Outrage hits Japan med schools said to keep women out

A Japanese medical university’s alleged systematic discrimination against female applicants has sparked outrage across Japan and is being criticized by Cabinet officials.

The scandal surfaced after the Yomiuri newspaper reported Thursday that Tokyo Medical University has been slashing female applicants’ entrance exam scores for years to keep female student population low because women tend to quit as doctors after starting families.

Gender Equality Minister Seiko Noda says the allegation is extremely serious and unacceptable. Labor Minister Katsunobu Kato says an environment more supportive of women pursuing medical profession is needed.

The school is investigating. It is already facing a separate scandal involving an inappropriate admission of a top education bureaucrat’s son.