LL.D. Program

Japanese Government Scholarship & Self-Financing Students
Application Guidelines (October 2025 Admissions)

1. Introduction
Please read the following Application Guidelines carefully before submitting anapplication.
Kyushu University’s LL.D. program offers students the unique opportunity of preparing adoctoral thesis in English whilst studying at a Japanese university. Participants will
pursue a closely supervised program of research prior to submitting a final dissertation.
The program is designed to provide students with the skills necessary to complete highlevel research in law.
The doctoral thesis may be on any law-related subject agreed in consultation with theacademic supervisors and approved by the faculty. A full list of professors and theirresearch interests can be found at: http://www.law.kyushu-u.ac.jp/programsinenglish/
complete-listing.html
Further details on the LL.D. program, see the program website: http://www.law.kyushuu.ac.jp/programsinenglish/
If you are applying for a Japanese government scholarship, please read Sections 6, 7& 9 very carefully.

2. Purpose of Program
Kyushu University’s LL.D. program offers students the unique opportunity of preparing adoctoral thesis in English whilst studying at a Japanese university. The program isdesigned to provide students with the skills necessary to complete high-level research inlaw.
Participants will pursue a closely supervised program of research prior to submitting a
final dissertation.

13. Subject Areas for Doctoral Research
The doctoral thesis may be on any law-related subject agreed in consultation with theacademic supervisors and approved by the LL.D. Faculty Committee.
However, if you are applying for a Japanese government scholarship, please read theattached Appendix carefully.

4. Admission RequirementsFor admission to the LL.D. program, applicants must meet the following requirements:
1. A Master’s degree (in law or a related discipline) from an accredited university.
All applicants are expected to have engaged in some form of law study at
graduate level.
2. A good command of English. A TOEFL score of 100+ (Internet-based), an IELTS
score of over 7.5 or equivalent is required for non-native English speakers.
3. Sufficient financial support for the duration of the program. Further details on thecosts of studying on the LL.D. program, including tuition and other fees, areavailable at the program web site.

5. Application Materials
Applicants are requested to submit by registered airmail or equivalent (i.e., FederalExpress, DHL etc.), an original and one copy of the following documents to the Facultyof Law, Kyushu University before December 20, 2024 (applications arriving after thatdate cannot be accepted:
1. Completed LL.D. Application Form (form attached below). Please note: (1) It is very
important that the name that you include in Section 1 of the Application Form is the sameas the name in your passport. The Student Visa of successful applicants will be issued
with the name provided in Section 1, and it can cause problems at immigration whenentering Japan if the names are different. (2) Nationality. You must indicate if you have
dual nationality or Japanese nationality.
2. A photocopy of Graduation Certificate of the last university and graduate school
attended, OR a Certified Letter from the university at which the applicant is currently
attending, stating the expected graduation date.
3. Official School Transcript of the last school from which the applicant graduated andthat which the applicant is currently attending. Please note that good grades on the schooltranscript are required (ideally in the top 25% of the class) if you want a Japanese2Government Scholarship. In order to verify this, please include an explanation sheet withinformation about the grading system of the university.
4. Two Letters of Recommendation from the Dean, the applicant's supervisingprofessor or other teaching staff who have had direct contact with the applicant; or from asupervisor in the employing body with personal knowledge of the applicant (formsattached below). If you want a Japanese Government Scholarship, one Letter ofRecommendation must be from the Dean addressed to the President of Kyushu
University. (*Use the prescribed form.)
5. For non-native speakers, proof of English proficiency must be provided. A TOEFL
score of 100+ (Internet-based), an IELTS score of over 7.5 or equivalent is required for
non-native English speakers.
Please note that for MEXT scholarship candidates, proof of English proficiency iscompulsory and there is no waiver.
6. A copy of any master’s thesis that has been written in English, a substantial piece ofwritten work in English OR - if the student is currently enrolled on an LL.M program atKyushu University - a 20 pages draft of the LL.M. thesis.

All application materials should be typed in English on the attached forms or additional
sheets of A4 paper. In the event materials required above are in a language other thanEnglish or Japanese, a translation into one of these languages must be attached.
Application materials will not be returned to applicants.

