The information on this page is intended for prospective international students who are currently overseas and who wish to attend Kyoto University on a Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho: MEXT) Scholarship.
(* For privately-financed international students who are currently studying at Kyoto University, please refer to the page on "Scholarships for Privately-Financed International Students" for information on how to apply for a Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho: MEXT) Scholarship via the Domestic Selection process, and for information on other scholarships.
- Categories of MEXT Scholarship Program
- Application Period, Eligibility, and Benefits
- Application Procedures (Overseas Selection)
Categories
There are seven categories of Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho: MEXT) Scholarships funded by The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT): 1) research students (graduate degree students & research (non-degree) students), 2) teacher training students, 3) undergraduate students, 4) Japanese studies students, 5) college of technology students, 6) professional training college students, 7) young leaders program (YLP) students.
Kyoto University accepts international students in the following categories:
| Research Students | Undergraduate Students | Japanese Studies Students |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate degree students, Research (non-degree) students |
Undergraduate degree students | Japanese studies(non-degree) students at the International Center |
Application Period, Eligibility, and Benefits (as of April, 2014)
| Categories | Research Students | Undergraduate Students(※2) | Japanese Studies Students(※3) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application Methods |
Overseas Selection | ||||
| Embassy Recommendation | University Recommendation | Embassy Recommendation | Embassy Recommendation | University Recommendation | |
| Application Period |
Around March |
Around November(※1) |
Around March |
Around December | Around February(※1) |
| Selection Methods |
Screening of applicant's documents, written test, interview, etc. | Screening of applicant's documents, interview etc. | |||
| Eligibility | Those who have graduated from a university undergraduate or higher program, or those who expect to graduate | Those who have completed secondary schools or the equivalent, or those who expect to graduate | Those who are enrolled at the undergraduate level in an overseas university at the time of their arrival in Japan and who will return to their home institutions upon completion of the Japanese Studies Students program (Advanced Japanese language proficiency is required.) | ||
| Age (at time of acceptance) |
34 or younger | 17 or older and 21 or younger | 18 or older and 29 or younger | ||
| Duration | ・For an applicant who expects to be enrolled as a research (non-degree) student: within 2 years including the Japanese language education period (the allotted Japanese language education period is 6 months, but those who have sufficient Japanese language proficiency may enter graduate schools directly)(※4) | ・For an applicant who expects to be enrolled as a research (non-degree) student: within 18 months | 5 years including the Japanese language education period (the allotted Japanese language education period is one year)(※2) | one year | |
| ・For an applicant who expects to be enrolled in a degree program (Master's, professional, or Doctoral): until completion of the same program (but not to exceed the usual number of years required for completion) | |||||
| Monthly Stipend |
Research (non-degree) students 143,000 JPY Master's students 144,000 JPY Doctoral students 145,000 JPY |
117,000 JPY | 117,000 JPY | ||
| Students who study in certain designated regions will be provided an additional monthly stipend of 2,000 JPY or 3,000 JPY | |||||
| School Fees | Examination, admission and tuition fees are exempted | ||||
| Traveling Cost | One round-trip ticket provided | ||||
(※1) indicates the application period for applying to Kyoto University.
(※2) Undergraduate Students of Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho: MEXT) Scholarship are not accepted by the the Division of Pharmacy (6-year program) of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the School of Medical Science (6-year program) of the Faculty of Medicine, Kyoto University.
(※3) For details on the Japanese studies students program offered by Kyoto University, please refer to the page on "Japanese Studies Students Program" (in Japanese language only).
(※4) For details on the preliminary Japanese language education for MEXT research students and teacher training students who will proceed to graduate level research in the Kyoto or Shiga region, please refer to the page on "Intensive Japanese Language Course for Monbukagakusho Scholarship Students."
Application Procedures (Overseas Selection)
Pre-arrival applicants should be submitted in either one of two ways:
1) through the appropriate Japanese diplomatic mission overseas (Embassy Recommendation), or
2) through a Japanese university (University Recommendation)
Most MEXT scholarship students at Kyoto University are awarded the scholarship through Embassy Recommendation.
