MEXT Scholarship for Postgraduate 2009: Post Application

[ykk]

well YKK, long years of exposure does help.
Your strong sub conscious foundation will help you improve a lot once you come here.
Under the right environment, you'll be surprised how fast you learn.
So don't worry, you'll do fine.
I'm joining social circles with more non-english speakers (koreans and japanese) currently to push myself to speak.

Btw, you have already been selected for MEXT 2009 and waiting for July departure right?

Ooilingfan, thank you VERY VERY MUCH for your answers, really helped me to clarify my doubts.
I haven't been selected for anything yet, my exam is on 27 July. This is my second time trying to get the scholarship.
Yes, In the veeeery bottom of my mind I can speak japanese! I've been there for holidays and hadn't any trouble communicating at all.
Buuuuuut it's not the same to ask for directions or buy something at the conbini than really having a nice chat with someone in plain japanese <--- I'm not very confident with this 😌

Bye!

 

[Coco68]

Hello everyone,
so I thought I would asked the experienced one: What are we supposed to do when we receive the Letter of Acceptance? Just wait, right?
And when did you start sorting things such as accommodation etc.
Thank you very much for your help

 

[jim84]

Usually your university will sort out your accommodation for you. No worries on that. You won't end up on the streets for sure. (maybe just 1 night if your odd flight time causes you to reach japan at 1am)

and yes, after the letter of acceptance, do a medical checkup, send in everything to your embassy and you're done. Wait for February next year for official results. In the meantime, you can take up some basic japanese classes if you haven't learnt before. If you had, brush it up, it'll help later.

 

[Coco68]

ooilingfan, thank you for the info!

 

[mazygekon]

hello, regarding master vs research

I m new 1 as you can all asume,
applying also for studies in japan, I a wondering when you contact prof and heading for Master studies , do you nedd to have some master thesis proposal, or you just need to tell him that you are interested in field that he is into so to be your supervisor>>
thank u gays, I found you just yesterday even I wish it was earlier, :?

 

[dalmatian]

hi all,

I would like to ask some question especially to who are already granted the scholarship last year.

Supposed we receive good news on December/January/February. Do we have to submit certain documents to Embassy? or fill a certain form? Actually, at work, I probably have to go to Japan from October to February. Will this affect the secondary screening? I plan to leave my mobile phone to my parents so if Embassy make contacts, my parents can inform me.

Thanks.

 

[ellefruit]

another questions for veterans out there:

so.. i'm heading for toudai, sch. of engineering, april 2010. just got my certificate of acceptance from the uni, now waiting to get my medical form filled. they sent with it a letter that says "Embassy (MEXT) students will be given a room in principle.." but can I choose where I want to live? And also any thoughts on which dorms are better?

would much appreciate opinions!
xx

 

[Ajay]

Hi folks,

I got message from a prof from University of Tokyo that he is ready to be my sensei. Though there are more steps in getting a LoA... Anyone having any experience in getting a Letter of Acceptance from University of Tokyo? The academic unit is Graduate School of Information Science and Technology. I am planning to ask them to FAX it before mailing it to me as it will help me to submit by attachment form on time. I need to get a FAX no. in Japan for this... as I dont think they will FAX it to me in India. Any Idea how much time it takes for them to send a LoA through (excuse me the word)snail mail?

 

[Coco68]

Ajay,
maybe you can ask them to scan it for you and send it by e-mail, that's what they did for me (although it was not Tokyo uni). It's probably faster and easier than fax.

 

[ellefruit]

agreed. email would probably be easier & faster. the admin lady that dealt with me refused to look at anything that wasn't a pdf -_-;

 

[clockworkorange]

ellefruit!!

I'm also going to Todai....school of engineering...but I'll be going in Oct this year. I'll see you there.

To answer your question, if you are a Monbukagakusho scholar then yes, accommodation will be provided. Unfortunately, you can't choose which dorm/international house you go to. The best place to live depends on your campus....school of engineering...so your campus will be Hongo campus right? My professor has informed me that the most convenient one will be the Shiroganedai Lodge. It is the closest....ard 45 minutes to Hongo. However, since we can't choose, we have to hope for the best.

To Ajay, yeah...email would be the best.......you could also inform your professor that the LoA is urgent...the school of engineering delivered my LoA via express mail......it didn't take long...ard 3 days i think? I don't really remember......

 

[clockworkorange]

Hi everyone....i'd really like to ask this question to those who are already there.......

I know this has been discussed before...but I honestly couldn't find the posts discussing this...although granted i gave up after a pretty short time.....

