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The story
Entrepreneur Takafumi Horie (53) argued on his X (formerly Twitter) account by October 12 that even graduates of elite universities like Tokyo Institute of Technology and Hitotsubashi University go unrecognized in his hometown of Yame City, Fukuoka Prefecture. The 5channel thread this sparked saw users split over how a region’s unfamiliarity with certain schools shapes local families’ attitudes toward education, and over just how far a university’s name recognition really extends nationwide. Also drawing attention was Horie’s own account of why he chose the University of Tokyo — by his own admission, it was “a way to win over his ignorant parents.”
Published 10/12 (Mon) 20:22
Sponichi Annex
Entrepreneur Takafumi Horie (53) updated his official X (formerly Twitter) account by October 12, sharing his view that even prestigious universities are “unknown” in his hometown of Yame City, Fukuoka Prefecture.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
A few years back during the "Todai Challenge," he completely gave up on math.
Even I've got some rust, but I still remember entry-level solving methods for Center Test-level math (Japan's old standardized university entrance exam).
Yep.
Re: #1 literally says so.
Horie wrote in his book that he "wanted to leave Fukuoka, but the only way to convince his clueless parents was Tokyo University."
Apparently he was told, "If it's not Todai, go to Kyushu University, where you can commute from home."
Sounds like dropping out still bugs him somewhere deep down.
Hitotsubashi's a lot better known than Tokyo Tech, though.
That "Tokyo Tech vs. Shinshu University" copypasta (a famous online joke about parents mixing up the two schools) isn't even a joke, it's real.
So there were probably plenty of families where even a top school wouldn't get tuition money if the parents didn't recognize the name.
I graduated from Tokyo Tech/Hitotsubashi, and
honestly, the only people I've ever met who don't know Tokyo Tech or Hitotsubashi — even out in the sticks —
are around 100 years old by today's standards
(meaning, basically already passed away).
Even a guy who only finished junior high knew about them.
Kyushu University → Kyushu Institute of Technology → Seinan Gakuin University → Fukuoka University → (University of Kitakyushu) → Kyushu Sangyo University → Kyushu Kyoritsu University → everything else
That's roughly the pecking order people pick from based on what they can get into.
he'd have stood out as an insufferable loser.
He's lucky to have been born into an era where a country kid can move to Tokyo and actually make it big.
Apparently his elementary school teacher was worried about this and convinced his parents to send him to cram school so he could get into Kurume University's affiliated junior/senior high.
That teacher is supposedly the person Horie considers his number one benefactor.
Even Nanzan University — nobody knows that one.
Even Kyoto University — only academic-pedigree obsessives really care about that one.
It's probably only well-known private universities in Kanto and Kansai that register nationally.
I get why private schools in the Tokai region drop way off in recognition —
most of them don't draw students from across the whole country.
But when it's about himself, it suddenly becomes "I couldn't help it, I grew up in an ignorant environment" self-justification?
It's not really self-justification — nobody's saying Horie himself was ignorant.
He was probably a bullied kid who never felt loved. Poor guy, lol.
Seems like he really does hate his parents.
Apparently his father was emotionally abusive and used to blow up at Horiemon a lot too, which is reportedly why he wanted out of the house.
Probably the top two each from the national and private categories.
People know the names Waseda and Keio, but they're not really recognized as "smart universities."
Keio's in the same category as Aoyama Gakuin — seen as a school rich kids go to.
If you're an exam-taking student, sure, you'd know them.
This is about people who never even went to college, out in the countryside.
In this case, that'd be Horie's parents (though there's no way to know what level of education his parents actually have).
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
Horie’s hometown, Yame City in Fukuoka Prefecture, is a regional city with a population of around 20,000 — an area where information about universities doesn’t circulate as readily as it does in the greater Tokyo area. Tokyo Institute of Technology merged with Tokyo Medical and Dental University in 2024 and was renamed “Institute of Science Tokyo,” and within the thread both the old and new names are used interchangeably, which can be confusing for readers. The thread split mainly over where to draw the line on name recognition: some argued that only Todai, Kyoto University, and Waseda/Keio count as “nationally known,” while others insisted that elite national universities like Hitotsubashi and Tokyo Tech should obviously be known too. The anecdote about Horie choosing Tokyo University as “a way to win over his ignorant parents” also came up — this is something Horie has written about in his own books, and it’s worth keeping in mind as context outside the thread itself.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5channel (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “Horiemon Claims Even Elite Universities Are ‘Unknown’ Back Home — Even Tokyo Tech & Hitotsubashi Have ‘Low Name Recognition’.”
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