MEXT Scholarship (Research/Graduate students) 2018

[Alexaandra12]

Glad to say that I successfully obtained a LOA from Nagoya University. I am waiting for a response from the Tokyo Graduate School of Social Welfare, they told me the process takes about three weeks. So hopefully I can obtain an a letter from there as well. As long as I have one, I should be okay, right?

I am still wishing good luck to those still waiting for LOAs.

 

[Xodarap]

Got a LoA from Waseda. It's my first choice I can't express how much I'm looking forward to working my advisor. Still waiting on Todai and Sophia. Good luck to everyone still waiting and hang in there. I was starting to go crazy...-_-.

 

[Momodono]

Hello everyone! This is my first post. Anyway--

Congratulations to everyone who passed, and even more so for those who already have LOA's! I passed the first screening (research student), and got my first LOA from Osaka University.

My other pending LOA's are from programs that do not offer English courses, so I'm quite skeptical about that. Does anyone here have any experience with learning classes in Japanese? I'm not sure if the 6 months language training will suffice, so I want to choose carefully.

A friend said that you are most likely going to be assigned to the program and university you listed as your first choice in your Placement Preference Form, so I am really thinking about this.

Any thoughts? Thank you

 

[Houjou]

Looking at the thread worried me a little. I have not even contacted my second choice university.

I really want to work with my first choice supervisor, and everything seems to be going smoothly and he and the university are ready to accept me, we're now discussing the calendar. However, should I also contact the secoind choice university?

I thought I was only expected to contact my second choice if my first choice did not go through? What do you guys think?

 

[Centuries]

Received a letter from Nagoya, Waseda received my application a week ago so I'm going to be patient!

To answer some previous questions: I'm in Humanities and have poor Japanese skill. I proposed to research the closing of a sister-museum relationship between the US and Japan. I think my research proposal and my experience coordinating an international art exchange in my home state were why they chose me, because my poor language was brought up often in the interview/was poorer than the other candidates. I think it helped that I was doing research on a "current event".

Momodono, what is your Japanese level? If it's high (N2 or N1), I wouldn't worry. If it's not high, I've heard of applicants not getting admitted to Japanese language programs. The six month language course doesn't seem to get people of low skill to a high enough level in that short of a time.

Houjou, I would contact your second choice as soon as possible. Do still have the original documents?

 

[Houjou]

(...)

Houjou, I would contact your second choice as soon as possible. Do still have the original documents?

In my case, the "problem" is that the research proposal explicitly mentions my first choice and his projects, ongoing research etc and how my project fits in it. I inserted a second choice because the Embassy advised me to do so, but I guess in my situation contacting second choice would be a waste of time, and they might even get offended seeing how the research proposal is totally focused on the project of a different university's laboratory :S

I think what I really wonder is whether it is okay to contact them later on. I am not sure if the August deadline to receive a LoA is just to "get the first one", or to "get them all".

 

[Momodono]

Momodono, what is your Japanese level? If it's high (N2 or N1), I wouldn't worry. If it's not high, I've heard of applicants not getting admitted to Japanese language programs. The six month language course doesn't seem to get people of low skill to a high enough level in that short of a time.

Hello, Centuries. Thanks for your reply. I haven't taken any JLPT, but I took 2 semesters of Japanese in college, and even before that I believe I have good vocabulary and grasp of Japanese culture and some phrases. Grew up attached to anime and manga, and all that. My hiragana and katakana are good (not so much on kanji, but I can recognize some characters but not write them on my own). However, I do believe I still have a long way to go. My field is molecular biology, and I heard Scientific Japanese is an entirely different beast--seems daunting.

 

[Centuries]

I think what I really wonder is whether it is okay to contact them later on. I am not sure if the August deadline to receive a LoA is just to "get the first one", or to "get them all".

I can say that my deadline for LOAs is for all of them, but my country's deadline is in September... maybe for that question, the embassy can help you? I don't want to give you any wrong information. : ( Every embassy seems to be doing things a little differently.

I would check out the previous MEXT Research threads here - I *think* others have encountered the specific research w/ lab/prof names problem and talked about what they did.

EDIT: Houjou, what is your first choice school? Is it a national school or a private?

Hello, Centuries. Thanks for your reply. I haven't taken any JLPT, but I took 2 semesters of Japanese in college, and even before that I believe I have good vocabulary and grasp of Japanese culture and some phrases. Grew up attached to anime and manga, and all that. My hiragana and katakana are good (not so much on kanji, but I can recognize some characters but not write them on my own). However, I do believe I still have a long way to go. My field is molecular biology, and I heard Scientific Japanese is an entirely different beast--seems daunting.

