What Is the MEXT Scholarship?

For those who want to travel to Japan and study abroad but don’t have the means to do so, this scholarship is an incredible opportunity. The MEXT Scholarship stands for “the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Scholarship” and is also known as “Monbukagakusho.” It’s a scholarship given out each year to help foreign students enrol in Japanese universities.

Essentially, the MEXT Scholarship is a student exchange program for students who want to be part of a Japanese university. No matter which level of the scholarship you apply for, there are two main requirements for getting accepted:

1. Get recommended by a Japanese embassy or consulate general.

2. Get recommended by a Japanese university of your choice that accepts you for study.

You’ll achieve the first through the application process, which requires a form to be sent to your local Japanese embassy. You’ll achieve the second by applying to different Japanese universities and noting in your submissions that you’re applying for the MEXT Scholarship.

Two more key stipulations are that you must be a citizen of a country that has diplomatic relationship with Japan, and you must have a valid student visa.

If you successfully qualify for the MEXT Scholarship, you’ll receive:

・¥120,000 yen per month for undergraduate students.

・¥146,000 yen per month for Japanese Intensive Course students and research students.

・¥147,000 yen per month for master’s program students.

・¥148,000 yen per month for doctoral program students.

・An economy class air ticket to Narita or Haneda International Airport in Japan. (Currently, the MEXT Scholarship doesn’t cover additional travel costs from the airport.)

・Waived or refunded application fees for the university.

・Waived admission fees for the university.

・Waived tuition fees for the university.

Roughly, you’ll receive around a minimum of $1,000 USD per month to live, eat and travel in Japan and have all your tuition costs covered!

Why Should I Apply for the MEXT Scholarship?

If any (or all!) of the following apply to you, then it’s worth trying out for this golden opportunity:

・You’re interested in studying abroad in Japan.

・You want to improve your Japanese language skills through an immersive experience at a Japanese school.

・You want to attend school for free.

・You’d like to have money to live in Japan while studying in school.

・You want to travel but want to have a larger purpose or objective while doing so.

・You want to learn more about Japanese modern culture and meet Japanese people.

Types of MEXT Scholarships

There are multiple types of MEXT Scholarships one could look into and each of them have unique requirements that must be met. In addition to meeting the following requirements, you’ll also need to pass one or a few examinations in order to receive a recommendation from an embassy.

Research Student Scholarship

This scholarship is for those who are enrolled or want to be enrolled in a master’s, doctoral or professional graduate course and want to conduct research in a particular field in Japan. Typically, these students are linguistic or cultural studies majors.

Requirements:

・Be under 35 years old.

・Be a college graduate or have completed 16 years of schooling.

・If you haven’t graduated yet, apply for this MEXT Scholarship before the expected day of departure as a scholarship holder.

Undergraduate Student Scholarship

This type of scholarship is for fresh high school graduates who want to start college in Japan.

Requirements:

・Be between 17 and 22 years old.

・Have completed 12 years of education or have a high school diploma.

・If you haven’t graduated yet, wait to apply until the year you’re expected to graduate.

Specialized Training College Student Scholarship

This scholarship is for foreign students who wish to spend up to three years at a Japanese technical or vocational college.

Requirements:

・Be between 17 and 22 years old.

・Have completed 12 years of education or have a high school diploma.

・If you haven’t graduated yet, wait to apply until the year you’re expected to graduate.

Japanese Studies Scholarship

This is essentially the “exchange student” scholarship. You’ll go to Japan for a certain amount of time to study, then return to your home institution.

Requirements:

・Be between 18 and 30 years old.

・Have completed 12 years of education or have a high school diploma.

・Be enrolled as an undergraduate student in a country outside of Japan before applying and be able to return to that institution upon your return from Japan.

・Major in Japanese language or Japanese culture.

How Do I Apply for the MEXT Scholarship?

Here’s a simple 10-step plan to follow in order to apply for the scholarship, which takes into account the requirements and other aspects of the application process:

1. Have or acquire a passport. Depending on your home country, there are many different ways to go about this.

2. Acquire a Japanese student visa.

3. Be between 17 and 35 years of age, depending on which scholarship you decide to apply for.

4. Be a citizen of the country you reside in and be sure that the country has diplomatic relations with Japan.

5. Be aware of important dates related to applying.

6. Select a university in Japan that you want to attend and submit an application to that school ahead of time. It’d be wise to apply to multiple schools of interest.

7. Study past examination questions to improve your chances of getting the scholarship.

8. Fill out an application online by the designated deadline.

9. Submit all application materials to an Embassy or Consulate General of Japan near your area.

10. Have at least an elementary level of Japanese before applying—you will need to pass a Japanese exam in most cases to receive an embassy recommendation.