The Study in Japan Global Network Project for Sub-Saharan Africa is entrusted by Ministry of Education, Sports, Culture, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan. On behalf of the entire universities in Japan, Hokkaido University Africa Office in Lusaka is entrusted for the operation. This project works to expand opportunities for prospective students from Sub-Saharan African region to study in Japan.

Registration to the project is not required. This project does not ask for fee at any point of inquiries or consultation.

For any specific questions or for further inquiry, kindly contact through designated ENQUIRY FORM which will help us to learn your background to consult accordingly.

Four simplified steps are described in Steps to Study in Japan page.

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First and foremost, you will need a firm plan and vision that you want to study in Japan. Understanding the reason of why you want to study in Japan, at what educational institution, from what year and taking the preparation periods and costs in mind.

Flow chart to help you plan.

"Student Guide to Japan" guidebook provides detail information 

【Undergraduate level】

1. Selecting university and course

2. Read through the application guideline

3. Submission of application

4. Apply to scholarship if needed

5. Preparation of visa and other documents

【Postgraduate level】

1. Selecting a university with course aligning with your undergraduate study and professor you wish to be supervised by

2. Contact the professor to obtain a pre-enrollment approval from the university (this step may differ per university)

3. Apply to scholarship if needed

4. Preparation of visa and other documents

Undergraduate and postgraduate procedures differs slightly. Finding a supervisor for your research at postgraduate is a must.

You do not need to travel to Japan for application.

Application can be submitted to each university either by online or post.  

Please check the submission method at each university you wish to apply to. They may also change the submission method every year.

【Undergraduate level】

Applicants must be eligible at one of the following conditions; 

A) applicants who have completed 12 (twelve) years of school education in countries other than Japan;
B) applicants who have completed their studies at a school equivalent to a Japanese upper secondary school in
countries other than Japan;
C) applicants who have successfully passed an academic qualification examination that is equivalent to the
completion of 12 (twelve) years of school education in countries other than Japan; or 
D) other than the above A), B) and C) conditions, applicants who are eligible for enrollment in a Japanese university at the time of application

 

【Postgraduate level】

1. Master’s course / Doctoral course (first phase)

E) applicants who have completed 16 (sixteen) years of school education in countries other than Japan;
F) applicants who have completed a program with a standard study period of three years or more at universities or equivalent educational institutions in countries other than Japan and received a degree equivalent to a bachelor’s degree; or 
G) other than the above E) and F) conditions, applicants who are eligible for enrollment in a master’s course /doctoral course (first phase) at a Japanese graduate school

 

2. Doctoral course (second phase)

H) applicants who have been awarded with an overseas degree equivalent to a master’s degree or professional degree;
I) applicants who have graduated from universities and have been involved in a research study at universities or research centers (including overseas universities and research centers) for two years or more, and recognized as having academic competency equivalent to persons with a master’s degree by the graduate school; or 
J) other than the above H) and I) conditions, applicants who are eligible for enrollment in a doctoral course (second phase) at a Japanese graduate school

 

3. Doctoral course (faculties of medicine, dentistry, veterinary sciences and certain areas in pharmaceutical fields)

K) applicants who have completed 18 (eighteen) years of school education in countries other than Japan;
L) applicants who have completed a program with a standard study period of five years or more at universities
or equivalent educational institutions in countries other than Japan and received a degree equivalent to a bachelor’s degree;
M) applicants who have completed 16 (sixteen) years of school education in countries other than Japan and have been involved in a research study at universities or research centers (including overseas universities and research centers) for two years or more, and recognized as having academic competency equivalent to university graduates in medicine, dentistry, veterinary sciences or certain areas in pharmaceutical fields by the graduate school; or 
O) other than the above K), L) and M) conditions, applicants who are eligible for enrollment in a doctoral course (faculties of medicine, dentistry, veterinary sciences and certain areas in pharmaceutical fields) at a Japanese graduate school.

