Hiroshima International School (HIS) Guide 2026: IB Programmes, 2026-27 Fees, Admissions and Results

Hiroshima International School (HIS) was founded in 1962 and today teaches children from the age of three right through to Grade 12 on a quiet, green campus on the northern edge of Hiroshima. If your family is moving to Hiroshima for work, or you live in the Chugoku region and are wondering whether an IB education is possible outside Tokyo or Osaka, this is very likely a school you will want to look at. It is small, offers all three core IB programmes, and its motto is “Diversity, Inclusion, Peace.”

Everything below comes from the school’s website, its 2025-26 School Profile, its 2026-2027 Financial Regulations and Enrolment Procedures, the Japanese Ministry of Education (MEXT) IB consortium list and the Council of International Schools (CIS), all checked on 26 September 2026. Please confirm the details with the school before you apply.

HIS at a glance

HIS is a co-educational day school (no boarding), with English as the language of instruction throughout the school.

Who studies here? The FAQ says roughly 35% of students have two Japanese parents, 35% have one Japanese and one non-Japanese parent, and 30% are expatriates (Figure 4 below). The School Profile describes it in thirds, with around twenty nationalities at any one time.

IB programmes at HIS: from age three to Grade 12

HIS is a full “IB continuum” school: your child can follow IB frameworks from the early years to the end of high school. The MEXT IB consortium list (as of 30 June 2026) shows HIS as authorised for the Primary Years Programme (PYP), the Middle Years Programme (MYP) and the Diploma Programme (DP). According to the 2025-26 School Profile, the PYP and DP were authorised in 2005 and the MYP in 2019.

As Figure 1 shows, the programmes line up with the grades like this:

• EC3 to Grade 5 (Early Childhood and Primary): the PYP, where children learn through inquiry units that connect subjects around big questions rather than only studying them one by one.
• Grades 6 to 10: the MYP. In Grades 9 and 10 all students take English and Japanese (as Language and Literature or Language Acquisition).
• Grades 11 and 12: the IB Diploma Programme.

Diploma subjects

Because HIS is small, the subject list is compact. The 2025-26 School Profile lists these courses, each at Standard and Higher Level:

• Group 1: English A Language and Literature; Japanese A Literature
• Group 2: English B; Japanese B
• Group 3: Global Politics
• Group 4: Biology, Chemistry, Physics
• Group 5: Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation
• Group 6: Visual Arts; Music

A school-supported self-taught Language A (Standard Level) and online DP courses through Pamoja Education are also available “as appropriate”. All students take Theory of Knowledge and complete CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service). Note that the only mathematics course listed is Applications and Interpretation; if your child is aiming for a course that expects Analysis and Approaches, ask the school how this is handled. Graduation requires 23 credits at grade 3 or above, CAS and good attendance; the school does not calculate a GPA or rank students.

IB Diploma results

HIS publishes its Diploma results as long-term figures rather than a year-by-year table. The 2025-26 School Profile states:

• Pass rate 2007-2024: 92.4% (there was no Diploma cohort in 2014)
• Average Diploma score 2007-2024: 32.5 points (out of 45)
• Average score in 2024: 30 points

The profile gives no candidate numbers or world average, and no 2025 or 2026 results. The homepage shows “35 IB Diploma Average Score” without saying which year it refers to, so we have not used it. Classes are small, so do ask for the latest results and cohort size.

Where do graduates go?

The School Profile lists universities where HIS graduates have been unconditionally accepted, marking in bold those that students actually attended. In Japan it includes the University of Tokyo, Waseda, Keio, Sophia and ICU; overseas it includes Harvard, Imperial College London, LSE, the University of British Columbia, the University of Melbourne and Yonsei. The list is cumulative and gives no numbers per university. The University Counseling page says students meet the counsellor regularly from Grade 9.

