Prince Hisahito, a nephew of Emperor Naruhito and second in line to the throne, has been admitted to a high school attached to the University of Tsukuba, known as a highly competitive state-run educational institution in Tokyo, the Imperial Household Agency said Wednesday.
The prince, 15, the only son of Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko, is the first member of the imperial family in the postwar era to enroll at a high school not affiliated with Gakushuin University.
In April, he will enter Senior High School at Otsuka, University of Tsukuba.
Most imperial family members have studied at junior and senior high schools affiliated with Gakushuin University, established in the 19th century as a school for aristocrats. But the prince did not tread the traditional path.
The prince is currently a third-year student at Ochanomizu University Junior High School and attended the elementary school attached to the university.
Prince Hisahito and his parents thought highly of the senior high school's policy of valuing freedom and autonomy in making the decision, the agency said. The fact that the senior high school at Ochanomizu is a girl's school was another reason the prince sought to move to an outside high school.
The admission was made through the junior high school's program that allows some of its students to proceed to senior high schools to which it has ties. The prince, who had had good enough grades to apply for the program, took an entrance exam on Sunday and passed it, according to the agency.
Crown Prince Fumihito, known for his liberal education policy for his children, has said he has talked with his son throughout his education. "(The prince) now sits at the desk much longer than a year ago," he told reporters last November.
The prince's two older sisters have already graduated from International Christian University in Tokyo.
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