Applicant must meet the transfer requirements of the university he/she wish to transfer to. Transfer exams may be required. For details, please contact the university directly.

For more, kindly access the links below;

Most Japanese universities require prospective students to submit a certificate of English proficiency upon application.

Following English language proficiency scores are acceptable at most universities.

TOEFL, IELTS, TOEIC and the EIKEN Test. 

Application eligibility differ per university. Applicant’s academic achievement as well as whether the applicant has adequate language skills to take courses in English is determined by the language proficiency test score.  

Hence, applicants must submit their English test score as one of the application documents if the university requires to do so.

In some cases, submitting a proof that one studied in English for past years can substitute but this should be confirmed by the university beforehand. 

English proficiency certificate is not required in this case. However, learning Japanese will make a life in Japan easier and will be an advantage when looking for a job in Japan.

There are options to study Japanese after enrolling into your university.

Yes, Japanese universities have programme at universities and graduate schools, where students can obtain a degree by only taking classes taught in English.

Kindly check the course lists of Japanese universities where you are able to learn in English at Universities & Courses offered in English page and also the list of scholarships on the Scholarships page.

From the list Universities & Courses offered in English download the file titled English Degree Courses (Bachelor, Master, Doctor).

You will find list of courses offering the master’s programme in physics.

Alternatively, access Study in Japan for Africa data portal to search more.

Following websites can also be useful for extra search.

https://www.jasso.go.jp/en/study_j/search/index.html

https://www.jpss.jp/ja/

In principle it is possible to obtain degree and scholarship if you show high academic performance. However, you must confirm necessary academic background details from the university's website which you wish to enroll to as academic background required for admission may vary.

For scholarship, inquire to the university whether you are eligible for scholarships upon application.

Regarding business-related courses which set classes taught in English for degree requirements, following universities have courses with high rate of international students especially from Africa.

International University of Japan https://www.iuj.ac.jp
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University http://en.apu.ac.jp/home

From our page Universities & Courses offered in English download the file English Degree Courses (Bachelor's, Master's, Doctor) to see the full list of courses for Sports Science and Health Sciences.

Universities are such as;

Tsukuba University http://tias.tsukuba.ac.jp/tias-2 and http://tias.tsukuba.ac.jp/masters-programme-2/sport-management 

National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Kanoya https://www.nifs-k.ac.jp/en/en-campus-life/en-abroad/en-applicant/en-study-abroad-guide.html 

Animation and manga are taught at specialized training colleges called Senshyu Gakko or Senmon Gakko. However, classes are taught only in Japanese.

To study manga in university is also an option, especially in private universities. One of which is Kyoto Seika University

http://www.kyoto-seika.ac.jp/eng/edu/manga/

Trivia: The Vice Chancellor of Kyoto Seika University is Prof. Oussouby SACKO from Mali.

 

To study Japanese culture more broadly, Japanology may also be an option, which can be studied at universities offering Japanese Studies such as Hokkaido University Modern Japanese Studies Program for undergraduate.  https://www.oia.hokudai.ac.jp/mjsp

University’s website often has their contact shown in their faculty staff page.

Should you find difficulty to find the contact, we advise you to inquire the professor through university administrative offices or general enquiry page of the website.

There are varieties of universities in Japan to choose from. Which sometimes makes it hard to find the appropriate supervisor for your major.

Study in Japan for Africa data portal can be useful.  

It is advisable to introduce yourself thoroughly including following points. Please note that professors receive numerous emails every day. Your email should be polite, professional and to the point

·       Summary of your past/present study indicating your specialty in the major.

·       Reason you wish the professor to be your prospected supervisor.

·       Study intended to be conducted at the graduate course during your Masters/Doctorate course. Note: When enrolling into PhD course, do explain about your current research at Masters. 

