FY2024
Graduate School of Agriculture, Kobe University (Master's Program + DoctoralProgram)
Changing the Special Entrance Examination Guidelines for International Students (forMEXT Scholarship International Students)

6. Changes to the Application Procedure
Change of submission period February 2 to 16, 2024 → January 11 to 25, 2024

4. Changes to the Eligibility (1) Qualified applicants(1) Qualified applicants: Those who reside outside Japan and are newly coming fromoverseas to join the Kobe University Graduate School of Agricultural Science.
↓(1) Qualified applicants: In principle, the applicants must reside overseas and be newlyadmitted to the Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University fromoverseas. However, only one of the successful applicants may also be eligible for aninternational student already residing in Japan.

1Kobe University Graduate School of Agricultural Science
Education program for the next generation agriculture leaders in mature society(Master's and doctoral courses for Japanese government scholarship students)

Application Guidelines for the Academic Year 2024
The Kobe University Graduate School of Agricultural Science invites applicationsof talented international students for the “Education program for the next generation
agriculture leaders in mature society (Master's and doctoral courses for Japanese
government scholarship students).”
1. Field of Study and Quota(1) Field of Study
Please refer to the following URL.
http://www.ans.kobe-u.ac.jp/english/index.html(2) Quota
Three

2. Features(1) The date of Admission is October 1, 2024.
The period of study is, in principle, five years ending on September 25, 2029. The degreeof Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Science or Doctor of Philosophy will be conferredto those who have fulfilled all requirements for graduation.
(2) Lectures, research advice and instructions are given in English, and the dissertation must
be written in English.
(3) Faculty members of the Graduate School of Agricultural Science will tutor students acrossthe boundaries of specialties.

3. Program Offered
The program is aiming to educate the next generation agriculture leaders in mature society.
The grantees will be attached to one of the laboratories in the three departments AgriculturalEngineering and Socio-Economics, Bioresource Science, and Agrobioscience, and conduct
research for their dissertation. The grantees will take English-language classes on related
studies with the support of the following research centers under the Graduate School ofAgricultural Science: Food Resources Education and Research Center, Center for Regional
Partnership, and Research Center for Food Safety and Security.

4. Eligibility(1) Qualified applicants: In principle, the applicants must reside overseas and be newly
admitted to the Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University from overseas.
However, only one of the successful applicants may also be eligible for an international2

student already residing in Japan. Currently working adults have an academic record of
their final educational background, and current students have an academic record of 2.30
or higher in their current course, and are expected to maintain this in their current course
during the scholarship period.
(2) Nationality: Citizens of Southeast Asian or Southwest Asian countries specified by theJapanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). Those
countries are Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam,Malaysia, Myanmar, and Laos, as well as India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh,
Bhutan, and Maldives.
Admission preference is given to students from Southeast Asian countries.
(3) Age: Those who were born on or after April 2, 1989.
(4) Educational background: One of the following.
(i) Those who have completed, or are scheduled to complete, 16 years of school educationby the time of admission.
(ii) Those who are recognized by the Graduate School of Agricultural Science to have anequivalent or higher academic ability than university graduates.
(5) Recommendation: Those who are recommended by their alma mater or current institution.
(6) Health: Those who are mentally and physically healthy.
(7) English proficiency: Those who meet one of the following CEFR B2 criteria.
①Cambridge English: 160 or above②EIKEN CSE Score: 2300 or above③GTEC: 1190 or above④IELTS: 5.5 or above⑤TEAP: 309 or above⑥TEAP CBT: 600 or above⑦TOEFL iBT: 72 or above
In the case of a test with detailed scores (for example, reading, listening, writing andspeaking), all of them must meet the CEFR B2 level or higher. As the process ofchecking the detailed scores is complicated, please inquire at the Student Affairs section,
Graduate School of Agricultural Science.
The test score will be considered valid only if the test was taken within 2 years of theapplication.
(8) Arrival in Japan: Those who will be able to arrive in Japan between October 1 and October
7, 2024.
(9) Visa requirement: Accepted applicants must obtain a student visa before arriving in Japan.
【Important】
1) Failure to enroll in the Graduate School during the designated period shall lead tocancellation of the admission.
2) Failure to graduate from university by the end of September 2024 shall lead to cancellationof the admission (for those who have submitted an application based on the expectationof graduation by the time of admission).

33) Military personnel or military civilian employees shall not be admitted while retaining
these titles.
4) Those who are granted a scholarship from any other organization or party, including theones from their home country shall not be admitted.

