MARCH (Japanese universities)

MARCH (マーチ, Māchi) is the collective name of 5 private universities located in Tokyo, Japan.

The name comes from the initial letters of the Japanese Roman characters of each school: Combined, MARCH universities' alumni include 5 world leaders,[1][2][3][4][5] 2 Supreme Court Justices,[6][7] and 6 Olympic medalists.

[9] A former extension, Sophia University (上智大学, Jōchi Daigaku), alongside the rest of MARCH, were called JMARCH in the 1960s.

The term is no longer used, due to Sophia now being grouped with Waseda and Keio as Japan's top 3 private universities.

Originating in 2005, GMARCH is a widely used extension of MARCH, with G being Gakushuin University (学習院大学, Gakushūin Daigaku).