For undergraduate, written exams are common for both international and domestic (Japanese) students. Place of examination may be taken under consideration to be conducted at examinee’s country which should be confirmed by university you wish to apply to. Some universities do determine admission solely by application materials or online interviews.

For students to enroll into graduate courses, majority of the screening is done by online interview and submission of research proposal.

 

Above is subject to change and admission process and requirements vary by university. Check their admission guideline for the latest information. In addition, submission of English proficiency certificate is also required by several universities.

 

For general information of exams for studying in Japan  

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/examination

IB diploma graduates who are 18 (eighteen) years old or above are eligible to apply to universities in Japan.

More than 50 (fifty) Japanese universities consider IB scores when screening candidates. For detail admission guideline, visit

https://ibconsortium.mext.go.jp/en/university

Please note that some university will require Japanese essay for application and classes may be taught in English.

Japanese universities do not have a collective nationwide application period. Most common application period are between June and January.

Admission is either April (spring) or September/October (fall).

Application process should be followed by the guideline to be provided by your current affiliating university’s internationalization office/host university in Japan.

In the case of financial support, there may be a financial support to study in Japan. Such as the

 

For example, Hokkaido University’s Inter-University Exchange Agreements and Memorandums of Understanding on Student Exchange states that affiliating universities (partner universities) across Sub-Saharan Africa are eligible for following exchange programme.

https://www.global.hokudai.ac.jp/admissions/exchange-student-admissions

https://www.global.hokudai.ac.jp/admissions/scholarships/scholarships-for-prospective-students

For undergraduate study, there are two programmes taught in English.

Modern Japanese Studies Program (MJSP)

https://www.oia.hokudai.ac.jp/mjsp

Integrated Science Program (ISP)

https://www.oia.hokudai.ac.jp/isp

 

For graduate studies, there are several options to be studied in English.

https://www.global.hokudai.ac.jp/admissions/graduate-admissions

 

For more, visit the following websites;

https://www.hokkaido-university-lusakaoffice-zm.com/links

https://www.global.hokudai.ac.jp/admissions

Short-term students are generally considered non-regular students, to not obtain a degree, regardless of the length of program, which varies from few weeks to a full academic year.

For more: https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/by-style/short-term

Universities with short-term study programs:

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/search-school/daigakukensaku/index.html

Scholarships for short-term study programs:

https://www.jasso.go.jp/en/study_j/scholarships/short_term.html

Scholarships are applied either;

1.    Prior to coming to Japan 

2.    After arrival and enrollment in a Japanese university

Please refer to the Scholarships page for details.

Following links provide necessary guidance, available funds and application procedures.

https://www.jasso.go.jp/en/study_j/scholarships/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2019/04/17/scholarships_2019_e.pdf

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/about-scholarship

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/search-school/daigakukensaku

https://www.jasso.go.jp/en/study_j/scholarships/index.html

https://www.jpss.jp/en/scholarship

Scholarship such as Japanese Government MEXT Scholarship has an age limit of 35 for graduate, while there are several scholarships without age limit.

List of scholarships are available at Scholarships page.

In addition, some university offer their own scholarship/tuition waiver which may be applicable too. 

Visit our Scholarships page. 

For further information, you can ask local Japanese Embassy. Japanese Embassies located in Sub-Sharan Africa:

https://www.mofa.go.jp/about/emb_cons/mofaserv.html

Application will open in late April every year and submission to be done in April/May. Though this is subjected to change.

If you check the website of your local Japanese Embassy around March, or the following website, you may find the information even if there should be delays depends on years and countries:

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/scholarship

This full scholarship covers full tuition, monthly allowance and a return trip flight ticket between Japan and your home country.

Japanese government (MEXT) scholarships https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/scholarship/types

There are various categories as research (postgraduate) students, undergraduate students, college of technology students, and special training college students, etc.. Your local Japanese Embassy will decide a category to apply.

