For Prospective International Students

Due to the high volume of inquiries, we have established the following guidelines. Please read the sections that apply to you carefully before contacting us.

1. Where to Start

Please start from the section that applies to you. Each section guides you to the next section you should read.

  • MEXT Scholarship applicants (Master’s, PhD or research student):
    • Embassy Recommendation (after passing the first screening): Section 2
    • University Recommendation: We do not accept applications through this track. Please refrain from inquiring about it.
  • Master’s applicants: Section 2
  • PhD applicants: Section 2
  • Research student (non-degree) applicants: We accept research students only through the MEXT Scholarship (Embassy Recommendation). Otherwise, research students are not accepted.
  • Internship applicants: Section 6

2. Financial Support & Scholarships

Prospective international students are expected to secure adequate financial support prior to enrollment.

  • Master’s applicants: We do not provide any financial support (e.g., Research Assistantships or lab funding) for Master’s students. You must secure your own funding. Next: Section 3
  • PhD applicants: Securing external funding such as the Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship (Embassy Recommendation) is strongly recommended. Applications based solely on personal or family financial support are not encouraged. Please do not count on income from our laboratory, such as Research Assistantships, or on the DoGS SPRING Program. Next: Section 3

About the MEXT Scholarship:

  • Embassy Recommendation: We welcome applicants through the Embassy Recommendation track. Please refer to Kyoto University’s website. After you have passed the first screening conducted by the Japanese embassy or consulate, please complete the AAO process. If you have not yet passed the first screening, please wait until you have passed it before starting the AAO process. Only if your matter is urgent, you may also contact us at the same time as your AAO application. Next: Section 3
  • University Recommendation: We do not accept applications through the University Recommendation track. This track is extremely competitive with only a few slots available for the entire university, making it practically impossible to secure.

3. Application Process (AAO)

For all graduates or soon-to-be graduates of overseas universities, applications to Kyoto University graduate programs must always begin with the Admissions Assistance Office (AAO) process. This is an online procedure that serves as a preliminary review prior to the official application. Please review the instructions and complete the AAO application as your first step: Kyoto University AAO Information Page

Please complete the AAO process instead of contacting us directly (for the only exception, see MEXT Scholarship (Embassy Recommendation) in Section 2). We review the Statement of Purpose (including a Research Plan) you submit through the AAO. We will always contact PhD applicants and MEXT Scholarship (Embassy Recommendation) applicants. We will contact other Master’s applicants if necessary.

For entrance examination information for the Master’s and PhD programs (application guidelines, schedules, etc.), please refer to the Graduate School of Informatics admissions page: Graduate School of Informatics Admissions

Next:

  • MEXT Embassy Recommendation applicants: No further action is needed. We will contact you once we have finished reviewing your AAO application.
  • Master’s applicants: Section 4
  • PhD applicants: Section 5

4. Master’s Program

If you successfully pass the entrance examination, we would be able to accept you as a student. Preliminary contact or approval from a professor is not required before applying.

  • AO Admission: The Special Selection of Overseas Application (International Program), an admission procedure through application assessment and interview (AO admission), offers an extremely limited number of places. In principle, we do not accept Master’s applicants through AO admission.
  • On-site Examination: Therefore, in principle, you will take the entrance examination on-site in Japan. Online examinations are not available.
  • Preparation: We strongly advise you to focus particularly on the “Specialized Subjects”. Past entrance examination questions for the Social Informatics Course are available on the Graduate School’s Exam Archive.

Next: No further action is needed. We will contact you if necessary after reviewing your AAO application.

5. PhD Program

If you have a concrete plan for securing financial support (see Section 2), we can arrange an online interview when we contact you after reviewing your AAO application.

Next: No further action is needed. We will contact you once we have finished reviewing your AAO application.

6. Internships and Research Assistantships

We do not offer any financially supported positions (such as paid Research Assistantships). Please refrain from inquiring about these opportunities. However, if you wish to apply for an on-site internship and are fully funded by your own resources or an external organization (i.e., requiring absolutely no financial support from our laboratory), we may consider your request on an individual basis.

Next (only if you wish to apply): Section 7

7. Contact Information

For inquiries not answered above, please contact us using the official email address below. Please do not send messages to individual professors’ email addresses.

Contact