5. Terms of Scholarship(1) Allowance: 147,000 yen per monthThis amount is for the academic year 2023 and may be subject to change.
(2) School Fees: Fees for the entrance examination, matriculation and tuition are exempted.
(3) Travel Expenses:(i) Inbound travel: An economy class airplane ticket from an international airport (mustbe located in the country of a grantee’s citizenship) nearest to their home address
to Kansai International Airport will be provided.
(ii) Return travel: An economy class air ticket from Kansai International Airport to aninternational airport (must be located in the country of the grantee’s citizenship)nearest to their destination will be provided to those who are returning to their homecountry by the stipulated date after the scholarship period is over.
※Travel insurance, airport fee and tax, and other related taxes must be borne by eachgrantee.
(4) Period: Two years for master’s course from October 2024 to September 2026, and three
years for doctoral course from October 2026 to September 2029.
In principle, scholarship support will be provided for a total of 5 years but may be inspected
after completion of the master’s course based on an evaluation of performance.

6. Application Procedure
Applicants are required to submit to the Graduate School of Agricultural Science the following
documents through their prospective supervisors during the period between January 11 and25, 2024. All documents should be written in English.
(1) Application Form for the Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship (Research Student)(Form 5)(2) Field of Study and Research Plan (Form 6)(3) A copy of the diploma or an original certificate of graduation / scheduled graduation fromthe applicant’s home university (both undergraduate and graduate).
(4) Official transcript or certificate of school records from the applicant’s home university(both undergraduate and graduate). Transcripts should include all courses, credits, grades,and term information along with details about the grading system. If your transcripts are
not in English, a certified translation must also be submitted. If available, documents
specifying the applicant’s academic excellence such as GPA (Grade Point Average), ABC
grading or grade rank (your rank out of the total number of students), etc. may be attached.
(5) Research achievement: An English summary of academic papers or/and of the degree
thesis.
(6) Recommendation letter: This must be written by a person with an equivalent (or higher)

4position to the Dean of the applicant’s home university or the head of the applicant’s
institute, and be addressed to President of Kobe University.
(7) Passport copy (photo page)(8) Score report of an English proficiency test (taken within two years of the date ofapplication)(9) Photograph (4.5 x 3.5 cm, a front view of the upper half of the body with no hat, taken
within the past six months, the applicant’s name and nationality written on its back.
Electronic data is acceptable).
【Important】
1) Applicants should contact a professor of their major field beforehand and inquire about
their research activities.
2) All documents pertaining to the application should be typewritten and printed on paper ofthe same size (A4 size is preferable).
3) Use the prescribed forms for the above mentioned documents (1) and (2).
4) In case the application documents submitted are found incomplete or inaccurately filled, or
have not reached us by the deadline, they will not be accepted.
5) Application documents will not be returned.

7. Selection and Result Notification(1) Kobe University will select the candidates based on document screening and oral
examination (interview either in person or via online meeting software), then will
recommend them to MEXT.
(2) MEXT will examine the candidates and make a decision on the successful applicants. Theresult will then be relayed to Kobe University.
(3) Kobe University will notify each applicant of the result of the MEXT scholarship selectionin July 2024 and issue a letter of acceptance to the successful applicants. Their status willbe identical to that of regular master students of the Kobe University Graduate School ofAgricultural Science.

8. Suspension of Payment of Scholarship(1) Payment of the scholarship may be cancelled in the following cases.
(i) In case the application documents submitted are found false.
(ii) In case a grantee violates any article of their pledge to the Minister of MEXT.
(iii) In case a grantee is subject to disciplinary action at Kobe University or judged to haveno possibility of completing the Ph.D. course.
(iv) In case a grantee withdraws from Kobe University.
(v) In case a grantee’s visa status is changed from “Student” to another classification.
(vi) When the coefficient of academic performance at any point in the year falls below 2.30
or the grade standard set by the university.
(2) In principle, payment of the monthly allowance will be suspended during the period whena grantee is taking a leave of absence from the school or does not attend the school for along period of time.

5(3) Applicants to this program are not allowed to make a simultaneous
application to other MEXT scholarship programs including one via theJapanese embassy recommendation or scholarship programs sponsored by
Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO).

9. Notes
Applicants are advised to acquire information beforehand on Japanese climate, weather,customs and the university itself.
While educational and research activities are carried out mainly in English, some commandof Japanese language may be necessary for their daily life. It is preferable for applicants tohave some preliminary knowledge of the Japanese language.

10. For more information, please write to the following address.
Graduate Student Affairs Section
Graduate School of Agricultural Science Kobe University
1-1 Rokkodai, Nada-ku, Kobe, 657-8501,
Japan
E-mail: ans-kyomu@office.kobe-u.ac.jp

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