Wakayama City Completes University Attraction Initiative with Full Student Cohorts

Our city has been working to attract universities, and now five universities have established campuses in the city center. With the enrollment of the 6th-year students of the Faculty of Pharmacy at Wakayama Medical University in the 2026 academic year, all grade levels of students at each university are now present, creating a new hub where 1,895 students and 524 faculty members learn and work daily. Furthermore, 74.6% of the enrolled students at the five attracted universities are from within the prefecture, and of the 1,178 total graduates since the 2021 academic year, the local employment rate within the prefecture is 81.7%, showing progress in 'local study, local employment.' (*) Calculated based on the cumulative number of enrolled students since opening. Source: Basic School Survey (student numbers counted by faculty location). From the 2017 to 2025 academic years, the growth rate of university students in the prefecture was 18.2%, the highest in the nation. We will continue to aim for a virtuous cycle where young people can proudly learn in the town where they were born and raised, and settle permanently in Wakayama City.