Graduate School of Science and Technology, Degree Programs in Life and Earth Sciences
University of Tsukuba
APPLICATION GUIDELINES for“International Agricultural Sciences Program”a) Doctoral Program in Agricultural Sciencesb) Doctoral Program in Life and Agricultural Sciencesc) Doctoral Program in Bioindustrial Sciences

Call for Applications: 2024 October Entrance
1. Objectives of Program and Admission Policy
Objectives of Education

The International Agricultural Sciences is a multidisciplinary doctoral
program focusing on agricultural topics that deal with agricultural sciences,
life and agricultural sciences, and bioindustrial sciences. The aim of theinternational agricultural research program is to develop linkage withinternational organizations and partner universities contributing toagricultural developments. This program will be organized with theinternational research institutes collaborating with the University ofTsukuba. Contemporary agricultural and environmental issues throughout
the world will be given priority for conducting research in this doctoral
program.

Admission Policy(1) Qualifications
The University of Tsukuba seeks students who are interested in topics
related to food, life science, environment and bio-resources that aim to solve
current problems with specialty and a broad knowledge. Applicants arerequested to demonstrate academic interests in various issues involving thelife phenomena of humans and other living organisms and the globalenvironment. Special focus on the sustainable use of agro-biologicalresources and possession of applicable skills to analyze events from a varietyof perspectives are sought for this program.
(2) Policy of Selecting Students
The University will make a comprehensive evaluation of applicants based onwhether each applicant has the ability to conduct research in an advancefield of agricultural sciences and proficiency in English. Additionally,
academic ability to acquire advanced knowledge and understandings ofcontemporary problems existing in the world will be evaluated based on thesubmitted documents, research presentation, and individual interview.

2. Entrance Examination Schedule
The entrance examination schedule is as follows:(1) Announcement of guidelines December 2023
for 2024 applications:(2) Application Period:
January 5, 2024 to January 25, 2024
(3) Submission of Required
January 5, 2024 to January 11, 2024 (PDF)
Documents by Email(4) Submission of Required
January 12, 2024 to January 25, 2024 (Originals)
Documents by Post:(5) Individual Interviews:
February 13, 2024 to Februry 27, 20241

(6) Announcement of Final
Decision on Application:(7) Enrollment Procedures:(8) Enrollment Date:(9) Entrance Ceremony:

March 22, 2024
Late June, 2024 to end of August, 2024
(A separate notification will be sent)
October 1, 2024
End of September, 2024

3. Number of Students Acceptance per Year
Limited4. Qualifications of ApplicantsIndividuals falling under any one of the categories below may apply for this program.
(1) Persons who have earned or expect to earn a master’s degree by September 30, 2024.
(2) Persons who have earned or expect to earn a specialized graduate degree by September 30,2024.
(3) Persons who have been recognized as eligible during the screening processes conducted by theGraduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Tsukuba. In thescreening process, demonstration of superior academic abilities among university graduatesand being 24 years old by September 30, 2024 are required.
5. Documents Required for Application
The following documents are necessary for application. Please use the application forms that can bedownloaded from http://www.global.tsukuba.ac.jp/doctoral/international-agricultural-sciencesprogram website.

Necessary Documents

Submitting Person

1Application FormAll

2

Study PlanAll

Please use Form 2.

3

Recommendation
LetterAll

A confidential recommendation letter using
Form 3.
For details, see section 6-1.

4

Supervisor’s
AgreementAll

5(Expected)
Completion
Certificate*All

Remarks
Fill Form 1 and attach a passport size photo(frontal view of the face and upper half ofyour body (4 cm x 5 cm) taken within 6months. See Section 7.

A letter of agreement prepared by theprospective supervisor to serve as an academicadvisor when the applicant is successfully
accepted by the Graduate School of theUniversity of Tsukuba. Please use Form 4.
For details, see section 6. (2).
Certificate of Master’s Graduation,
or Letter from the academic office of youruniversity describing the expected date forcompletion of the Master’s degree program(original with official stamp). Please makesure that the type of (expected or obtained)
degree, enrolment date, (expected) completion
date are included.

2

Graduated fromoutside Japan

6Degree Certificate*

7Transcript*All

8ResearchAchievements

All

9Passport

10

Certificate ofSponsorship

For those who alreadyhave a passport
FundedApplicantIf you graduated from a graduate schooloutside Japan, please submit a degree
certificate of your master's degree (originalwith official stamp). Please make sure that thetype of (expected or obtained) degree,
enrolment date, (expected) completion date areincluded.
Original transcript (with official stamp) ofrecords from the previous university, including
bachelor’s degree and master’s degree.
If you are still attending a Graduate School,
submit a transcript for the period from theenrolment to the point of current application.
Please provide the list of publications (If any,
please use A4 size paper)
If you already possess a passport, pleasesubmit a copy of your passport with yourname. The passport will be solely used toconfirm the name of applicant.
Please submit a “Certificate of sponsorship”
from a public funding agency (If any)

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Certificate ofPayment ofExamination FeeAll

12English proficiency

All Non-native English
speakers

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ChecklistAll￥30,000Use Form 5. See section 7(B)[Exceptions]
1. MEXT financed international students
2. Who have completed the University ofTsukuba Master’s Program and willcontinue on to the University Doctoral
Program within one year of thecompletion date
Results of official English test records ofTOEFL, TOEIC or IELTS etc. (original). See
Section 8.
Please submit this checklist (Form 6).