I don't want to come across as rude, but do you feel comfortable understanding lectures in Japanese? Reading and writing kanji? A Master's program in another language with just two semesters of language and side-study IS daunting, maybe even impossible. I am not in the Sciences, but are there any other Molecular Bio programs in English at other schools?

 

[Momodono]

I don't want to come across as rude, but do you feel comfortable understanding lectures in Japanese? Reading and writing kanji? A Master's program in another language with just two semesters of language and side-study IS daunting, maybe even impossible. I am not in the Sciences, but are there any other Molecular Bio programs in English at other schools?

No worries, it's not rude at all, because I understand your point. Yes, there are English programs at other schools, but a professor has already accepted me (informally) in a program before I found out that he wasn't part of the English graduate school I wished to enrol in. I considered it though because I have a senior (from my country, uni, and department) who took the course completely in Japanese, and he even had less Japanese language ability than me before he entered. Still, the doubts on whether or not I can pull it off is great. ^^; I probably shouldn't push it, no?

It's a shame, since he was really nice and we talked about his interesting research in his lab. Anyway, thank you, Centuries!

 

[Houjou]

I can say that my deadline for LOAs is for all of them, but my country's deadline is in September... maybe for that question, the embassy can help you? I don't want to give you any wrong information. : ( Every embassy seems to be doing things a little differently.

I would check out the previous MEXT Research threads here - I *think* others have encountered the specific research w/ lab/prof names problem and talked about what they did.

EDIT: Houjou, what is your first choice school? Is it a national school or a private?

Thank you for your reply! It is a national university. My professor is willing to accept me and we have agreed on a calendar, but the confirmation letter from the International Office seems like it will take at least 2-3 weeks to be produced, so I am quite nervous and thinking about all worst-case scenarios all day. I did fill in a second choice out of Embassy advice, but fully focused my research proposal on the ongoing projects of the first choice and how my work fits in it, so sending that proposal to my second choice might even offend them... I guess I just want that damn letter to reach me already so that I can move on and stop worrying all day.

 

[Andrik]

No worries, it's not rude at all, because I understand your point. Yes, there are English programs at other schools, but a professor has already accepted me (informally) in a program before I found out that he wasn't part of the English graduate school I wished to enrol in. I considered it though because I have a senior (from my country, uni, and department) who took the course completely in Japanese, and he even had less Japanese language ability than me before he entered. Still, the doubts on whether or not I can pull it off is great. ^^; I probably shouldn't push it, no?

It's a shame, since he was really nice and we talked about his interesting research in his lab. Anyway, thank you, Centuries!

Apply anyways.

I don't think you should worry!! I talked to the international grad students (mostly MEXT) at the labs I applied with (biochem, so very related to your field), and they seem to indicate that you can go in with rudimentary Japanese so long as you can dedicate yourself time to study on a near-daily basis. Apparently, some universities at the master's-level have a pass-if-you're-in-class attitude to lecture, whilst others are in English. The number one concern is writing entrance exams.

From the technical side, it seems like they're gonna test if you know a bunch of stuff from "Molecular Biology of the Cell". From the language side, they told me that you'd better be comfortable with writing either the English version or Japanese version of the exam, not necessarily both. Don't forget, the current language of science is English, so a major concern with native Japanese grad students is testing if they have the ability to prepare a manuscript in English and if they can read papers in English. You already have that ability! Plus, you're going to end up learning more from reading papers if you're going into the Ph.D. level, probably at the Master's level too!

The main reason you would want to know Scientific Japanese is that your Japanese labmates will likely be more comfortable talking about concepts in Japanese, (Japanese-accent is hard to do on sciencey words). So you should learn it to better fit into the lab.

So, GO FOR IT! APPLY WITH THAT PROF!!!!! You don't need to worry! Just do it!!!!
!! あきらめんないよ！:emoji_angry::emoji_thumbsup:! NEVER GIVE UP !!

 

[Xodarap]

For me, I didn't risk it. I'm about N2 but i'm in social sciences and i don't think I'll be able to follow a lecture completely. And my adviser is American so that makes it easier.

 

[Gerald&ADVs]

Hello co-applicants. MEXT is just new to me, can anyone explain to me how it works? Or any link that will make me understand it. Thank you.

