Not every school among the international schools in Ho Chi Minh City teaches in English. The Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City is a national school, set up in 1997 to give the children of Japanese families a Japanese language education that matches schooling back home. It follows the curriculum laid down by the Japanese Ministry of Education and covers elementary and junior high school, Grade 1 to Grade 9, on a campus in the Phu My Hung area of District 7 where much of the city's Japanese community is concentrated.
The Japanese School at a glance
| Curriculum and language | Japanese national curriculum, set by the Ministry of Education, taught in Japanese |
|---|---|
| Stages | Elementary and junior high, Grade 1 to Grade 9, roughly ages 6 to 15 |
| Founded | 1997 |
| Accreditation | Operates under the framework of the Japanese Ministry of Education for overseas Japanese schools |
| Fee band | Set for the Japanese community; not directly comparable to the city's international school fee bands |
| Campus area | Phu My Hung, Tan Phu Ward, District 7, south of central Saigon |
Curriculum and academics
The school teaches the Japanese national curriculum in Japanese, with the explicit aim of keeping a child's education equivalent to that of a public school in Japan. That matters to a family on a posting: a child can transfer in from Japan, follow the same subjects and progression, and transfer back without losing ground. The school covers the elementary years and junior high, Grade 1 to Grade 9, rather than running a senior high school, so families often plan the next stage around a return to Japan or a move to a senior school elsewhere.
This is a different proposition from the city's English medium schools. A family choosing it is choosing continuity with the Japanese system and the Japanese language, not the IB curriculum or a British or American route. Parents who instead want an English medium international education, or who expect to stay in Vietnam through the senior years, usually look at the IB schools in Ho Chi Minh City and the other international options, and weigh the trade off between language continuity and an internationally portable qualification.
Comparing a national school with the city's international options?
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Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City fees
The school's fees sit outside the usual tiers in our guide to international school fees in Ho Chi Minh City, because it is a community school for Japanese nationals rather than a commercial international school. It does not publish a public fee schedule in the way the larger English medium schools do, and costs are set for the families it serves, so the honest answer is to contact the school directly for current tuition and any community contributions.
Where the international schools charge tuition plus registration, deposits, examination entries and transport, a national school of this kind is usually structured differently, and any comparison with the premium IB and British schools in the city is not like for like. If you are weighing the real annual cost of the alternatives, our fee calculator brings tuition and the common extras into a single figure for the English medium schools.
Admissions
Admission is geared to the Japanese community, and the school is the natural choice for a family arriving from Japan who wants their child to continue in Japanese. The school year and intake follow the Japanese pattern, and families typically apply through the school directly, with the relevant documents from a child's previous Japanese school. Because the school exists to serve a specific community, the application process and the supporting paperwork differ from the open, year round admissions of the city's commercial international schools.
Families relocating from outside Japan, or those whose children do not speak Japanese, should talk to the school early about whether the national curriculum route is the right fit, since teaching and assessment are in Japanese throughout. Contact the school directly to confirm the current intake, the documents required and the timeline for the year your child would join.
Location and who goes there
The school is in the Phu My Hung area of Tan Phu Ward, District 7, the planned township south of the centre that is home to a large share of Ho Chi Minh City's Japanese and Korean residents. The area is well supplied with Japanese restaurants, shops and services, which is part of why the community clusters there, and it keeps the school close to where most of its families live. District 7 sits across the river from the central districts, so the commute and the housing market are quite different from the Thao Dien side of the city.
The intake is overwhelmingly Japanese, made up of families on corporate postings and others settled in the city who want their children to stay within the Japanese system. For how District 7 and Phu My Hung compare with Thao Dien and the central districts on housing, commute and school choice, the Ho Chi Minh City hub maps out the wider picture for relocating parents.
Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City reviews
No verified reviews yet. GlobalSchoolGuide is independent and no school pays to be listed, so we publish parent reviews only once we can confirm the reviewer is part of the school community, and you will not find an invented star rating here. If your family has experience of the Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City, please share it through our school reviews hub to help other relocating parents.
Frequently asked questions
How much are Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City fees?
The school's fees are set for the Japanese national community it serves and are not directly comparable to the city's international school bands. The school does not publish a public fee schedule in the way the larger international schools do, so contact the school to confirm tuition and any community contributions.
What curriculum does Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City follow?
The school follows the national curriculum set by the Japanese Ministry of Education and teaches in Japanese. It is designed to match education in public schools in Japan so that students can return there smoothly, and it covers Grade 1 to Grade 9.
What ages does Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City take?
The school covers elementary and junior high school, Grade 1 to Grade 9, which is roughly ages 6 to 15. It does not run a senior high school or kindergarten in the way some international schools do.
Is Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City a good school?
The school is the established choice for Japanese families who want their children to follow the Japanese national curriculum in Vietnam. As an independent guide we do not rank schools or take payment to feature them, so we point parents to a visit and a conversation with the school about its programme and community.
Who is Japanese School of Ho Chi Minh City for?
It is primarily for Japanese families living in Ho Chi Minh City who want a Japanese language education aligned with schools back home. Families who instead want an English medium international education usually look at the city's IB and British schools.
