Women outperform men in Japanese medical school’s admissions after exam rigging stops

Women outperformed their male counterparts in entrance exams for a medical school in Japan after it stopped rigging admissions procedures to give male applicants an advantage.

Juntendo University, Tokyo, announced that of the 1,679 women who sat the exam earlier this year, 8.28% passed, compared to 7.72% of the 2,202 male candidates.

In a statement, the university attributed these results to its decision “to abolish the unfair treatment of female applicants”.

It has also now added female teachers to the board that interviews prospective students.

In August 2018, it was revealed by the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun that the university had begun altering results of female applicants for over 10 years in order to keep the number of women admitted below 30% each year.

This resulted in a 22% decrease in successful female applicants – in 2018, there were 30 successful applications from female students, compared with 141 males.

This was the first time in seven years that the pass rate among women was higher than among men.

The medical school’s dean, Hiroyuki Daida, initially justified the practice, stating that women matured faster than men and had more developed communication skills. He told reporters that “in some ways, this was a measure designed to help male applicants.”

Of the 1,679 women who sat Juntendo University’s entrance exam earlier this year, 8.28% passed, compared to 7.72% of the 2,202 male candidates

Juntendo also said at the time that there was limited space in the female dormitories, meaning the school needed to limit the number of female students.

These changes come amid a wider scandal of medical school exam rigging against females in Japan.

Last month, Tokyo Medical University reported that women were outperforming men in its entrance exams after it admitted that it systemically reduced its admissions test scores for women.

20.2% of all female applicants passed the university’s medical exams, compared to 19.8% of male applicants, according to the Japan Times. In 2018, just 2.9% of women passed, compared to 9% of men.

The university cited concerns that women who became doctors would leave the profession to have children as its reason for the policy.

Officials from Kitasato University, Tokyo, also admitted to prioritising male applicants on its website.

In 2016, women counted for 21.1% of all doctors in Japan, the lowest level among nations belonging to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.