Hello my friend, when are you going to apply? I would like to share with you my articles and hope this can help you understand about MEXT.
Gerald And Adventures
You can find articles in this link about:

* How To Create A Recommendation Letter For MEXT
* Creating A Powerful Letter To Attract Your Desired Sensei's Attention
* Prepping Up Your Field Of Study, Estimated Timetable and Detailed Description of Study Program Plan
* How to Fill Out Application Forms of MEXT
* University Selection for MEXT University Recommendation
* How I Failed Embassy Recommendation of MEXT
* and many more

I haven't added my other articles yet due to busy schedules at work. I am also going to process my visa this whole week, fingers crossed. If you still have questions about MEXT, please feel free to ask us anytime. God bless. @Kingler

 

[Momodono]

So, GO FOR IT! APPLY WITH THAT PROF!!!!! You don't need to worry! Just do it!!!!
!! あきらめんないよ！:emoji_angry::emoji_thumbsup:! NEVER GIVE UP !!

OH MY GOD that is the EXACT SAME VIDEO I often give to my colleagues during hard times!! Haha. Thank you so much for the encouragement!! I'll remember your advice. I really do want to be able to effectively connect with my labmates! :emoji_blush:

I have another concern: I ticked the box "until the completion of a Master's course only" but I was wondering if you can extend your scholarship to the PhD level. When I was at my MEXT interview, one of the interviewers asked me "why not continue to PhD?" which made me think it is possible to extend it. I don't fully understand the conditions in the Application Guidelines, and when I asked someone from the Embassy, he said that if it was the professor's initiative/recommendation to extend to PhD, the ministry can consider it. How true is this?

Some professors I have already talked to on Skype also ask me about PhD, so it made me think. Thank you for your response. :emoji_grinning:

 

[Andrik]

HAHAHA!! That's awesome!! I'm glad I was able to help a fellow prospective scholar!

I have another concern: I ticked the box "until the completion of a Master's course only" but I was wondering if you can extend your scholarship to the PhD level. When I was at my MEXT interview, one of the interviewers asked me "why not continue to PhD?" which made me think it is possible to extend it. I don't fully understand the conditions in the Application Guidelines, and when I asked someone from the Embassy, he said that if it was the professor's initiative/recommendation to extend to PhD, the ministry can consider it. How true is this?

I asked the Consulate General in my home country the same thing, and they told me that it's very possible. Assuming the information is the same between different embassies, you should be able to extend from a Master's to PhD, given you are doing well enough. Taken from the application guidelines from my home country:

"For those wishing to advance to a regular course in a graduate school as a regular student from their status as a non-regular student (research student), or those wishing to proceed to a doctoral course from a master's course or a professional graduate course, an evaluation screening to consider the extension of the period of scholarship, contingent on the acceptance to the course, for students with particularly excellent academic records who have met the prescribed standards is sometimes conducted and the period of scholarship is extended. "

So again, assuming it's the same in your country, it's possible. Likewise, if I end up at the U of Tokyo :emoji_fingers_crossed:, I would have to do a similar thing, since the grad school I'm applying to only accepts students as "Research Students", where you then have to pass entrance exams to move into the Master's program. If passed, then I'd have to apply for an extension "till completion of a Master's degree."

Now, everything after this is my own opinion so take this with a bit of salt: nowadays it's super-trendy in hard sciences for students to do their Master's and jump straight into PhD, all in one go. Like, at my home university some guys finish year one of a Master's and, given that they excel, transfer into the PhD program (essentially B.Sc -> PhD). That way you get to work on the same project for like 5-6 years, so chances are you can get some really solid work done for a publication. So I think grad programs are starting to embrace this, given that I've heard horror stories of PhD students in their seventh year, still unable to get their important first publication necessary for graduation.

Anyways, it's really cool to hear that there's someone just like me! I hope that this helps!

 

[suny]

hello every body here, I am new to this page and very stressed at the time.
I hope someone could help me out ! the fact is that I have passed the first screening step by the embassy and applied to 2 universities in order to get the LOA . I sent my docs to Nagoya uni on 2 August and no results yet ?! and to Osaka uni on 9 August and again waiting to hear from them ! I am worried and confused of what should I do now ?! What if they do not give the result before the deadline the Japanese Embassy gave me ( 31 August is the deadline to give the LOA to them in my country).
I did contact the Nagoya Uni and told them about the deadline but they are out of office until 21 August. If by any means they do not issue the LOA and let me know that late, would I have enough time to apply for other universities ?!!
Any advice or same experiences will be very appreciated .

