Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho: MEXT) Scholarships

(1) Types and their conditions : There are seven types in Japanese Government Scholarships.

(2) Application Procedure

① Embassy Recommendation (Application through Japanese embassies)
Recruiting covers all scholarship categories. However, because recruiting targets will
differ by country and region, potential applicants should check closely with the Japanese
embassy in their own specific country or region.

The initial screening is comprised of a document inspection, a written test and an
interview. Subjects of the written test vary somewhat by country and region, but generally
consist of the following.

The local Japanese embassies conduct their screening on the basis of these test results,
and then make their recommendations to MEXT. MEXT confers with the selection
committee, deliberates with the host schools, and then makes its final selections. While
candidates may express their preferences for specific shools of study, the final decision
will be made by MEXT.

For further details, candidates should contact the Japanese embassy in their own specific
country or region.

② Application through Japanese Universities

-1 University Recommendation (selection of new applicants before they
arrive in Japan)
Based on the university exchange agreement, Japanese universities conduct their
examinations of the international student candidates, with recommendations made
to MEXT as research students or Japanese studies students. MEXT confers with the selection committee, and then makes its selections. For further details, candidates should
contact their current school of enrollment.
-2 Domestic Selection (selection of privately financed students already in
Japan)
Targeted under this category are privately financed students currently studying at
Japanese universities. Qualified are third-year undergraduates expected to advance to
fourth-year regular student status (sixth-year status in the case of medical, dental or
veterinary students or those majoring in 6-year system pharmaceutical sciences), fourthyear
students expected to advance to regular Master's program student status, or Master's
or Doctoral students expected to remain as regular students for one year or longer.
Applicants with excellent academic records are chosen to attend from the new school year
as undergraduate or research students.
For further details, candidates should contact their current school of enrollment.

Applicants must pass this first stage and then a second stage of screening by MEXT
(document screening) before a final decision is made.
The general flow of an application is as follows.

For Young Leaders Program, the recruitment will be conducted through the embassies
of Japan in target countries upon the recommendation of recommending authorities. Initial
selection will be made through document screening, interviewing, essay writing, etc..
The second selection will be done by YLP Committee set in MEXT, and hence the final
decision on candidates.