Tuition and fees for 2026-2027

HIS publishes its fees in its Financial Regulations for the 2026-2027 school year, and it uses a two-tier system: a “Private” rate for families paying themselves, and a “Corporate” rate for families whose employer contributes. The Private rate is not available if an employer contributes to tuition “in any way or form”.

The private Financial Regulations say EC3, EC4 and Kindergarten children pay only the annual tuition and the application fee until Grade 1. (The Tuition Fees web page labels the one-time fees “Kindergarten and Above”, so Kindergarten applicants should confirm which applies.)

Putting the numbers together, as in Figure 2, the first year at 2026-27 rates (without bus, EAL or Grade 12 IB exam fees) comes to:

• EC3, EC4 or Kindergarten, private: ¥1,372,000 (¥20,000 application + ¥1,352,000 tuition)
• Grades 1 to 8, private: ¥2,169,000 (¥20,000 + ¥220,000 + ¥110,000 + ¥1,719,000 tuition + ¥100,000 Capital Fee)
• Grades 9 to 12, private: ¥2,202,000 (¥20,000 + ¥220,000 + ¥110,000 + ¥1,752,000 tuition + ¥100,000 Capital Fee)
• Any grade, corporate (the corporate regulations do not exempt the early years): ¥3,069,000 (¥20,000 + ¥220,000 + ¥110,000 + ¥2,619,000 tuition + ¥100,000 Capital Fee)

From the second year, private families pay ¥1,819,000 a year in Grades 1 to 8 and ¥1,852,000 in Grades 9 to 12 (tuition plus Capital Fee, 2026-27 rates).

Other practical points from the same documents:

• Sibling discounts (private families only): tuition is reduced by 25% for the second child and by 75% for the third child from one family. The discount applies to tuition only, not to other fees.
• Paying in instalments: private families can pay in full by the first day of school, or in four instalments (30% by 25 August 2026, 30% by 16 October 2026, 25% by 15 January 2027 and 15% by 12 March 2027). Corporate fees are paid in full by 25 August.
• Joining mid-year: tuition and the bus fee are charged at 100% for enrolment on or before 16 October, 85% on or before 22 January, 55% on or before 26 March, and 35% for enrolment after 29 March (as published; the schedule does not mention 27 to 29 March).

Only the bus fee is marked as excluding tax, and no lunch prices are published, so ask about both.

Admissions: who can apply and how it works

Applications all year round

The FAQ says HIS accepts applications all year round, and students can start during the year, depending on space. The Enrolment Procedures ask for forms three months before enrolment. The FAQ also describes HIS as “a selective school” that admits students whose needs it can meet.

English requirements

The FAQ says:

• Primary School: it is “helpful, but not essential” for students and at least one parent to speak some English. A specialist English as an Additional Language (EAL) teacher supports children’s English development.
• Secondary School: “a certain level of English proficiency is required” to access the curriculum, and this is discussed with families during admissions.

No test score or cut-off grade is published, so if your older child is still learning English, talk to the school early. Many staff speak Japanese.

Age cut-offs

• EC3: children must be three years old and toilet-trained, and may join at any time but not before their third birthday.
• EC4: four years old by 1 September of the year of enrolment.
• Kindergarten: five years old by 1 September.
• Grade 1: six years old by 1 September.
• Grades 2 to 12: placed by age, on evidence of successful completion of the preceding grade.

Steps, documents and assessment

As Figure 3 shows, a visit is strongly encouraged but not required. You then send the application (in English) with the ¥20,000 fee by bank transfer; an electronic form is fine at first, but a signed hard copy with a photo must follow. Documents: the application with a colour photo, the medical history form, a medical examination report from the last year, immunisation record, birth certificate or passport, the Student Language Profile (called the Home Language Survey in the Enrolment Procedures), a recommendation from the most recent teacher, previous school reports, the Transportation Request if needed, and the signed Financial Regulations.

