St. Marianna University School of Medicine

Key Highlights

• Independent medical university and graduate school recognized by Japan’s national academic-recognition center
• Founded in 1971 and renamed St. Marianna University School of Medicine in 1973
• Medical education accreditation is valid from June 2022 through May 2029
• Focused institution offering medical education and doctoral medical research rather than a broad subject portfolio

Student Life & Environment

Student life is organized around the Sugao medical campus, where the intensity of a six-year professional curriculum shapes the weekly routine. The education building contains lecture and seminar rooms, small-group learning space, study rooms, the medical information center and library, a cafeteria, and a bookstore. The wider complex includes research laboratories, the university hospital, a gymnasium with three arenas and a training room, and a chapel used for religious and community gatherings. The university publishes a substantial list of student organizations. Athletic choices include football, rugby, basketball, volleyball, tennis, swimming, skiing, martial arts, sailing, dance, and several other sports. Cultural and academic groups include light music, chorus, Medical English Speaking Society, an orchestra, medical simulation, anatomy, photography, and traditional medicine. Students may join more than one organization. These activities offer an important counterweight to a demanding and highly specialized course of study. Christian heritage is visible through the Christian Culture Center and chapel, which hosts Masses, Christmas gatherings, and other events. Prospective students should nevertheless distinguish verified medical-university facilities from housing advertised for the affiliated nursing school: current official information did not establish a general university residence for medical students. Applicants should therefore investigate private accommodation and commuting costs independently.

Location & Surroundings

The main Sugao campus is at 2-16-1 Sugao, Miyamae-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture. It is a consolidated medical complex containing the undergraduate and graduate schools, research buildings, university hospital, educational facilities, and student activity spaces. Clinical education also reaches affiliated sites elsewhere in Kawasaki and nearby Yokohama. The campus is not directly beside a railway station, so commuting normally includes a bus journey. Official access information lists services from several rail corridors. Typical published bus times are approximately 20 minutes from Mukogaoka-yuen, Ikuta, Yurigaoka, or Miyamaedaira; approximately 25 minutes from Saginuma; approximately 30 minutes from Shin-yurigaoka or Azamino; and approximately 35 minutes from Mizonokuchi. Travel time can vary with road conditions. This location offers access to the wider Tokyo–Kanagawa metropolitan area while retaining a self-contained medical-campus environment. The tradeoff is daily dependence on road connections for most commuters. Prospective students should compare housing against the particular rail and bus routes they expect to use, especially when planning around early clinical duties or evening club activities.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For the 2027 undergraduate medical intake, the official guide lists first-year academic charges of JPY 6,970,000: a JPY 1,500,000 admission fee, JPY 3,700,000 tuition, JPY 1,200,000 education-maintenance charge, and JPY 570,000 education-enhancement charge. Charges from the second year total JPY 5,570,000 under the published schedule, although the university says later-year fees may change with social conditions. Separate first-year charges include JPY 5,000 for student government, JPY 112,000 for the parents’ association, and JPY 200,000 for the alumni association. Living costs, transport, books, equipment, and housing are additional. The same guide describes several forms of aid, but eligibility and repayment conditions differ. These include a need-based university grant of up to JPY 3.6 million, university and memorial loans, an entrance merit award covering JPY 5.47 million of first-year tuition-related charges, support linked to specified future clinical service, and Japan Student Services Organization programs. Applicants should not assume every scheme can be combined or is open before enrollment. Doctoral tuition is substantially lower: the current official schedule lists JPY 500,000 in the first year and JPY 400,000 in subsequent years, plus medical-society charges and a JPY 70,000 degree-examination fee. Medical graduates proceed toward Japan’s national medical licensing examination and postgraduate clinical training. For the 2024 graduating cohort, the university reports 99 of 110 new graduates passing the national examination. Thirty entered training or employment within the university’s affiliated hospitals, while 69 went to external training institutions. These are cohort outcomes, not guarantees for future students.