The "Japan University Popularity Ranking" released monthly by JS Corporation shows that as of the latest ranking on April 30, 2025, the top national university is "The University of Tokyo," the top public university is "Osaka Metropolitan University," and the top private university is "Aoyama Gakuin University." In the public university rankings, institutions such as "Nagoya City University" have seen changes in their positions, while "Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts" and "Miyagi University" have entered the top ten for the first time.
JS Corporation conducts a survey among high school students on "universities of interest" and publishes the results monthly in the form of a "University Popularity Ranking." The latest ranking is based on responses from 86,733 high school students collected between April 2023 and April 2025, compiling rankings for national, public, and private universities across Japan's prefectures, which are published on their website.

Overview of Japan University Rankings [April 2025]
- National Universities: First place "The University of Tokyo," second place "University of Tsukuba," third place "Kyoto University," fourth place "Osaka University," fifth place "Nagoya University." Among the top 30, positions 11 to 30 have seen changes, with "Gifu University" newly ranked at 28th.
- Public Universities: First place "Osaka Metropolitan University," second place "Tokyo Metropolitan University," third place "Nagoya City University," fourth place "Aichi Prefectural University," fifth place "University of Shizuoka." Compared to the previous ranking, positions 3 to 5 have changed. Additionally, "University of Hyogo" rose from 10th to 7th, "Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts" from 11th to 8th, "Miyagi University" from 11th to 9th, and "Kyoto Prefectural University" dropped from 8th to 10th. New entries in the top 30 include 25th place "Mie Junior College," 26th place "Prefectural University of Hiroshima," and 27th place "Hiroshima City University."
- Private Universities: First place "Aoyama Gakuin University," second place "Keio University," third place "Kindai University," fourth place "Meiji University," fifth place "Waseda University." Positions 10 to 14 have changed, with 10th place "Ritsumeikan University," 11th place "Chuo University," 12th place "Hosei University," 13th place "Rikkyo University," and 14th place "Nihon University." Additionally, "Teikyo Heisei University" rose from 20th to 18th, and 26th place "Kanagawa University" and 30th place "Ryukoku University" newly entered the top 30.
Japan University Popularity Ranking [April 2025]
National Universities
- The University of Tokyo
- University of Tsukuba
- Kyoto University
- Osaka University
- Nagoya University
- Kyushu University
- Kobe University
- Tohoku University
- Hitotsubashi University
- Hokkaido University
Public Universities
- Osaka Metropolitan University
- Tokyo Metropolitan University
- Nagoya City University
- Aichi Prefectural University
- University of Shizuoka
- Yokohama City University
- University of Hyogo
- Aichi Prefectural University of the Arts
- Miyagi University
- Kyoto Prefectural University
Private Universities
- Aoyama Gakuin University
- Keio University
- Kindai University
- Meiji University
- Waseda University
- Sophia University
- Kansai University
- Komazawa University
- Doshisha University
- Ritsumeikan University