October 2025 PhD
International Program in Agricultural Development Studies (IPADS)
Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences
The University of Tokyo
Rules of Admission—PhD Program, Academic Year 2025-2026

Our educational and research missions:
The Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences aims to promote advanced education andresearch in the field of agricultural and life sciences and nurture highly specialized human resourcesthat can tackle the diverse range of food and environmental issues in the world.
Students we seek:-

Having a will and capabilities to tackle the diverse and sophisticate issues surrounding food andthe environment challenged by the agricultural and life sciences.

-

Being enthusiastic about acquiring advanced and cutting-edge expertise, improving researchcapability, and disseminating research outcome to the world.
Selection policy:

Below are the basic criteria for the selection,- Having advanced and specialized knowledge in the field of his/her choice, extensive knowledge
across disciplines in agricultural and life sciences, and English language proficiency for disseminating
information globally.
- Having the willingness and sufficient capability to work independently to acquire knowledge anddiscover problems.
- Having the basic capacity to teach the knowledge and skills of the specialized area to junior students.

Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, seeks PhD candidates
for the School’s International Program in Agricultural Development Studies (IPADS) for the Academic
Year 2025-2026 (enrolling in October 2025) according to the following Rules of Admission.

1. Program Overview
The IPADS PhD program is a doctoral program taught entirely in English in the Graduate School of1

October 2025 PhD
Agricultural and Life Sciences. The program equips the students to be global leaders in the agricultural
sector who have the capacity to identify and implement solutions to various agricultural,environmental, and resource management issues in developing countries. Students engage in a truly
interdisciplinary curriculum filled with cutting-edge research from all sub-disciplines covering
agriculture, encompassing both natural and social sciences. As fully integrated members of the
School’s Department of Global Agricultural Sciences, IPADS students have numerous opportunities
to participate in seminars and international symposia, and to work collaboratively with faculty
members and fellow students, including those from the School’s other departments and graduate
programs. Approximately four students will be admitted for the Academic Year 2025-2026.

2. Eligibility
To be eligible to apply for this program, the applicant must meet all the following criteria.
(1) Academic qualification
A Master’s degree or equivalent is required as of 30 September 2025. The admission automatically
becomes void if a student who has applied prior to the conferment of a Master’s degree fails to attainit by 30 September 2025.
(2) English language proficiency
A very high level of English language proficiency adequate to engage in world-class postgraduate
study is required.
(3) Academic records and research plan
Applicants must possess excellent academic records and a sound plan for their PhD research that suits
the program’s philosophy.
(4) Date of arrival
All starting students must arrive in Tokyo by the designated date in September 2025. Those who cannot
arrive in Tokyo by September 2025 must obtain a late arrival permission from the IPADS Office.
Permission will be only granted for special circumstances. If a student fails to come to Japan by thedesignated date or to obtain permission, it may result in the cancellation of the admission offer.
Military employees, whether soldiers or civilians, are ineligible to apply.

3. Fees and Tuition
The following fees and tuition are payable.
2

October 2025 PhD(1) Examination fee (payable on being shortlisted): ¥10,000(2) Enrollment fee (payable on admission): ¥282,000(3) Tuition (payable annually): ¥520,800
These fees and tuition are correct as of October 2024 and are subject to change based on revisions ofuniversity regulations.
Payment of examination and enrollment fees is not required for students who are currently
enrolled in a Master’s degree program or a professional degree program at the University ofTokyo to consecutively PhD. program of IPADS without leave off.

4. Financial Support and Student Services(1) The examination fee, enrollment fee, and tuition are waived for current recipients of the Japanese
Government (Monbukagakusho, hereafter MEXT) Scholarships on submission of a certificate
showing their scholarship status.
(2) A limited number of full scholarships funded by the Japanese Government (hereafter MEXT
Scholarships) may be available to outstanding applicants. These scholarships cover the examination
fee, enrollment fee and tuition as well as living expenses. The examination fee should be paid by the
MEXT Scholarship applicants at the time of application for IPADS and shall be refunded if they areadmitted in IPADS as MEXT Scholarship recipients. Selection will be conducted concurrently withthe selection for admission.
(3) The University offers the University of Tokyo Fellowship which is a scholarship to provide a grant
to outstanding postgraduate international students who are privately funded to assist their academic
pursuits at the University. A monthly grant during the standard period of their program is provided toa limited number of outstanding MSc and PhD students in IPADS. The selection will be conductedconcurrently with the selection for admission.
(4) The University also offers a tuition waiver program for other students who meet certain criteria.
Students can apply to this program during the designated period.
(5) For all other students, it is their own responsibility to secure funds for fees and tuition. While
students are eligible to apply for internal and external scholarships during the designated period, theUniversity does not guarantee that all students are financially assisted.
(6) Student services, including housing information services and limited health services, are provided
to all students.