I remember someone saying that it takes ard 2 months for stuff shipped from Malaysia to reach Japan. So the advice was to ship stuff there 2 months before you arrive. I'm planning to take that advice but I don't really know where to ship my stuff - books, CDs, clothes......
I've checked out the website of the International Student Office of my uni but I'm not allowed to store anything in my accommodation until I've arrived. at any rate, I only know where my accommodation is in September.

Does anyone have any ideas where I can ship my stuff? I don't really know anyone in Japan...I was thinking to email the International Student Office but i thought I'd ask here first...I dunno if the office helps with this kind of thing.

Thank you very much!!

 

[jim84]

Hi everyone....i'd really like to ask this question to those who are already there.......
I know this has been discussed before...but I honestly couldn't find the posts discussing this...although granted i gave up after a pretty short time.....
I remember someone saying that it takes ard 2 months for stuff shipped from Malaysia to reach Japan. So the advice was to ship stuff there 2 months before you arrive. I'm planning to take that advice but I don't really know where to ship my stuff - books, CDs, clothes......
I've checked out the website of the International Student Office of my uni but I'm not allowed to store anything in my accommodation until I've arrived. at any rate, I only know where my accommodation is in September.
Does anyone have any ideas where I can ship my stuff? I don't really know anyone in Japan...I was thinking to email the International Student Office but i thought I'd ask here first...I dunno if the office helps with this kind of thing.
Thank you very much!!

I emailed the Dorm office and they gave me the OK to send it to the office, with a remark to me myself (just in case it arrives before me). ISO may not be able to help you if they are not the ones managing your dorm. Get the email of your Dorm's admin, there should be someone in charge of handling your dorm such as rent, mails, maintenance, rules and any issues pertaining to your stay in the dorm.

If it's not in a hurry, just send it 2 weeks before you leave for Japan. You can receive it slightly later after you arrive. So it wouldn't go stranded in nowhere.

 

[ellefruit]

clockwork~!! amgzz exciting ^_^ u can show me the ropes when i get there <3

aren't there some delivery services that let you pick the date of delivery? could be an option.

oh, and yeah, i'm hoping for shiroganedai too - i dun wanne commute a long way every day ><
i was on some website yesterday and it says MEXT scholars get accommodation provided by JASSO? and then shiroganedai wasn't on their list. i'm hoping the site was wrong/not complete!!

and btw how awesome does the odaiba place look? if it wasn't so expensive i'd have begged for there despite the commute, lawl.

 

[clockworkorange]

Hey ooilingfan,

Thanks for the tip. is it really only 2 weeks? I could swear I read that it was 2 months....anyway, thanks...I'll try out what you did.....

Hey ellefruit!!
I never thought of that....delivery companies allowing u to pick dates.....
will inquire about it....thanks!!
it'll be nice meeting you there...and hopefully, when we meet. I'll be familiar enough to show you the ropes.....
Oh yeah...odaiba is very VERY nice...i i didn't really check out the rent ...it was out of the question for me....i think it's only for those coming in April?
Also, the website you found was correct. My professor emailed me and told me that JASSO was handling the accommodation. I'm not really sure how it works though..is shiroganedai a JASSO-owned international house? I thought it was Todai's own accommodation...but at the same time my professor said that shiroganedai was the most convenient and he hoped i got that place. then he mentioned that we couldn't choose the accommodation....
I guess we just hope for the best....

I'm currently going through the past year entrance exam papers...i gotta say....i dunno if i can pass these stuff......

 

[ellefruit]

clockeh:
yikes! is that the master's course entrance exam? are you taking it as soon as you get there?
gah, sucks we don't get to choose - or even state a preference. student union here would be all over them xD. this is the website that made me suspish:
oice.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/student/study/mext.html

It made it sound like there were only those 3 options.. not including Shiroganedai. Kinda confirmed by this:
jasso.go.jp/s_kanto/index_e.html

But - you never know, they might be sensible and have some kinda arrangement going on.
Hey if it's likely we'd have the same entrance exam I wouldn't mind having a copy.. think you could send me if I pm you my email?

xx

edit: won't let me post urls yet.. hence the truncated versions.. eeek!

 

[clockworkorange]

Hey ellefruit,
Thanks for the websites....
As for the entrance exams...it depends on the department/faculty your in. Mine is the Chemical Systems Engineering dept. If yours is the same dept, you can actually download the papers from here:

http://www.chemsys.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/exam_e.html

Even if you are in a different dept, you could probably download the papers from their website. Or if they're not available, you can email your professor to ask for the papers.

It's a good idea to take a look (and panic) while there's still time.

I'm totally panicking.