Eligibility requirements https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/scholarship/requirements

Application process https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/scholarship/application

Guideline and application form for research students https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/smap-stopj-applications-research.html

For undergraduate students https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/smap-stopj-applications-undergraduate.html

For college of technology students https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/smap-stopj-applications-technology.html

For specialized training college students https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/smap-stopj-applications-specialized.html

MEXT scholarship applicants are instructed to contact Japanese universities for provisional acceptance only after passing the first screening of MEXT scholarship.

This decision is made by the Embassy of Japan. Some will state it does not have negative impact and rather priorities exam scores of other basic subjects such as English, Mathematics and Natural Science.

Please inquire Embassy of Japan of your home country.

The MEXT scholarship for Japanese Studies is open only to those who has obtain a degree in the same area.

If you are a Japanese language instructor or specialist without any degrees in Japanese studies, a program offered at Japan Foundation may be an option. Japanese-Language program of the Japan Foundation: https://kansai.jpf.go.jp/en/training

If you have a high academic performance record as more than 2.3 of GPA, it would be fine. However, even your score is lower than that, you can still apply for the Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship (via Japanese Embassy Recommendation).

If your university or institute does not use GPA on the 1 to  3 point scale or GPA system itself, recalculate your evaluation mark using the link below, for your reference: https://e-apply.jp/e/tufs-7/gpa_for_jasso_calc.xlsx 

Written exams are part of screening process of MEXT scholarship.

Previous exam questions can be viewed for your reference to prepare for the application. https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/scholarship/application/examination

Ashinaga Africa Initiative is funded by the Ashinaga Uganda. Application period opens every September. For detail:

http://en.ashinaga.org/what-we-do/africa/the-ashinaga-africa-initiative

http://en.ashinaga.org/apply/aai

Yes. Some scholarships can only be applied after arriving in Japan.

Student visa must be obtained when traveling to Japan for study. Apply to Japanese Embassy at your country before departure.

Detail of immigration procedures including visa application:

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/immigration-procedures/immigration/

http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/index.html

We do not assist on this matter. Passport and visa must be obtained by applicant. 

Costs or any fee to obtain passport and visa should be done at applicant’s expense.

Depending on the university and scholarship system you apply for, required documents and the application method for visa will differ slightly. The cost of document submission, passport and visa acquisition will be borne by each individual and the detail should be confirmed at Embassy of Japan in your residing country.

One can start studying Japanese online prior to traveling to Japan.

Options are listed in our Learn Japanese page.

Student visa is granted to international students in Japan which is a status of residence as STUDENT and not permitting work. However, if international students wish to work to cover tuition or other necessary expenses, part-time job for 28hours/week (hours are limited to 8hrs/day during summer, winter and spring holidays) in accordance with their “permission to engage in activity other than that permitted under the status of residence previously granted” from the Immigration Bureau.

PLEASE NOT: Those who are receiving any scholarships should re-confirm the rules and regulations of the scholarship. Some does not allow part-time job.

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/job/parttime-works/

Yes, there is an internship program for international students by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), Japan.

https://internshipprogram.go.jp/english/foreign/

Application period is usually during April to June (subject to change each year).

For other internship options, visit here.

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/job/internship/

Employment rate of international students at Japanese companies are increasing annually. They are keen to hire talented and highly capable personnel regardless of nationality.

Job opportunities are indicated more at JASSO.  

https://www.jasso.go.jp/en/study_j/job/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2020/03/03/guide2021_all_e.pdf

https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/job/employment/

The Japanese government has established a system of preferential treatment in order to accelerate the inflow of highly-skilled foreign professionals to Japan. For further information about highly-skilled foreign professionals in Japan, visit the following links;

https://www.jetro.go.jp/en/hrportal/forprofessionals/

http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/newimmiact_3/en/system/index.html

Financial support offered at universities can be found at their websites. The Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) has scholarships for Japanese: https://www.jasso.go.jp/shogakukin/index.html

You can find degree courses taught in English in our Universities & Courses offered in English page.