Generally, the Social Sciences program expects about 4 applications per place. It may be stronger this year.
1) You can mention your high school's ranking in the "school information" form, or in your personal statement. It can't hurt. However, I think it wouldn't have such a big affect on the outcome. Admissions are far more based upon a holistic evaluation of the candidate, rather than just where you went to school, or what sort of scores you have.
This is not to say that test scores are not important - they are - but simply that most applicants have scores which would make them competitive, and it is your drive, ambition, and the amount of research you have done which will secure you the place. Can you convincingly explain why Tsukuba and this program, rather than similar programs at Osaka, Nagoya, UTokyo, or a number of private universities? Have you looked at each program and compared their good and bad points?
In short, standardized tests are insufficient to measure the totality of a person's accomplishment and personality, and while they are important indicators of both ability and commitment, Tsukuba is more interested in your future than your past.
2) You cannot get in by GPA alone. They've rejected people with higher scores than you before, while accepting others with lower (yet still competitive) scores.
The examiners are not Japanese, and they understand that test scores are our servants, not our masters.
Keep your scores up, but I recommend you to focus your energy on your personal statement, and explaining what you want to do with your life, and how a degree from Tsukuba gets you there.
3) For the right candidate, it is easy to get in. For the wrong candidate, impossible. Last year, 4 applicants per place. Perhaps only 20% of them really totally unacceptable. This year, I would expect 5 applicants per place.
For those which do get in, they have many options after graduation. From the English programs as a whole, they have students accepted to Oxford, Yale, UCLA, NYU, NUS, UTokyo, Kyoto, and many others.
4) Competitive scores. Keep working hard.
5) Your personal statement is one of the most important documents in the whole application. Work hard on it. Dream a big dream - how do you want to change the world? Then tell them about that, and how Tsukuba is a fundamental part of you achieving that goal. Lead, don't follow.
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