Abstract
The author has examined the long-term change of the number of applicants for all Japanese universities, and has analyzed the relationship between the number of applicants for science and engineering programs at Japanese universities from 35 selected Japanese highschools and the level of academic achievements of them. The results did not show any symptoms that suggest a clear drop in the number of the students who applied for science and engineering programs in comparison with for other porgrams. The number of students who applied for science and engineering programs at universities remained stable in the high schools that maintain advanced level of academic achievement. Most of he teachers who teach at the high schools that show a decrease regard this tendency to have been caused by a drop in academic ability which is necessary to enter science and engineering programs. In the interviews of 35 high schools, no one expressed the view that science and engineering programs are out of favor with their students.