Every family has an interview with the Principal and the Admissions Coordinator; for applicants living outside Japan, an offer is provisional until then. Where necessary, children take age-appropriate assessments: observation for the youngest, written maths and language for Grades 1 to 4, and longer written tests from Grade 5. If a place is offered, the school confirms admission in writing and the Business Office sends an invoice for the fees.

Learning support and student life

The school has a counsellor for EC to Grade 12, a Learning Support Team (small-group or individual sessions and learning plans) and English language support. The Enrolment Procedures note that admission may be refused if the school cannot meet a student’s needs, so please share any support needs openly when you apply.

Class sizes are small. The FAQ says Early Childhood classes normally have no more than 16 children with two adults, Primary classes usually have 15 to 20 students (maximum 24), and Secondary classes vary by subject, also with a maximum of 24.

What makes HIS feel different is its link to Hiroshima’s peace message. Its Secondary School Crane Club takes the paper cranes the school receives each year from around the world to the Children’s Peace Monument in the Peace Memorial Park. The FAQ notes there is no after-school care beyond two days of after-school activities, so working parents should plan pick-ups.

Getting to HIS

The campus is in a quiet residential area of Asakita-ku. No public transport directions are published; the school runs three school bus routes from the city, designed each year according to need. Ask which areas the 2026-27 routes cover before choosing a home.

Questions parents often ask

My child speaks very little English. Can they still join?

For Primary School, the FAQ says English is helpful but not essential, and an EAL specialist supports children as they learn. From Secondary School, a certain level of English is required. Note that EAL Tuition of ¥100,000 a year (for a three-year period) may apply from Grade 1 at the private rate.

Can we join in April, at the start of the Japanese school year?

Yes, depending on space. The FAQ explains that a child joining in April enters the class that matches their age, which, in the school’s words, means spending “the first three months” in the grade they completed in March before moving up with the class in August. For private families, tuition for enrolment after 29 March is charged at 35% of the annual fee.

We are a Japanese family. Can our child attend?

Yes, and about a third of students have two Japanese parents. One important point: HIS is a miscellaneous school rather than an Article 1 school, and MEXT explains that attending such a school does not fulfil the legal duty to send a Japanese child of compulsory school age to school. Please look into this, and into how your child might later return to the Japanese system, before deciding.

Summary

• A small IB continuum school: founded in 1962; PYP and DP since 2005, MYP since 2019 (2025-26 School Profile), all three shown on the MEXT list as of 30 June 2026.
• Results published as long-term figures: a 92.4% pass rate and a 32.5-point average for 2007-2024, and a 30-point average in 2024.
• 2026-27 fees: private tuition from ¥1,352,000 (Early Childhood) to ¥1,752,000 (Grades 9 to 12), a corporate rate of ¥2,619,000, and sibling discounts for private families.
• Flexible admissions: applications all year round, April starters welcome, and English not essential for Primary School.

If HIS sounds like a good fit, book a tour or an Open Campus (remaining 2026-27 dates: 28 October and 20 November 2026, 10:00 to 12:00, by reservation) and ask about the latest Diploma results, bus routes and English support for your child’s grade.

Sources and references

• Hiroshima International School: official website (checked 26 September 2026)
• HIS: History
• HIS: Tuition Fees
• HIS: Admissions (2026-2027 School Year documents, including Enrolment Procedures and Financial Regulations for private and corporate-sponsored students)
• HIS: FAQ
• HIS: 2025-2026 School Profile (PDF)
• HIS: University Counseling
• HIS: Student Support Services
• HIS: 1000 Crane Club
• HIS: Open Campus (2026-27 dates)
• Council of International Schools: Re-accredited: Hiroshima International School, Japan (6 January 2026)
• MEXT IB Education Promotion Consortium: IB schools in Japan (as of 30 June 2026)
• Hiroshima Prefecture: list of schools (private miscellaneous schools)
• MEXT: compulsory schooling when children attend international schools (Japanese)