Admissions Criteria

The Nishimachi Admissions Team aims to create an inclusive and diverse student body by:

Welcoming applicants of all nationalities, races, ethnicities, cultural backgrounds, religions, gender identities, sexual orientation and socio-economic status. In line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Children, we take steps against discrimination across our school.
Providing a comprehensive screening process that ensures each child can thrive in our community.
Connecting with families who will embrace, respect and uphold our mission and values.
Striving to balance each student’s core learning in English with an understanding and appreciation of Japanese language and culture.

Guidelines and Policies

Our school year starts from late August and runs through mid-June. Nishimachi offers programs from Kindergarten (5 years old) to Grade 9, and our birthday cut-off is August 31. We consider the grade levels that applicants completed, however, applicants for Kindergarten must be 5 years old by August 31st of the year of enrollment. Applicants for Grade 1 must be 6 years old by August 31st of the year of enrollment. Please note that we do not make exceptions to the age eligibility for these grades. Please also note that we currently do not take applications for Grade 9.

Please refer to our Grade by Age Chart to identify which grade your child is eligible to apply for.

**For students with Japanese nationality, please be aware of the expectation of Compulsory Education for students in Japan.

Readiness for Nishimachi Education

Applicants for Grades 1-8 must have grade-level proficiency in English (reading, writing, speaking and comprehension) and Mathematics.
English is our language of instruction, and students at Nishimachi also study Japanese everyday, either as a first or additional language. Japanese classes are structured according to students' Japanese language proficiency as determined by Nishimachi. Prior attendance at a Japanese school does not guarantee placement in a Japanese first language class at Nishimachi.
We require applicants to have social and behavioral maturity appropriate for their age.

Parent Language Requirement

Applying to Kindergarten

Applications for local applicants are due by October 31.
Your child(ren) must be 5 years old by August 31 of the enrolling year.
We require applicants to have social and behavioral maturity appropriate for their age.
Parent interviews for selected applicants are arranged prior to an admissions decision.
Selected Kindergarten applicants will be screened in-person at Nishimachi.
For overseas applicants, our Admissions team will contact you directly regarding screening.

Applying to Grades 1 ~ 8

Admissions Decisions

Applications are not prioritized by the date on which they are received. After the application documents are reviewed by the Admissions Committee, the admissions decisions are usually made within few weeks for mid-year enrollments.
Please note that the admissions procedures provide a professional assessment which determines student readiness for Nishimachi. Applicants, including Nishimachi community members, are not automatically accepted. We expect that all applicants and community members respect our final decision.

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