List of prime ministers of Japan by education

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This is a list of prime ministers of Japan and the educational institutions they attended. As of April 2024, of the 64 prime ministers to date, 17 were educated at the University of Tokyo (called Tokyo Imperial University until 1945), seven at Waseda University, six at the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy, five at the Imperial Japanese Army Academy, three at Keio University, two at Kyoto University and Meiji University, and one at 13 other institutions. 7 did not attend higher education.

Much of the prime ministers who were born and raised during the Edo period did not attend university as there was no formal system of higher education, instead education was predominantly conducted by local temples and shrine priests through private education such as the Yushima Seidō.[1][2] The Meiji restoration led to the modernization of Japan, including its education. As a result, aristocrats and nobilities first received higher education by travelling to western countries such as the Chōshū Five which Itō Hirobumi, the first prime minister of Japan, was a part of, attending University College London.[3]

Table[edit]

Bold indicates institutions that are active as of April 2024.

University No. Prime ministers
University of Tokyo 17 Hara Takashi, Katō Takaaki, Wakatsuki Reijirō, Hamaguchi Osachi, Kōki Hirota, Hiranuma Kiichirō, Kijūrō Shidehara, Shigeru Yoshida, Tetsu Katayama, Hitoshi Ashida, Ichirō Hatoyama, Nobusuke Kishi, Eisaku Satō, Takeo Fukuda, Yasuhiro Nakasone, Kiichi Miyazawa, Yukio Hatoyama
Waseda University 7 Tanzan Ishibashi, Noboru Takeshita, Keizō Obuchi, Yoshirō Mori, Yasuo Fukuda, Yoshihiko Noda, Fumio Kishida (incumbent)
Imperial Japanese Naval Academy 6 Yamamoto Gonnohyōe, Katō Tomosaburō, Saitō Makoto, Keisuke Okada, Mitsumasa Yonai, Kantarō Suzuki
Imperial Japanese Army Academy 5 Tanaka Giichi, Senjūrō Hayashi, Nobuyuki Abe, Hideki Tojo, Kuniaki Koiso
Keio University 3 Inukai Tsuyoshi, Ryutaro Hashimoto, Junichiro Koizumi
Kyoto University 2 Fumimaro Konoe, Hayato Ikeda
Meiji University 2 Takeo Miki, Tomiichi Murayama
Sophia University 1 Morihiro Hosokawa
Gakushuin University 1 Tarō Asō
Chuo University 1 Toshiki Kaifu
Hosei University 1 Yoshihide Suga
Hitotsubashi University 1 Masayoshi Ōhira
Shiga University 1 Sōsuke Uno
Tokyo Institute of Technology 1 Naoto Kan
Seikei University 1 Shinzo Abe
Seijo University 1 Tsutomu Hata
Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology 1 Zenkō Suzuki
Chuo College of Technology 1 Kakuei Tanaka
Army War College 1 Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni
University College London 1 Itō Hirobumi
University of Paris 1 Saionji Kinmochi
Army Toyama School 1 Terauchi Masatake
Did not attend higher education 7 Kuroda Kiyotaka, Yamagata Aritomo, Matsukata Masayoshi, Ōkuma Shigenobu, Katsura Tarō, Takahashi Korekiyo, Kiyoura Keigo

List[edit]

Prime Minister Term of office School University Degree Additional education
Itō Hirobumi 1885–1888
1892–1896
1898
1900–1901 		Shōkasonjuku Academy University College London —
Kuroda Kiyotaka 1888–1889 Jigen-ryū — —
Yamagata Aritomo 1889–1891

1898–1900

Shōkasonjuku Academy — —
Matsukata Masayoshi 1891–1892

1896–1898

Zoshikan — —
Ōkuma Shigenobu 1898

1914–1916

Kōdōkan — —
Katsura Tarō 1901–1906
1908–1911
1912–1913 		— — —
Saionji Kinmochi 1906–1908

1911–1912

— University of Paris Law
Yamamoto Gonnohyōe 1913–1914

1923–1924

— Imperial Japanese Naval Academy —
Terauchi Masatake 1916–1918 — Army Toyama School —
Hara Takashi 1918–1921 Marin Seminary Tokyo Imperial University Did not graduate
Takahashi Korekiyo 1921–1922 — — —
Katō Tomosaburō 1922–1923 — Imperial Japanese Naval Academy —
Kiyoura Keigo 1924 Xianyi Garden — —
Katō Takaaki 1924–1926 Nagoya Western School Tokyo Imperial University English law
Wakatsuki Reijirō 1926–1927
1931 		Shimane Prefectural Matsue Kita High School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Tanaka Giichi 1927–1929 — Imperial Japanese Army Academy — Army War College
Hamaguchi Osachi 1929–1930