3

October 2025 PhD
5. Application Process
The selection will be carried out in two separate rounds (Round One and Two) as per the following
timetable. Applicants who apply for both rounds are considered in both, unless admitted throughRound One.

Approximate number ofstudents to be admitted

Round One

Round Two2

2

Deadline for online
prescreening

21 October 2024 (Monday)

16 February 2025 (Sunday)

Announcement ofshortlisted candidatesby 18 November 2024 (Monday)by 7 March 2025 (Friday)

Deadline for PDF
application (shortlisted
candidates only)

11 December 2024 (Wednesday)

28 March 2025 (Friday)by 10 February 2025 (Monday)by 13 May 2025 (Tuesday)*Original documents
should be submitted
during the designatedperiod in September
2025 for admitted
applicants.
Notification of the final
resultApplicant from a developing country who concurrently applies for a scholarship scheme supported by
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) should follow the application schedule published by
the JICA office in his/her home country.

5A. Prescreening
Potential applicants must show their intention to apply by submitting an online application form
available on the program website along with electronic copies of the documents marked * in 5B.
Application by midnight (Japan Standard Time) of 21 October 2024 (for Round One) or 16 February
2025 (for Round Two). Following the prescreening, those who meet the eligibility criteria and areconsidered suitable for consideration for admission (shortlisted candidates) will be invited to submit
the application documents listed below. This invitation is made online on the program website on or
before 18 November 2024 (for Round One) or 7 March 2025 (for Round Two).
4

October 2025 PhD

5B. Application
For shortlisted candidates to be officially considered for admission, electronic copies of the following
documents must be received by the IPADS Office and the examination fee must be paid not later than
11 December 2024 (for Round One) or 28 March 2025 (for Round Two). Documents (*) alreadysubmitted during 5A. Prescreening process are not required to be submitted again, however, any
updated documents may be submitted by the deadline. The IPADS Office will not consider lateapplications. Original documents of the following (2) and (3) should be physically submitted to the
Graduate Student Section of the Graduate School during the enrollment registration period in
September 2025. Note that if any discrepancies are found between the submitted electronic
documents and the original ones, the admission will be canceled at any time even after
enrollment.
(1) Application form with a face photograph—The form will be distributed to shortlisted candidates.
A face photograph of the applicant—must be taken within 6 months of the submission deadline: 4.5
cm x 3.5 cm, upper body only, full face without a hat—should be attached electronically to theapplication form.
(2)* Proof of a Master’s degree and a Bachelor’s degree—Electronic copy of an original documentwith the official seal of the institution such as a degree certificate. If the document is in a language
other than English or Japanese, an official English translation (translated by the institution, agovernment official /organization, or a notarized translator) must be attached to the original document.
For an applicant who has not been awarded the Master’s degree at the time of application, an official
certificate from the academic institution stating the expected date of completion needs to be submitted.
(3)* Official transcripts—Electronic copies of original transcripts from all universities and colleges
the applicant has previously attended, with the official seal of the institution. Transcripts must clearly
demonstrate the marking system of the institution. If the transcripts are in a language other thanEnglish or Japanese, an official English translation (translated by the institution, a government official/organization, or a notarized translator) must be attached to the original transcripts.
(4)* Proof of English proficiency—Either a TOEFL Score Report or an IELTS Test Report Form. For
TOEFL iBT and TOEFL PBT, applicants must arrange for the ETS (Educational Testing Service) toelectronically forward the report to IPADS, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, theUniversity of Tokyo (DI Code C351). TOEFL iBT (Special) Home Edition is acceptable as well. Bothnormal test date scores and “My Best Score” can be accepted as part of the application document.
Scores of TOEFL Essentials can be also accepted as an alternative to above mentioned TOEFL scores.
Scores of TOEFL ITP (Institutional Testing Program) are not accepted.
5October 2025 PhD
For IELTS, an electronic copy of the score report indicating TRF (Test Report Form) number must be
submitted. IELTS Indicator score is also acceptable.
For both TOEFL and IELTS, only test reports taken on or after 1 January 2023, will be accepted.
Applicants who meet one of the following criteria are automatically exempt from submitting theEnglish proficiency test score.
-

have completed their Bachelor’s program or have completed/are completing their Master’s
program that is taught entirely in English in one of the following countries: **Australia, Canada,
Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, United Kingdom, and the United States of America;-

have worked full-time in a professional or academic environment where English has been usedsolely for at least three of the past six years in one of the above countries (**).

