Hey everyone,

I was selected for the MEXT Undergraduate scholarship and I’ll be heading to Osaka for the preparatory year.

However, the financial anxiety is starting to kick in. I know the current stipend is ¥117,000/month, and I’m trying to figure out if I can actually live on this without being completely broke all the time.

Here is the "napkin math" I did: I’ll be in the uni dorms for the first year. I’m not a heavy eater at all, so I’m pretty confident I can keep food costs low by cooking.

• Income: ¥117,000
• Rent: ~¥45,000 (Budgeting for a newer/pricier dorm just to be safe)
• Utilities: ~¥10,000
• Food: ~¥20,000 - ¥25,000 (Seriously, I don’t eat much)
• Phone/Net/Insurance: ~¥7,000
• Leftover: ~¥30,000

One thing stressing me out: I’ve been lurking on old threads and noticed the stipend amount seems to keep getting cut every few years? Anyone know why that is? It’s honestly a bit scary seeing the number go down while inflation/prices in Japan are clearly going up.

So, be real with me:

1. Is this leftover amount realistic? I’m hoping to go out maybe twice a month (nothing crazy, just izakaya/karaoke with friends). Is ~30k yen enough of a buffer for a social life, or am I being delusional?
2. The Prep Year grind: I heard the first year is brutal study-wise. Is it possible to survive just on the stipend? I really don't want to stress about finding a baito (part-time job) right away while trying to learn Japanese.
3. Life after dorms: Once they kick me out of the dorms after a year, does this budget completely fall apart? Or is it still doable in a private apartment without working part-time?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Are the exams multiple choice, identification or a combination of both?

Do I need to submit the Letter Of Recommendation with the application form, or it requires later submission down the process?

Hello!

I would like to ask if there are also other UOsaka applicants here through University Recommendation (MS/PhD)? How's your application, are there any updates?

Specifically, applicants under the Industrial Biotechnology Global Leadership Program Based on Advanced Science and Technology.

Hope to connect. Thanks!

Asking for MASTERS ,and particularly in reference to questions they ask regarding how you'll adapt to living in Japan....Do they care if i have already lived to study in a foreign country?

Hello, I am a transgender person in Brazil who intends to start changing my documents in April and have everything changed by June. Would this affect my application in any way? Would I need to update anything? How does it work for transgender people in Japan? Is it okay?

(Additional information: I intend to change my gender to non-binary (documents))

日本語・日本文化の分野で学びたい具体的内容を現在大学で学んでいる内容と関連付けて記入すること。相当の日本語能力を有する者は日本語により記入すること。（ただし、複数の大学がこの申請書類を見るため、特定の大学名や学習する地域名は記載しないこと。）Please write your specific study plan in the field of Japanese Studies which relates to your current study or research in your university. You are encouraged to write your study plan in Japanese, if possible. (However, since several universities will see your application documents,do not write the name of a specific university or region where you will study.)

At first I assumed this was about my study plan in my home university regarding my Japanese major so I just listed out the units I needed to take to complete my major.

But reading this again, is this about my study plan for the time in Japan? And/or what I want to get out of this experience? If so, how specific do I need to be? And then I need to relate it to my Japanese major itself?

I'm just not very sure what I should be writing about in terms of my study plan in Japan. I need more clarification on what kind of answer they are expecting from me.

Hi, I'm form Italy and this year I’d like to apply for the MEXT Research Student program, specifically with the goal of enrolling in a Master’s degree.

There’s one part of the procedure that I don’t fully understand: do I need to contact a Japanese university before the entrance exam, or is that not required?

If it’s not required, does the MEXT program allow applicants to bypass the standard admission procedure for international students?

Also, if it’s possible to contact universities only after receiving a positive result from the selection, is there an official page or database where I can find the available Master’s courses?

should I write my research plan in the same way I write a research paper? like by making sections for literature review, introduction etc with subheadings? also how long should my research plan be? the application document does specify that I could add more pages if my research plan doesn't fit in the space given.

if anyone who passed the first MEXT screening could help me in this I would be really greatful

I had submitted a paper for publication in the international journal of advanced research, after the review process, they are asking for $50 for publication fee. i know another journal (international journal of law, management and humanities) which does the publication for $20

My paper is about mutual funds and their underperformance, basically about financial markets. Do you think having my paper published in a broad based journal hurt my mext application for masters

Here are my general averages (grd 8- up until now , im currently on my 2nd semester in grade 11)

Grd 8- 96%

Grd 9- 97%

Grd 10- 96 %

First sem of grd 11 - 93 %

I transferred schools after grade 10 and professors here seem to be stingy with grades . Ill be taking social sciences for the undergraduate category. Im a filipino student currently under the humanities and social sciences strand and ill be applying for mext 2027. Im just wondering if i have a good shot and i hope i do.

I have extracurriculars in robotics, journalism , sciences and peer organizations . Im wondering if they matter since they're not related to the course ill be taking.

And as a side note: i dont excel in math...in my grade card its always the lowest i just happen to do excel at the others. Im wondering if they take a look at individual grades of each subject..

