A big question for all students thinking about studying in Japan is: How much is it all going to cost? How much is typical for school fees, accommodations, transportation and phone plans? And ultimately, how much money should I prepare to cover my expenses? In this article we hope to help you build a plan for your Japan Study Abroad.

Overview of costs of Studying Abroad in Japan.

When planning your total spending budget for your studies abroad in Japan, let’s first see if we can identify all of the things that you are going to be spending money on and make projections from there.

Here are the main sources of cost to consider:

• Flight to Japan, which varies based on season, place of departure, and how far in advance of the departure date you secure your tickets.
• Tuition fees, which vary based on length of the program and school, and includes tuition, book and materials, exam fees, etc.
• Accommodation, which vary based on area and type, and including such expenses as rent, electricity, water, maintenance fees, and wifi.
• Phone contract, which vary a little based the plan you choose.
• Daily transportation to and from school.
• Food & Drink, which includes both groceries and leisurely dining out
• Tourism, entertainment, and shopping, as we know that in addition to studying Japanese, we are going to want to set time aside for exploring this beautiful country and buying some unique items along the way.

Although most of these expenses vary based on your choices, geography, lifestyle and other factors, we can get an idea of most of these based on that typical range that students spend for each.

Calculating your budget for studying in Japan

All of the ranges displayed below are written in Japanese Yen (JPY). $1 USD is roughly ￥100 (JPY).

Reducing the amount you need to save

An important thing to consider is that as a student in Japan on a student visa, can work to reduce the amount you would need to save before coming to Japan.

With a student visa in Japan, you are entitled to work a maximum of 28 hours per week and 8 hours a day during all official holidays. Even on a minimum wage salary of about ￥850 an hour, this means you could make ￥95,200 a month (￥1,142,400 in a year) at a bare minimum, not including your additional work entitlements on holidays. Note that for non-resident who work for less than a year’s term, the maximum tax that can be deducted from your salary is 20.42%, which would mean you would still be able to take home ￥909,121.92 at a bare minimum.

As you can see, finding a part-time job in Japan during your studies can really help to alleviate some of the financial burden of your studies abroad. In addition, working in Japan is a great way to practise and learn Japanese, and adds a whole new invaluable experience to your time abroad in Japan

In addition to working in Japan, you can also gain additional funding from a sponsorship, which is available to you and all students who have and maintain good academic records and actively take part in extra-curricular activities. Each sponsorship for international students to Japan is unique. We recommend you read more about which Sponsorships you might qualify for, and apply for them! Please let us know if you have questions about Sponsorships and their application processes.

In this way, once you can obtain the Student Visa, the degree that you can pay back and cover many of the expenses of studying abroad in Japan depends only on your sheer determination and academic prowess.