Japan Press Weekly

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2013 April 3 - 9 [WELFARE]

Parents’ financial support to private univ. students falls to record low

The amount of parents’ financial support to private university freshmen decreased to an all-time low, according to the Tokyo Federation of Private University Faculty and Staff Unions.

A survey released on April 5 by the organization shows that the average amount of remittances from parents to their children to help cover their living expenses while at universities in 2012 has hit a record low of 89,500 yen a month, an amount that has been consistently decreasing for more than a decade.

Daily living expenses, calculated by subtracting rent from the remittance and then divided by 30 days, fell below 1,000 yen for the first time to 923 yen, or 37.5% of the highest amount provided in 1990.

Respondent parents paid as much as 2.95 million yen on average including entrance examination fees, admission fees, and remittances to their children in the first year in college. As it is equivalent to 34.3% of the average total income of the households surveyed, over 90% of the parents said that the economic burden is “heavy”.

A representative of the federation in a news conference held on the same day stated that many private university students are suffering from financial hardships and worrying about their future, and that many work night shifts part time to make ends meet and thus are too tired to attend morning classes. It called on the government to not slash subsidies for private universities and to create an environment under which students can concentrate on their studies.