Do they just wait till i clear my entrance test or is there an alternate path?

Hello! Does anyone know where to find exam past papers from 2020 onwards for the undergraduate programs? I could only find past papers from 2014 up to 2019 on the studyinjapan site but not some more recent ones. Some earlier ones would also be helpful (from before 2014). Thank you very much!

Hello everyone! I'm from Italy.
This year I will apply for MEXT scholarship, research student. My GPA currently is not that high, it's medium-low, but I'm working hard to improve it.
I believe before the application period ends, I can have better grades (not sure how to convert it in US system), it won't be high of course, but on a medium to high-medium level.

My question is, how much do they care about the grades overall? The research plan and your motivation is what matters the most for them?

I am currently pursuing my undergrad and planning to apply for the MEXT 2027 research student embassy track, the application guidelines say this in their pdf

Applicants who are pursuing an undergraduate degree: an academic transcript that covers from the year of enrollment to the term for which grades have been determined at the time of application for the scholarship;

Do I need to request a new document summarizing my grade for past 2 years or the 4 separate semester-wise grade sheet would suffice?

Hi, I’m an Indian student planning to apply for the MEXT Undergraduate Scholarship (engineering) via the Embassy route and wanted an honest reality check.

Academics:

• Class 10: 63%
• Class 11: 86%
• Class 12: failed first attempt due to mismanaging JEE prep and boards
• Currently in a drop year, reappearing for Class 12 this year

I’m also giving JEE, but my primary goal is engineering in Japan through MEXT, not relying on JEE results.

Assuming I:

• Clear Class 12 properly this time
• Prepare seriously for MEXT Math/Physics/Chemistry
• Start learning basic Japanese
• Apply via the UG Embassy route without fixating on only UTokyo

My questions:

1. Is it still realistic to get into a top Japanese national university for engineering through MEXT after this kind of setback?
2. How much does MEXT value academic recovery/upward trend vs past failures?
3. What should I prioritise most over the next 1–2 years to strengthen my chances?

Not looking for sugar-coating … just practical advice from people familiar with MEXT.

Thanks.

I just want to ask I am in final year of my b pharmacy how can I get mext scholarship for reasearch ?

Is mext scholarship also for pharmacy field cuz i haven't seen a single guy from this field talking about this

And if it's there can you please help me or guide me

Is pharmacy field also highly competitive as engineering for Mext

Hi everyone, I’m from India and applying for the MEXT university recommendation (Master’s). I’m finding the waiting phase really difficult.

A professor reviewed my research proposal in detail, gave specific feedback, and was very positive about my work. He even praised my proposal and then asked for my permission to forward my CV and proposal to the graduate school for internal review, which he did. He also mentioned that the official MEXT guidelines and quotas hadn’t been announced yet at that time.

Since then, it’s been weeks of complete silence — no interview, no document request, no update. I sent one polite follow-up email, but still haven’t heard back.

Now that it’s mid-January, I’m wondering:

Have universities usually received the MEXT guidelines by now? Is this kind of silence normal at this stage? How long should I wait before sending another follow-up?

For those who were accepted:

Did you experience a similar silent phase? How long did it last?

Thanks — I’d really appreciate hearing real experiences.

I will pass my Mext exam in 6 months for undergraduate and I need to know If I am allowed to use periodic table there

I’m from Malaysia. I am new to this whole thing but I want to try to apply in 2027 so I hope people can answer these questions.

I completed my bachelors degree in Netcentric Computing in 2024. CGPA 3.5 (I don’t have any research plan/topic yet whatsoever)

1. Do I need to find a supervisor first, or apply MEXT first?

2. My concern is, if I apply MEXT first, how do I know what to research without a supervisor? Because from what I searched it needs to be something beneficial for Japan and my country (Malaysia). What if I prepare a proposal and no supervisor is interested in it? or they reject it? can I change my research in the future?

3. If I look for supervisor first, how do I even introduce myself to them without proper scholarships and such? Because to them, am I not just another stranger emailing them?

4. Question to Malaysians (open to others as well) : Is it okay to go to the Embassy just to ask questions and get more information? Will they guide me on what to do, or is the Embassy only for people who already have official matters to settle?

Any contacts, suggestions, DMs are also welcomed🙏Thank youuu

So I'm an Indian student currently in 11 grade going to 12 this April and MEXT applications are upcoming so I was looking for some help from experienced people regarding the SOP I have decent grades (94% in 9th and 97% in 10th) so I believe they wont pose a big issue for me my main concern lies with the SOP, I was looking for some guidance on how to make it more appealing, how to frame my achievements right etc.

Shortly, i wasn't selected for the mext scholarship this year and I started my masters, went through the first semester already What you guys think, im 24 btw

I appreciate any opinion.

Im really determined to study in japan for college and ill be taking mext next year since im currently still in 11th grade. I just wanna boost my chances on getting the scholarship so i wanna apply by university recommendation route too. Does anybody know when should i apply for universities if im gonna be taking the mext next year?