6. Application Procedure & Notification of Result
Question 6 of the Application Form asks whether you wish to receive a Japanese
government scholarship.
Section 7 below describes the additional conditions of eligibility for the scholarship. Allinterested applicants should check carefully that they are eligible.
The application procedure is different depending on whether you are applying for aJapanese Government Scholarship or not:i. Applicants NOT wishing to receive a Japanese Government Scholarship3

After receiving the application Kyushu University MAY decide to hold an interview.
Interviews will be held either by ZOOM, phone or (if the candidate lives in Fukuoka) in
person in mid-January 2025.
Applicants will be informed of the result of their application to the LL.M., by end-March
2025.

ii. Applicants wishing to receive a Japanese Government ScholarshipIf the LL.D. Admissions Committee decides to award a scholarship, then the applicant
will be informed by mid-January 2025. The LL.D. Committee may decide to hold aninterview in the first week of February.
A student who has been awarded a scholarship will then be required to submit theadditional Japanese Government Scholarship Application Form and supporting materials.
This form will be provided to all successful candidates by e-mail when they are informed
their application for a scholarship has been successful.
The completed Scholarship Application Form and all supporting documents must be
submitted before February 7, 2025.
Successful candidates must also complete a brief “e-mail interview” in mid-January,2025.
Formal confirmation of a place on the program and the award of the scholarship will be
informed to the candidate by end-March 2025.

7. Conditions of Eligibility for the Japanese Government Scholarship
To be eligible for a Japanese government scholarship, an applicant must meet all of thefollowing conditions:(1) Nationality: Applicants must be citizens of a nation recognized under the foreignscholarship program of the Japanese Ministry of Education and be resident in thatcountry until they come to Japan after they are awarded the Scholarship. Anyone
holding Japanese nationality is not eligible to receive a scholarship.
(2) Education: Applicants must hold a Bachelors’ degree in Law from an accredited

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University. In the event they are currently studying law at a university, graduation
should take place before October 1, 2025, in order to qualify.
(3) Age: All applicants must be under 35 years of old as of April 2, 2025. i.e. Anycandidate born before April 1, 1990 is not eligible for a Japanese Government
Scholarship.
(4) Military personnel are not eligible for this scholarship if they remain on active duty.
(5) Existing financial support: Persons already receiving financial support from theirhome government or other organization are ineligible for this scholarship.
*Please note that if you are applying for a Japanese Government Scholarship, applicants
may be required to choose a specific research topic.

8. Tuition & Fees
Students receiving a Japanese government scholarship do not to pay any fees.
On enrollment, all incoming self-funded students must pay an Examination Fee andEntrance Fee, in addition to the Tuition Fees.
For the academic year 2024-2025, the fees were as follows:
Tuition Fees (for one year): ¥535,800
Registration Fee: ¥30,000
Entrance Fee: ¥282,000
Please note that this amount is subject to annual review. The final amount for 2025-26 isavailable upon request from admission@law.kyushu-u.ac.jp.
A fee waiver scheme operates for self-funded students demonstrating a high level ofacademic performance. Please note that it is rare for students to receive a waiver on theEntrance Fee, and for the Tuition Fee successful candidates normally only receive aremission of up to 50%.

9. Warning(1) Students will have their enrollment at Kyushu University withdrawn immediately inthe event of any of the following:5-

If the applicant is found to have made false statements on his/her application.
If the applicant is subject to disciplinary measures or has been found to have nopromise for academic achievement by the university.
If the applicant is absent from university for a prolonged period without
permission.
If the student has insufficient resources to finance their studies in Kyushu
University.

(2) Japanese Government Scholarships for the 2025-2026 LL.D. Program have not been
finally confirmed. The Ministry of Education is expected to confirm them by thebeginning of December 2024. We will provide final confirmation of the scholarships on
the program home page: http://www.law.kyushu-u.ac.jp/programsinenglish/

10. Inquiries
Inquiries by phone cannot be accepted. Written inquiries regarding this program andsubmitted materials should be addressed to:Admission Office of the LL.D. Program,
Graduate School of Law, Kyushu University,
East Zone 2744 Motooka, Nishi-ku,Fukuoka 819-0395, Japan.
Alternatively, candidates may correspond by fax or e-mail:Fax: 81[Japan]-92-802-5407
E-mail: admission@law.kyushu-u.ac.jp

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LL.D. MEXT

NO. __

LL.D. Program Application Form

1. APPLICANT INFORMATION
Last NameFirst

MiddleContact
Address

Nationality

E-mailPhone
Pleasepaste apassport
sized
photo
here

Age
Date of BirthGenderMF

2. EDUCATION HISTORY
ElementarySchoolAttended
From – To
SecondarySchool (1)Attended
From – To
Candidate Application Checklist: 1. Completed Application Form 2. Proof of English Proficiency 3. TWO Recommendation Letters
Date:

4. Transcript from University 5. Degree Certificate 6. Master’s Thesis

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LL.D. MEXT

Secondary
School (2)Attended
From - To
Higher
Education

AttendedFrom-To

DegreeAwardedHigher
Education

AttendedFrom-To
Total
Years ofSchooling

DegreeAwarded___ Years

3. EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

Name &Address of
Employer

From - To

Position

Name &Address ofEmployer

From - To

Position2

LL.D. MEXT

4. ENGLISH ABILITY (Please indicate your TOEFL [or equivalent] score)

5. THESIS PROPOSAL (In less than 2,000 words, please write a research proposal for a topic that issuitable for an LL.D. program. For further instructions, please see Section 3 on the web page of each programs.)
PROPOSED THESIS TITLE:
SUMMARY:

