The new governmental tuition support system is aimed at households exempt from resident tax and similar households, and aims to support university and other educational institutions by reducing their financial burden.
The country's new academic support system consists of two components: 1) monthly grant scholarships transferred by the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) and 2) semesterly tuition fee reductions and exemptions provided by universities.
Please note that there is no need to apply for ① and ② separately; the application procedure for ① the JASSO scholarship grant includes the application procedure for ② the university tuition fee reduction.
In addition, if you are selected for the JASSO scholarship, you will be able to receive tuition fee reductions and exemptions from Rissho University every semester in addition to receiving the monthly JASSO scholarship.
In principle, you cannot apply for only one of the programs.

For details of the system, please refer to the link below.

• JASSO scholarship system (benefits type)
• New national study support system (scholarship benefits + tuition fee reduction/exemption)

Recruitment period

(1) Current recruitment (regular recruitment) *Available for 1st to 4th year students

As a general rule, "student recruitment", which is a new application made by a university after entering a university, is conducted twice every year, in the spring (during April) and in the fall (during September). It is also called "periodic recruitment" because recruitment takes place on a regular basis.
Please be sure to check the application deadline on the university website, etc., and be careful not to miss the application period.

(2) Reservation recruitment *Only applicable to first-year students who have completed application procedures at their high school

If you apply at your high school before entering university and become a candidate for recruitment (reservation recruitment), you will need to complete the necessary procedures in early April immediately after entering university. please note.

*New applications cannot be made at the university for this reservation recruitment. If you are applying for a new position after entering university, please apply from (1) Current recruitment (regular recruitment) above. In addition, those who entered our university in 2024 and applied for reserved employment during high school and were not accepted may be accepted due to the system expansion in April 2024 (introduction of the 4th category). There is a gender. For more information, please check here, and if applicable, please apply for (1) Student Recruitment (Regular Recruitment).
*If you have difficulty paying tuition fees other than the admission fee during the university admission procedure and would like to postpone the payment deadline, you can apply for a payment deferment. However, the enrollment fee cannot be deferred.

[For those whose household finances have suddenly changed]

If your family finances suddenly change and you find yourself in financial difficulty, please contact the Student Life Division immediately. You may be able to apply for this system.

(Example) When a person who maintains one's livelihood dies, has long-term difficulty working due to an accident or illness, loses one's job (involuntary), or is affected by an earthquake, fire, wind, or flood, or to evacuate from violence by one's parents, etc. For example, when entering a facility etc.

Target audience

Those who have not passed two years from the last day of the fiscal year following the year in which they first graduated from high school to the day they enrolled in a university, etc. (undergraduate students only; graduate students are not eligible).
Example: If you are graduating in March 2022, those who enrolled by the end of 2024 (end of March 2025) are eligible.

• *For details, please refer to this link.

Benefit amount/payment method and reduction/exemption amount/reduction/exemption method

(1) Benefit amount and payment method

The amount of benefits varies depending on the type of schooling and support category (categories 1 to 4 and not eligible) based on the household income amount. This support classification is reviewed by the "Eligibility Certification (Household Budget)" carried out in October every year. As a result of this review, even if the support category becomes ``ineligible'' once, the support category may be reinstated in the next year or later. Please note that no scholarships will be provided for Category 4 (Science, Engineering, and Agriculture).

Benefit amount (monthly amount: The amount shown in the table below will be paid monthly depending on the support category)

Payment method

The benefit amount will be transferred from JASSO to your designated account every month.

(2) Reduction amount/exemption method

Regarding tuition fee reduction/exemption, the amount of reduction/exemption varies depending on the support category in (1).

Reduction amount (annual amount: half of the amount in the table below will be paid every half year depending on the support category)

Reduction method

This will be implemented by the university transferring the amount of reduction/exemption to the account specified by the student after being selected and after the results of "Eligibility Certification (Household Finances)" and "Eligibility Certification (Academics)" are known. Transfer the amount in installments.The amount of admission fee reduction/exemption will be transferred in one lump sum.)

Recruitment criteria

• Standards related to academic performance, etc.

  Be in the top half of academic performance

• Standards related to household finances

  The student, etc. and the person making a living must have income from a household that is exempt from resident tax or equivalent to that, and the total amount of assets is below a certain standard.

For details, please refer to the link below.

• Standards related to academic performance, etc.
• Standards related to household finances

*You can roughly check whether you meet the income criteria using the college funding simulator.

Schedule after recruitment (from 2024)

The "New National Educational Support System" is funded by national funds such as taxes, and is based on the law to ensure that particularly talented people who find it extremely difficult to study due to economic reasons will not be forced to give up on pursuing higher education. By providing scholarships that do not have to be repaid, the program supports students' further education.

Therefore, students receiving support must be aware of their status as scholarship students, work hard on their studies, and be sure to follow the prescribed procedures. If you fail to complete the procedures or have poor grades, your scholarship payment may be stopped or you may be asked to return any scholarships you have already received.

Please be sure to check the schedule below and follow the procedures.
​Details of each procedure will be announced on the portal site. Please check the portal site frequently.

*Information on entering your first reduction/exemption account after being hired and applying for continued tuition reduction/exemption will be provided on a separate portal site at a different time than shown in the table above.

• About enrollment report

  For grant scholarships, enrollment reports are submitted twice a year (April and October) (once a year in October in the first year of recruitment). We will report your enrollment status and commuting style to JASSO.

• Regarding continuation application

  You will need to submit both scholarships and tuition fee reduction/exemption items. Applications for continuation of scholarships are submitted to JASSO once a year (in December). Applications for continuation of tuition reduction/exemption must be submitted to the university twice a year (April and October) (the procedure for applying for continued tuition reduction/exemption is included in the procedure for reporting enrollment in benefits).

• About qualification

  Twice a year (October and March), support classifications are reviewed based on household financial requirements, and academic requirements are used to determine whether support can be continued into the next year.