Note:*In case your current name is different from that on the documents you submit (for example, because ofmarriage), submit proof of the name change (e.g., copy of marriage license).
i) All application documents must be written in English. If the documents or qualification certificatesissued by your school are in a language other than English or Japanese, translate and type the entire text
into English (no specific format is designated; please use A4 size or Letter size paper).
ii) Forms 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 can be found at the end of this “Guidelines for Application”.

36. Recommendations and Prospective Advisor’s Agreement Letters
1) A confidential recommendation letter from the Dean/research supervisor issued by theUniversity/Institution where applicant has graduated or expect to graduate is required forapplication. In case of our current research students, the letter can be issued by the academic
advisor of University of Tsukuba. The letter should be sealed by the Dean/research supervisor
for confidentiality. Use Form 32) Applicants are requested to submit a prospective academic advisor’s agreement letter along with
the necessary documents. The letter should note that the academic advisor has agreed tosupervise the applicant’s research if the applicant successfully passes the entrance examination.
Please use A4 szie paper for the recommendation letter and supervisor agreement letter. UseForm 4.
7. Submission of Application Forms(A) Preliminary e-mail submission of the application forms.
(1) Required documents :Form 1, 2 and 6, Completion (expected) Certificate, Degree
Certificate, transcript, English score as well as other documents applicable.
(2) Format : PDF(3) Submission Period :January 5, 2024 to January 11, 2024 (Japan Standard Time).
(4) E-mail Address : intagrsciadm@un.tsukuba.ac.jp(5) Eligibility of the applicants will be checked by the administration office.
(6) Eligible applicants will receive an e-mail message instructing them to pay the examination feeand submit the hard copy of their application forms.
(B) Credit card payment of the Examination Fee:
[ATTENITION]
Payment information is provided after the eligibility of application has been checked as
described at Section 7(A).
Payment period: January 12 to January 25, 2024 (Japan Standard Time).
Amount:30,000 Japanese yen
Receipt:
Please print the receipt page and attach to Form 4
Please note that the examination fee is non-refundable.
*The examination fee is exempted for University of Tsukuba students who are to complete
the master’s program in March or April 2024.
(C) Final Submission of the Original printouts of Application Form.
(1) Required documents:
All original documents(2) Submission Period
January 12, 2024 to January 25, 2024 (Japan Standard Time).
(3) Mailing address:
Graduate Program Office for Agricultural Sciences (F306),
University of Tsukuba
1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba,
Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan
Tel: +81-29-853-7228(D) Remarks:(1) If any document is missing or is not filled in correctly, your application will not be accepted.
Please check thoroughly and carefully before sending the documents. Please note that the4original application documents must be received during the period for accepting documents
in JST time.
(2) Application documents will not be returned.
(3) For persons who require special considerations for study due to disabilities or other issues,
please consult by sending an e-mail to the address below before applying.
E-mail address: intagrsciadm@un.tsukuba.ac.jp(4) If any factual discrepancies are found in the application or application documents afteradmission to the University, admission may be revoked.
8. English proficiency.
(1) Non-native English speakers need to submit TOEFL/TOEIC/IELTS test result. Please send
the original result of one of the following tests with Photo ID of the applicant.
ⅰ) Examinee Score Report (TOEFL),ⅱ) Official Score Certificate (TOEIC)ⅲ) Test Results Form (IELTS)(2) In principle, an applicant whose native language is English is not required to submit the test
result. . It will be determined from the applicant’s educational background.
[ATTENTION]
Original test scores taken after February 2022 are valid.
9. Selection Method
Each applicant will be requested to appear for an interview either in person or by teleconferences
or Skype Communication. In the individual interview, a comprehensive evaluation will be madeon English ability, basic knowledge, research plan, and motivation to enter the “InternationalAgricultural Sciences Program”.
10. Announcement of Successful Applicants
Final acceptance will be announced on March 22, 2024.
Notification of the final result will be sent by e-mail and post to all applicants. “Documents
Required for Enrollment Procedures” at the University of Tsukuba will be mailed to successful
applicants at the end of June 2024.
11. Enrollment Procedures(A) Time period(1) The time period for enrollment procedures is from the end of June 2024 to the end ofAugust 2024.
(2) Following receipt of the “Documents Required for Enrollment Procedures,” send all
documents required for admission using an international courier service by the above
deadline.
(B) Payment required by students (except MEXT Scholarship students)(1) The normal admission fee is ¥282,000.
MEXT Scholarship students and Who have completed the University of Tsukuba Master’s
Program and will continue on to the University Doctoral Program within one year of thecompletion date.
(2) The tuition fee is ¥267,900 for the spring semester and ¥267,900 for the fall semester(¥535,800/year).
(3) If the amount of payment is revised at the time of admission or during enrollment, the newamount will be required from the time of revision.
5(4) The University offers, upon selection, a waiver of all or part of the tuition fee for students
who are deemed to find it difficult to pay tuition due to financial reasons and for students
who have other unavoidable circumstances.
12. Confidentiality of Personal Information
Results from the entrance examination, as well as personal information obtained by the Universityof Tsukuba from the applicants’ documents, will be used for affairs concerning admission andscreening, or may be used to improve the way of admission and university education keeping eachidentity confidential.
13. Questions and Contact
If you have any questions about the application process, please contact the address below:
E-mail address: intagrsciadm@un.tsukuba.ac.jp

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