1931

Third High School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Inukai Tsuyoshi 1931–1932 — Keio University Sinology
Saitō Makoto 1932–1934 — Imperial Japanese Naval Academy —
Keisuke Okada 1934–1936 Imperial Japanese Army Academy Imperial Japanese Naval Academy —
Kōki Hirota 1936–1937 First Higher School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Senjūrō Hayashi 1937 Fourth High School Imperial Japanese Army Academy — Army War College
Fumimaro Konoe 1937–1939

1940–1941

First Higher School Kyoto Imperial University Marxian economics
Hiranuma Kiichirō 1939 First Higher School Tokyo Imperial University English law
Nobuyuki Abe 1939–1940 Tokyo First Middle School Imperial Japanese Army Academy — Army War College
Mitsumasa Yonai 1940 Morioka Middle School Imperial Japanese Naval Academy —
Hideki Tojo 1941–1944 Army Central Children's School Imperial Japanese Army Academy — Army War College
Kuniaki Koiso 1944–1945 Yamagata Middle School Imperial Japanese Army Academy —
Kantarō Suzuki 1945 Kogyokusha Junior & Senior High School Imperial Japanese Naval Academy —
Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni 1945 Gakushūin Army War College —
Kijūrō Shidehara 1945–1946 Third High School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Shigeru Yoshida 1946–1947

1948–1954

Tokyo Physics School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Tetsu Katayama 1947–1948 Third High School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Hitoshi Ashida 1948 First Higher School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Ichirō Hatoyama 1954–1956 First Higher School Tokyo Imperial University English law
Tanzan Ishibashi 1956–1957 Waseda University Junior and Senior High School Waseda University Literature
Nobusuke Kishi 1957–1960 First Higher School Tokyo Imperial University German law
Hayato Ikeda 1960–1964 Fifth High School Kyoto Imperial University Law
Eisaku Satō 1964–1972 Fifth High School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Kakuei Tanaka 1972–1974 Kinjo Gakuen High School Chuo College of Technology Civil engineering
Takeo Miki 1974–1976 Tokushima Prefectural Commercial School Meiji University Law
Takeo Fukuda 1976–1978 First Higher School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Masayoshi Ōhira 1978–1980 Takamatsu High School of Commerce Tokyo University of Commerce Economics
Zenkō Suzuki 1980–1982 Iwate Prefectural Fisheries School Tokyo University of Fisheries —
Yasuhiro Nakasone 1982–1987 Shizuoka Higher School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Noboru Takeshita 1987–1989 Waseda University Junior and Senior High School Waseda University Economics
Sōsuke Uno 1989 Shiga Prefectural Yawata Commercial School Hikone Commercial College Economics
Toshiki Kaifu 1989–1991 Tokai Junior High School Chuo University Law Waseda University
Kiichi Miyazawa 1991–1993 Musashi High School Tokyo Imperial University Law
Morihiro Hosokawa 1993–1994 Gakushūin Sophia University Law
Tsutomu Hata 1994 Seijo Academy High School Seijo University Economics
Tomiichi Murayama 1994–1996 Oita Municipal High School Meiji University Political science
Ryutaro Hashimoto 1996–1998 Azabu High School Keio University Law
Keizō Obuchi 1998–2000 Tokyo Metropolitan Kita High School Waseda University Political science
Yoshirō Mori 2000–2001 Kanazawa Nisui High School Waseda University Economics
Junichiro Koizumi 2001–2006 Yokosuka High School Keio University Economics University College London
Shinzo Abe 2006–2007
2012–2020 		Seikei Senior High School Seikei University Political science University of Southern California (dropped out)
Yasuo Fukuda 2007–2008 Azabu High School Waseda University Economics
Tarō Asō 2008–2009 Gakushūin Gakushuin University Political science Stanford University (dropped out)

London School of Economics

Yukio Hatoyama 2009–2010 Tokyo Metropolitan Koishikawa High School University of Tokyo Engineering Stanford University
Naoto Kan 2010–2011 Tokyo Metropolitan Koyamadai High School Tokyo Institute of Technology Science
Yoshihiko Noda 2011–2012 Chiba Prefectural Funabashi Senior High School Waseda University Political science
Yoshihide Suga 2020–2021 Akita Prefectural Yuzawa High School Hosei University Law
Fumio Kishida 2021–present Kaisei Academy Waseda University Law
Prime Minister Term of office School University Degree Additional education

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Kelly, Boyd. (1999). Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing, Vol. 1, p. 522.
  2. ^ De Bary, William et al. (2005). Sources of Japanese Tradition, Vol. 2, p. 69.
  3. ^ "安倍総理大臣の日英研究教育大学協議会への出席及び長州ファイブ記念碑視察". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. 2014-05-01. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
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