 

[Centuries]

hello every body here, I am new to this page and very stressed at the time.
I hope someone could help me out ! the fact is that I have passed the first screening step by the embassy and applied to 2 universities in order to get the LOA . I sent my docs to Nagoya uni on 2 August and no results yet ?! and to Osaka uni on 9 August and again waiting to hear from them ! I am worried and confused of what should I do now ?! What if they do not give the result before the deadline the Japanese Embassy gave me ( 31 August is the deadline to give the LOA to them in my country).
I did contact the Nagoya Uni and told them about the deadline but they are out of office until 21 August. If by any means they do not issue the LOA and let me know that late, would I have enough time to apply for other universities ?!!
Any advice or same experiences will be very appreciated .

I am not sure about Osaka, but can say when I received an email confirmation of my letter from Nagoya, they included a PDF copy of the letter in the email. Maybe your embassy would accept that if the post won't arrive in time?

I am happy to say that I have received letters from Nagoya, Waseda, and Todai. I am still waiting for the letter from Todai to arrive in the mail, but am sending the two I have in-hand to the embassy today. Hope everyone is having good luck.

 

[Momodono]

I hope someone could help me out ! the fact is that I have passed the first screening step by the embassy and applied to 2 universities in order to get the LOA . I sent my docs to Nagoya uni on 2 August and no results yet ?! and to Osaka uni on 9 August and again waiting to hear from them ! I am worried and confused of what should I do now ?!

Hello! I also applied to Osaka, and just like what Centuries said, they included a PDF file of the LOA in the email they sent me. Did you receive anything like that? Best to ask your Embassy about it.

 

[suny]

dear friends, all my communications with these universities have been through email. The problem is that I did not receive the PDF file through email yet ! I think they will not send the LOA in hard copy through mailing system.
could please you tell me that how many days did it take for them to issue your LOA , those who received it already ?
and another question, does any one know if some one could change her subject of study for PHD level when she is done with her Master degree? I found that my subject of study does not have a doctorate level in some universities ?!!

 

[SayuKami21]

I got my first LoA!! wuhu!! now waiting for the other 2!!! (and then the stressful and important decision of selecting my placement order T.T)

hello every body here, I am new to this page and very stressed at the time.
I hope someone could help me out ! the fact is that I have passed the first screening step by the embassy and applied to 2 universities in order to get the LOA . I sent my docs to Nagoya uni on 2 August and no results yet ?! and to Osaka uni on 9 August and again waiting to hear from them ! I am worried and confused of what should I do now ?! What if they do not give the result before the deadline the Japanese Embassy gave me ( 31 August is the deadline to give the LOA to them in my country).
I did contact the Nagoya Uni and told them about the deadline but they are out of office until 21 August. If by any means they do not issue the LOA and let me know that late, would I have enough time to apply for other universities ?!!
Any advice or same experiences will be very appreciated .

Hello!! If they told you to give them time then don't worry, it takes a minimum of 2 weeks to get the LoAs (mine took 3) so if you already gave them all the documents needed all you can do is wait, specially because they have summer vacation, and are you super sure that August 31 is your deadline? I thought that was mine as well (and that's the deadline I gave to the universities), and then my Embassy send me an e-mail explaining that I got until August 31 to contact the universities and I should submit the LoAs before September 15 =P (But I think they should be ready by August 31)

 

[Alexaandra12]

My embassy told me to refrain from applying to other universities that are not listed on my Placement Form, so it seems Nagoya will be my only LOA. It's a national university so I feel like I won't have any trouble securing the scholarship from here on out.
I am very happy to see others getting their LOAs.

 

[SayuKami21]

^ Yep, I don't think you are going to have any trouble there, but my embassy is the opposite, they want me to get 3 LoAs if possible and they don't have any problem with me changing my placement preference

 

[Andrik]

Nice job on those LoAs guys! ^^

I have one LoA that I'm holding onto until I've made up my mind on the placement preference form.
Another is still processing, though the prof I'm applying with seems quite adamant that I get it. I'm not sure if this school is one where the prof has a say in who gets accepted or not.
And finally I decided to last-minute apply to a third-choice university for peace of mind, though I must pay extra for priority shipping to make sure it gets there on time!

Anyways, things are looking good for me too (I think)! Good Luck to everyone who's still working on their LoAs!

 

[Houjou]

Still waiting for the LOAs! Hope to receive the one from my first choice at least. The wait is a bit unbearable

 

[Alexaandra12]

Before my Embassy told me to refrain from sending my documents to other schools not placed on my form, I already had sent my application to a school. I did this because they sent me another blank placement form thinking that I could update it. The university told me their process takes about three weeks, so sometime this week I should hear back from them. Should I received a letter from that school, do I just send it along with my other LOA? (I kind of want to place it first on my form to replace my first choice university I didn't get a letter from because it's a really good school, but I'm good with Nagoya Uni bc I may just end up being place there anyway)