a free consultation, and we’ll map out concrete next steps tailored to their situation.
Book a Free Consultation