According to statistics published by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in Japan, the number of those who achieved International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma within Japan has increased from 149 in 2006 to 344 in 2015. With the government keen to increase the number of IB schools, the number is expected to grow further.

The Japanese government aims to increase the number of IB schools in Japan from the current 39 to 200 by 2018. The major reason for the current slow growth of IB schools is a lack of IB teachers who can teach IB subjects in English. In order to tackle this, in 2013, the MEXT and the International Baccalaureate Organization jointly developed a dual language (English and Japanese) DP, which allows schools to teach more subjects in Japanese. It is reported there are currently more than 70 institutions interested in introducing the IB DP.

2017 will also see an increase in IB teacher training courses in Japan. From April 2017, three Japanese universities will start offering such courses. Okayama University of Science will offer an undergraduate course to gain a qualification to teach the Diploma Programme (DP). Tsuru University’s new undergraduate course will enable students to become qualified to teach the Primary Years Programme (PYP), Middle Years Programme (MYP) and DP. Their curriculum includes a half-year study programme at a partner university in Denmark. At a graduate school of the University of Tsukuba, qualifications of IBEC (PYP, MYP, and DP) and IBACTLR will be awarded. In addition to these three universities, Tamagawa University started an IB training course at postgraduate level in 2014, through which students can gain qualifications to teach MYP and DP.

Most Japanese high school graduates are required to complete an international foundation course before entering a UK university. However, with an increased number of IB schools and IB DP graduates, more Japanese students will be eligible for direct admission.