-

are expected to complete their Master’s program of IPADS in the University of Tokyo in March2025 or September 2025.

For applicants who meet one of the following criteria, the Duolingo English Test score is acceptable
alternatively as proof of English proficiency.
-

have completed their Bachelor’s program or have completed/are completing their Master’s
program in universities which are located in countries other than the above countries (**) andindicated in the IAU World Higher Education Database (WHED) that English is included as thelanguage of instruction; issue official letters proofing English as the sole instruction languagewith a hand-written signature of the head of the department or equivalent from universities.

-

have worked full-time in a professional or academic environment where English has been solely
used for at least three of the past six years in countries other than the above countries (**); issue
official letters proofing English as the sole official language with a hand-written signature of thehead of the department or equivalent from working places.

For the Duolingo English Test, in addition to the submission of an electronic copy of the certified test
result, applicants must arrange to forward the test result electronically to IPADS, the University ofTokyo. Only test reports taken on or after 1 January 2023 will be accepted.

However, the School reserves the right to request further evidence of English proficiency from allapplicants, regardless of their nationalities and educational background including those who qualify
for the English Test Exemption. Those who fail to submit their proof of English language proficiency
according to the aforementioned rules will not be considered for further admission process.
(5) Research work conducted by the applicant—A Bachelor’s thesis and Master’s thesis, or equivalent.
6October 2025 PhD
A work in progress, more than 1,000 words including research structures, is acceptable for those whohave not completed their Master’s degree at the time of application. If the work is written in a language
other than English, an English summary must be attached. Those who graduated from Bachelor’s
program or graduated/graduating from Master’s programs with no research component are required tosubmit essay assignments undertaken for a university course, original essays on agriculturaldevelopment or any other academic report as a substitute for their thesis.
(6) Proof of citizenship—A document issued by an official authority such as a copy of a passport ID
page, a citizenship certificate or a certified copy of family registration. If the document is in a language
other than English or Japanese, an English translation must be attached.
(7) Two letters of recommendation (by those nominated by the applicant at the online application)—
These should be written by university academics who were nominated at the prescreening and arefamiliar with the applicant’s academic achievement, such as supervisors for the Master’s thesis. Letters
may be in either English or Japanese. They must be electronically scanned form (e.g. PDF) with an
original hand-written signature and be directly sent by the referees from their official e-mail accountgiven by the institutions to which they belong to the IPADS office. No application will be processed
without letters of recommendation.
(8) Proof of examination fee payment—The details regarding the examination fee will be notified at
the time of shortlisting.
Submitted documents will not be returned. The examination fee is non-refundable.

5C. Selection, interviews, and notification of results(1) Selection is based on all application documents submitted to the IPADS Office by theabovementioned deadline.
(2) An interview may be conducted via video link for a limited number of applicants. Applicants will
be notified in advance if this is the case.
(3) The final result will be notified to all shortlisted applicants by 10 February 2025 (for Round One)or 13 May 2025 (for Round Two).

6. Legal notices(1) The enrollment fee is not refundable once the student enrollment procedure has been completed.
(2) The University of Tokyo shall use the personal information obtained through the application

7

October 2025 PhD
process only for the purpose of 1) Selection procedures, 2) Notification of results and 3) Enrollment
procedures. For those who enroll, this personal information and the examination results used foradmission selection shall also be used for 4) Educational Affairs (school registration, attendance, etc.),
5) Student Support (healthcare, career support, application procedure for tuition exemption andscholarships, use of libraries, etc.) and 6) the Management of tuition payment.
(3) The selection results may be used for future improvement of both the admission procedures andeducation programs at the University of Tokyo.
(4) If any of the submitted documents is found to be falsified, the admission may be canceled evenafter enrollment.
(5) The University of Tokyo has established the “The University of Tokyo Security Export Control
Regulations” in accordance with Japan’s “Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act”, and rigorously
implements security export control for potential students before and after their enrollment on the basisof these regulations. In particular, pre-enrollment screenings are mandatory for all international
students and also for Japanese students in certain circumstances.
Please be aware that applicants who fall under any of the conditions set out in the Act may not receive
permission to enroll at the university or may have their research activities restricted after theirenrollment even if they have passed the entrance examinations.
(6) Persons with disabilities who need special assistance during exams and study should contact the
IPADS Office as soon as possible, by 21 October, 2024 for Round One applicants and 16 February,
2025 for Round Two applicants.

7. Enquiries
The IPADS Office
Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences
The University of Tokyo
1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
Phone: 03-5841-0770 (from within Japan) / +81-3-5841-0770 (from overseas)
Email: info@ipads.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp
Website: https://ipads.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp/8