The latest important event in the history of educational testing in Japan was the establishment of the National Center for University Entrance Examination (NCUEE) in 1977. The entrance examination system consists of two stages. The first stage exam is the Joint Achievement Test (JAT) which is jointly administered by national and local public universities throughout Japan on the same days. The second stage exam is one which is carried out by each university. This stage is locally designed in view of the admission policy of an individual university. This is a report on the four years' (1977-82) experience of the administration of the nationwide JAT. It includes: (1) establishment of the National Center for University Entrance Examination, (2) the essential features of the new entrance examination system, (3) merits of the new system, (4) criticism regarding the new system, (5) technical problems of JAT, and (6) concluding remarks. Some statistical results announced from the National Center for University Entrance Examination are also included. (Author/PN)