Japan Ranks First Among OECD Countries in All Three Core Subjects
Japan achieved a significant success in the OECD’s 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results. Fifteen-year-old students in Japan ranked first among OECD countries in all three areas: reading, mathematics, and science. This result marks the first time since the PISA assessments began in 2000 that Japan has simultaneously taken the top position among OECD countries in all three core subjects.
PISA evaluates not only whether students can recall what they have learned at school, but also how effectively they can apply their knowledge and skills to real-life problems. Approximately 760,000 15-year-old students from 91 countries and economies participated in the 2025 assessment.
Japan’s achievement comes at a time when East Asian countries continue to stand out in global educational performance. Alongside Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, and participating Chinese cities were also among the highest-performing education systems in reading, mathematics, and science. Among countries and economies outside the OECD, Japan ranked fourth in reading and fifth in both mathematics and science.