Secondary education in Japan
In education in Japan, most junior high schools (中学校 chū gakkō, literally, middle school) cover the seventh through ninth years, and most high schools (高校 kōkō) cover years ten through twelve. Attendance is not compulsory.
Most Japanese high schools have complicated admissions procedures, similar to university admissions in other countries. The top high schools, however, graduate their students directly into the top universities, such as Tokyo University. Students that do not plan to attend university are generally tracked into vocational high schools: very few middle school graduates forego high school entirely, although they are free to do so if they wish.
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