* For privately-financed international students who are currently studying at Kyoto University, please refer to the page on "Scholarship for Privately-Financed International Students" for information on how to apply for a Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho: MEXT) Scholarship via the Domestic Selection process. Application for the Domestic Selection process may only be submitted after entering a Japanese university.
1) Embassy Recommendation
Recruitment and preliminary selection for Embassy Recommendation are conducted by the Japanese diplomatic missions in the applicant's home country. For further information, please direct your inquiries to the nearest Japanese diplomatic mission in your country.
For applicants from China, the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China accepts applications and conducts the first screening. The admission requirements, schedule and process differ from embassy recommendations. Successful Chinese Ministry recommended applicants generally come to Japan in October. For details, please contact the appropriate authorities in China.
| Before Coming to Japan | March-April | Application | |
|---|---|---|---|
| May-August | Screening by Japanese Embassy/Consulate | ||
| Approaching Prospective Universities for Letter of Acceptance(※5) | |||
| November | Screening by MEXT | ||
| February (-July)(※6) |
Notification of Results | ||
| March (September)(※6) |
Immigration Procedures | ||
| During Stay in Japan | early April (early October)(※6) |
Arrival in Japan | |
| Research (non-degree) Students ・Japanese language training ・Preparation for entrance exams ・Conducting research |
Undergraduate, Master's or Doctoral Program Begins
※Students must pass the entrance exams prior to enrollment.
|
||
| Entrance Examination | |||
| Undergraduate, Master's or Doctoral Program begins | |||
| Returning to Home Country | |||
(※5) Important Notice Regarding Applications for Embassy Recommendations
Applicants were previously required to submit a “Letter of Acceptance” at the time of their application (or during the preliminary selection) for an Embassy Recommendation. Please be notified that, beginning in 2006, only those applicants who have passed the preliminary selection by the Japanese embassy will be qualified to contact prospective advisors for a “Letter of Acceptance.”
If you pass the preliminary screening by the Japanese embassy/consulate in your country and require an acceptance letter from a member of our academic staff, please choose a prospective academic advisor through our official website. Details of our academic staff can be found on the following pages: "Activity Database on Education and Research (External Link)", and "Kyoto University Bulletin (External Link)". Prepare the following documents and send them to the prospective advisor. If the advisor's contact information is not available, please contact the administration office of the faculty or graduate school to which he or she belongs, mentioning the advisor's name.
Required Items (Not returnable):
- Certification of preliminary selection issued by the relevant Japanese diplomatic mission
- An official Letter of Acceptance (in the prescribed form)
- Copies of the documents you have submitted to the Japanese diplomatic mission in your country.
- Any additional documents required by the prospective advisor or administration office.
(※6) Dates in parenthesis are for graduate students and research students coming to Japan in October.
2) University Recommendation
For University Recommendations, Kyoto University screens the applications of students whose institutions have a student exchange agreement with Kyoto University and selects candidates to recommend to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) as research students. To apply through a university recommendation, please contact a Kyoto University faculty member whom you would like to have as an academic advisor, and consult him/her to apply.
| Before Coming to Japan | late November | Application | |
|---|---|---|---|
| December | Screening by Graduate School | ||
| January | Screening by Kyoto University | ||
| February-March | Screening by MEXT | ||
| April | Notification of Results(※7) | ||
| July-September | Immigration Procedures | ||
| During Stay in Japan | early October | Arrival in Japan | |
| Research (non-degree) student ・Preparing for entrance examination ・Conducting research |
Master's or Doctoral Program begins
※Students must pass the entrance exams prior to enrollment
|
||
| Entrance Examination | |||
| Master's or Doctoral Program begins |
|||
| Return to Home Country | |||
(※7) Notification of the results for University Recommendation (special program) is around June.