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LL.D. MEXT

4

LL.D. MEXT

6. JAPANESE GOVERNMENT SCHOLARSHIP
Do you wish to be considered for a Japanese Government Scholarship?
(By answering NO to this question you are indicating a willingness to
privately finance your studies at Kyushu University.)□YES□NOIf you answered YES to the above question and are NOT awarded ascholarship would you be willing to enroll as a privately financed student
at Kyushu University?

□YES

□NO

7. DECLARATION & SIGNATURE
I certify that my answers are true and complete to the best of my knowledge.
I have read and understood the Privacy Policy for Students Applying for Admission at Kyushu
University available at:
http://www.kyushu-u.ac.jp/en/website/privacypolicy/internationalstudents
If this application leads to my enrolling at Kyushu University, I understand that false or
misleading information in this application may result in my enrollment at Kyushu Universitybeing terminated.
SIGNATUREDATE(Optional) Could you please indicate how you became aware of the LL.D. program at Kyushu
University, (e.g. Internet, friend, poster, pamphlet etc.)

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RECOMMENDATION (1)
To: President of Kyushu University※To the RECOMMENDER: Please write a statement concerning the applicant, stating how long and in what connection you have
known him/her, your evaluation of his/her character, your speculation on the applicant’s potential for success as a graduate student andhis/her potential for independent research (use space below)

On behalf of(Name of Applicant):,Family,FirstMiddle

CONFIDENTIAL
IMPORTANT: Please evaluate the applicant’s qualification, compared with the last 5 years students, by checking
the appropriate space below, and specifying first the group with which you have compared him/her.
QUALIFICATION

Excellent(upper 5%)Good(6-20%)

Satisfactory(21-50%)

Average or below(lower 50)

No basis forjudgement➀KNOWLEDGEIntellectual ability
Knowledge in subject ofproposed study
General knowledge➁GOOD JUDGEMENT & EXPRESSIONImagination
Oral Expression
Written Expression➂COMMON SENSE
Industry andPerseverance
Emotional stability
Inquisitiveness &independence➃CONCLUSION(Overall potential as)
Teacher
Scholar (research fellow)
LL.M. holder
LL.D. holder
Signature_____________________________________________ Date_____________________________________________
Name___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Position_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Institution______________________________________________________________________________________________
Relationship to Applicant________________________________________________________________________________
Address_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Phone Number________________________________________ Fax Number______________________________________
E-mail__________________________________________________________________________________________________
We appreciate the time and effort that you have taken to provide us with these comments.

Please return this letter directly to Kyushu University OR place in a sealed envelope and return to the candidate.
Address: Admission Office of International Programs
Faculty of Law, Kyushu University
744 Motooka, Nishi-ku, Fukuoka, 819-0395 JAPANRECOMMENDATION (2)
To: President of Kyushu University※To the RECOMMENDER: Please write a statement concerning the applicant, stating how long and in what connection you have
known him/her, your evaluation of his/her character, your speculation on the applicant’s potential for success as a graduate student andhis/her potential for independent research (use space below)

On behalf of(Name of Applicant):,Family,FirstMiddle

CONFIDENTIAL
IMPORTANT: Please evaluate the applicant’s qualification, compared with the last 5 years students, by checking
the appropriate space below, and specifying first the group with which you have compared him/her.
QUALIFICATION

Excellent(upper 5%)

Good(6-20%)

Satisfactory(21-50%)

Average or below(lower 50)

No basis forjudgement➀KNOWLEDGEIntellectual ability
Knowledge in subject ofproposed study
General knowledge➁GOOD JUDGEMENT & EXPRESSION
Imagination
Oral Expression
Written Expression➂COMMON SENSE
Industry andPerseverance
Emotional stability
Inquisitiveness &independence➃CONCLUSION(Overall potential as)
Teacher
Scholar (research fellow)
LL.M. holder
LL.D. holder
Signature_____________________________________________ Date_____________________________________________
Name___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Position_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Institution______________________________________________________________________________________________
Relationship to Applicant________________________________________________________________________________Address_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Phone Number________________________________________ Fax Number______________________________________E-mail__________________________________________________________________________________________________
We appreciate the time and effort that you have taken to provide us with these comments.

Please return this letter directly to Kyushu University OR place in a sealed envelope and return to the candidate.
Address: Admission Office of International Programs
Faculty of Law, Kyushu University
744 Motooka, Nishi-ku, Fukuoka, 819-0395 JAPAN