Admissions Guideline

NIC welcomes students from all backgrounds who have a strong belief in their capacity to learn and grow and are motivated to reach their highest academic and individual potential.
Ideal candidates will be highly inquisitive and positively inclined towards learning from and working with a diverse cohort of students and teachers.

Eligibility

Applicants must satisfy the following conditions as minimum requirements for admission. Meeting these conditions does not guarantee admission:

• All applicants: Have attained 15 years of age by September 1st of the commencement year
• Year 10 (Pre-IB) entry: Have completed a minimum of 9 years of formal education at primary and middle/high school levels by August in the year of commencement
• Year 11 (DP-1) entry: Have completed a minimum of 10 years of formal education at primary and middle/high school levels by August in the year of commencement

Note on Dual-diploma eligibility: All applicants studying for the full three years in the NIC programme are eligible for graduation in both the IB Diploma Programme and Japanese High School Diploma. For Applicants entering the NIC programme from Year 11, it cannot be guaranteed that their Year 10 programme of studies, undertaken in another school, will be recognised as meeting the Japanese High School Diploma requirements by the relevant Japanese educational authority.

English Proficiency

Non-native English speakers are required to have a minimum language proficiency level according to their entry point as indicated in the internationally recognized standardised tests table below;

Selection Process

a)    Online application and document review
b)    Online entrance examination
c)    Online or campus interview
d)    Outcome notification

Admission Procedure

a)    Applicant confirms enrolment with NIC via payment of the admission fee prior within 7 working days of receipt of the acceptance notification via email
b)    NIC commences the visa application process for non-Japanese visa or passport holders
c)    Student arrives on campus in late August and is assigned a dormitory room
d)    Orientations commence in the first week of September
e)    Classes commence in week one of September

Entrance Examination　

All applicants must complete the entrance examination process. This includes the following components:

1. Written personal statement and academic record information (submitted via the online application form)
2. Online cognitive ability test. This is accessed via a link sent to the applicant’s email account. For applicants in a similar time zone to Japan, the test time is established and the test is invigilated via an online streaming service such as Zoom or Skype. For those applicants who wish to access the test in a timezone that is quite different to Japan, the test will need to be invigilated by one of the applicant's current teachers. In this case, the test invigilator must send a signed statement, written on a school letterhead with contact details, following the test, confirming the integrity of the examination process on behalf of the applicant.
3. Online or on-campus interview. The applicant and parent/guardian have the option of either coming to NIC campus in Nisshin, Nagoya or taking their interview online via Skype or Zoom. During the interview the applicant and parent/guardian may be asked questions pertaining to their capacity to complete the programme, ideals, values, motivations and the written statement.

Bridging Programme - Pre-Commencement Option

For applicants graduating from Year 9, between December and March, NIC offers study options via the Bridging Programme (BP), prior to the official commencement of the high school programme, to enable the most effective use of the gap time. The BP is designed to support the individual circumstances of applicants following their acceptance into the high school programme proper via the standard entrance examination process. BP courses run from the early April until the end of June and each course is run over three classes a day in the morning and afternoon. Applicants may choose up to two courses to study a day according to the selections in the table below. BP courses will be run on a differentiated basis according to the needs of individual students. For example, advanced English students study academic English and intermediate level English students study communicative English on a more fundamental language-building basis. The Japanese language BP option will allow students coming from overseas to both adjust to the culture in a more expedient manner and also better prepare the student for that language option in the international programme. Entry into the BP is restricted to the Year 10 entry point and those applicants graduating from Year 9 between December and March.