 

[jim84]

Hey ooilingfan,
Thanks for the tip. is it really only 2 weeks? I could swear I read that it was 2 months....anyway, thanks...I'll try out what you did.....
Hey ellefruit!!
I never thought of that....delivery companies allowing u to pick dates.....
will inquire about it....thanks!!
it'll be nice meeting you there...and hopefully, when we meet. I'll be familiar enough to show you the ropes.....
Oh yeah...odaiba is very VERY nice...i i didn't really check out the rent ...it was out of the question for me....i think it's only for those coming in April?
Also, the website you found was correct. My professor emailed me and told me that JASSO was handling the accommodation. I'm not really sure how it works though..is shiroganedai a JASSO-owned international house? I thought it was Todai's own accommodation...but at the same time my professor said that shiroganedai was the most convenient and he hoped i got that place. then he mentioned that we couldn't choose the accommodation....
I guess we just hope for the best....
I'm currently going through the past year entrance exam papers...i gotta say....i dunno if i can pass these stuff......

It took my package 30-45 days to reach.
So assuming you send it 2 weeks Before you leave, you should be receiving it about 2-3 weeks time AFTER you reach. Total 4-5 weeks. This timing is to make sure your package arrives AFTER you, about 2-3 weeks.

Congrats if you're going to a JASSO dorm, i'm staying in one of their dorms in Osaka. It's one of the coolest dorm you can get. Reasonable rent, great maintenance and cleanliness, good facilities (tennis court and pingpong room FREE), study room, guest room, kitchens at each floor, and of course, great security ... =)
Too bad menrui here didn't get to enjoy it much, he has unofficially moved his residence to his lab..... =p
Hope i won't be like him next semester... right, menrui? haha

 

[NeoXtremeX]

Another one of my random questions,
Have you guys ever tried calling a professor instead of emails?
Cheers

 

[clockworkorange]

Hey ooilingfan,

Thanks a lot for answering my questions. i've been preparing (or trying to) for the oncoming trip and i've just realised there are TONNES to do.
You'd think I'd realise that sooner, eh?

Erm, I have more questions. I'd be really grateful to anybody who answers.

1) Did any of you bring original documents (ie academic transcripts, degree certs) to Japan? Or just photocopies? Certified photocopies?
2) Did most of you ship your textbooks over there? I ask because I'm thinking of shipping my textbooks over. But they're mighty heavy. Also, because I love reading, I'm thinking of shipping my favourite books over too since I heard English books are expensive in Japan. I was wondering if maybe studying at the university library would be sufficient preparation for my entrance exam.

Once again thanks to anyone replying.

 

[jim84]

Hey ooilingfan,
Thanks a lot for answering my questions. i've been preparing (or trying to) for the oncoming trip and i've just realised there are TONNES to do.
You'd think I'd realise that sooner, eh?
Erm, I have more questions. I'd be really grateful to anybody who answers.
1) Did any of you bring original documents (ie academic transcripts, degree certs) to Japan? Or just photocopies? Certified photocopies?
2) Did most of you ship your textbooks over there? I ask because I'm thinking of shipping my textbooks over. But they're mighty heavy. Also, because I love reading, I'm thinking of shipping my favourite books over too since I heard English books are expensive in Japan. I was wondering if maybe studying at the university library would be sufficient preparation for my entrance exam.
Once again thanks to anyone replying.

1) I did bring my original documents over, certificate and stuff. Just in case i need them one day. (Indeed, my original University transcript and certificate helped me got my scooter license 2months ago)
2) If there're any books you think you might need them, just ship. I'm starting to miss some of the books i didn't bring. BUT, if you know you'll be moving to a new place after a few months, you may hold back and ship them after you move. It's hard to predict what books you may or may not need or what books they have in the library unless you've been there yourself. So just take it easy, you can always pre-pack and categorize the books you're not sure whether to ship, and ask your parents to ship them later on after you arrive and have a better idea.
You'll know what to do after you arrive. So don't worry too much right now. =)

 

[clockworkorange]

Once again, thanks a lot!!

I have this funny feeling I have to belanje u makan when i get there.

 

[jim84]

haha. Just be my tour guide when i happen to travel to your city.

 

[ellefruit]

lolz i'm getting all excited for y'all leaving for japan already..

had a look on my dept website (bioengineering) and no past papers as far as i can see... guess i can postpone that panic for later!

 

[clockworkorange]

lolz i'm getting all excited for y'all leaving for japan already..

had a look on my dept website (bioengineering) and no past papers as far as i can see... guess i can postpone that panic for later!

Yeah, I've decided to panic later as well. I'll leave it up to fate. I actually emailed my professor in the midst of my panic and I think some of my hysteria got through in the email and he replied (very reassuringly) that I can come to Japan first and then prepare. He thinks there is sufficient time. I still think he's overestimating my capability to recall stuff I've learned years ago but anyhoo.........


To ooilingfan,
Anytime, man. Anytime.