It pays to be old.
It’s no secret that Japan’s population is steadily decreasing due to a combination of a low birth rate and a quickly increasing number of senior citizens. As a result, dwindling enrollment numbers are a constant concern for universities in Japan. However, one Japanese university is hoping to bolster their numbers by targeting people 50 and over with an incredible age-based scholarship.
Although it almost seems like the kind of thing a used car dealership might pull, Hanazono University in the city of Kyoto has announced that as of the start of the new school year next April they will be offering a scholarship that will correspond to the age of the recipient. In other words, the older you are, the less you have to pay.
The discounts start with students in their 50s. They get 50% off tuition. Those in their 60s get 60% off and this trend continues decade by decade until reaching recipients who are 100-years-old or over. They get to attend Hanazono University completely for free.
The maximum period of time a student will be able to receive one of these scholarships is four years. This means that because one year of tuition at Hanazono University costs roughly 800,000 yen (~$7,200 USD), the maximum a knowledge hungry centenarian could save is around 3,200,000 yen (~$28,700 USD).
Hanazono University is hoping that their new scholarship program will result in at least a double digit increase in the number of older non-traditional students attending the school. Although it seems highly unlikely that many 100-year-olds will apply, Hanazono does appear to be onto something. As universities in Japan are forced to compete more and more for fresh high school graduates, targeting healthy retirees with a desire to learn and plenty of disposable income may prove to be a savvy business move for Hanazono and other not so well known universities.
Source: Asahi Shinbun
Image: Picture of Hanazono University (Wikipedia Commons)
