Scholarship Application Guidelines:
Scholarship Grant for Foreign Students <YKK Leaders 21>
April 2024
Yoshida Scholarship Foundation
1. Name of the Program, etc.
This scholarship grant is called the “Scholarship Grant for Foreign Students <YKK Leaders 21>”. In this program, ascholarship grant is awarded to foreign students specializing in the field of natural science while studying at a graduate
school in Japan.
2. Candidates Sought
Yoshida Scholarship Foundation (YSF) requires that applicants for the <YKK Leaders 21> scholarship have:・ A high level of academic research capabilities;・ A clear objective of studying in Japan;
・ The spirit of giving back to society through their fruit of study/research; and・ The qualities of a leader.
3. Countries within the Scope of Scholarship Grant
・ Southeast Asian countries, South Asian countries, West Asian countries, Central Asian countries, African countries,Mongolia
4. Japanese Universities Designated by YSF[National]
The University of Tokyo, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Nagoya University, Kyoto University, Osaka
University, Kyushu University[Private]
Keio University, Waseda University, Doshisha University, Kwansei Gakuin University
5. Amount of Scholarship Grant
YSF will pay: living expenses in the amount of 200,000 yen per month throughout the term of scholarship; graduate
school fees of up to 2,500,000 yen in total during the term of scholarship; family allowance (only if applicable); andround-trip travel expenses to Japan.
6. Term of Scholarship
The term of scholarship will be no more than two (2) years for students enrolled in a master’s course or three (3) years
for students enrolled in the last three (3) years of a doctoral course from the month of being admitted to a graduate schoolin Japan.
7. Eligibility
A candidate must fulfill all of the following requirements.
・ The candidate must be a national of a country within the scope of the Scholarship Grant.
・ The candidate must be a graduate of a university in a country within the scope of the Scholarship Grant (which
need not be located in the same country as the country of nationality) or have higher academic qualifications.
・ The candidate must be seeking to enroll in a master’s course (with a standard course term of two years for whicha master's degree is awarded to those who complete the course, including the first two (2) years of a doctoralcourse) or the last three (3) years of a doctoral course (with a standard course term of three years for which adoctoral degree is awarded to those who complete the course) or be transferred in the third year of an integrated
doctoral course (with a standard course term of five years for which a doctoral degree is awarded to those whocomplete the course) at the graduate school of the Japanese university in autumn 2024 or spring 2025.
・ The candidate must specialize in the field of natural science in the Japanese university.
・ The candidate must not have arrived in Japan yet at the time of filing an application to YSF. If the candidate
wishes to enroll in autumn, he/she must have lived in a country within the scope of the Scholarship Grant for one
year or more on an ongoing basis as of April 1, 2024. If the candidate wishes to enroll in spring, he/she musthave lived in a country within the scope of the Scholarship Grant for one year or more on an ongoing basis as ofOctober 1, 2024.
・ A candidate seeking to enroll in a master’s course must be no more than 30 years old and a candidate seeking toenroll in the last three (3) years of a doctoral course must be no more than 35 years old as of April 1, 2024.
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8. Invitation Method
Invitation to apply for this Scholarship Grant will be extended through designated universities. YSF will request
Japanese universities designated by YSF (Designated Universities) to recommend scholarship candidates, and will accept
recommendation of one candidate per university.
No more than one student will simultaneously receive this Scholarship Grant per Japanese university.
YSF will accept a recommendation of one new candidate upon the expiry of the term of scholarship of the previous
scholarship recipient from that university.
The method of invitation for scholarship candidates to apply at the Japanese university varies from university to university.
Please contact the staff in charge of scholarship grants for foreign students at the university in which you wish to enroll.
YSF does not accept applications filed directly by students.
9. Application Procedures
Applicants are required to submit the following documents to the Japanese university. Among these documents, pleaseobtain the forms for the application and the letter of recommendation through the Japanese university:(i) Application form (No.1 Form C) (to be submitted in either Japanese or English);(ii) Letter of recommendation (No.2 Form C) (written by the advising professor in charge at the Japanese university);(iii) Letter of recommendation written in English by the university from which the applicant graduated; and(iv) A copy of the certificate or letter of acceptance from the graduate school of the Japanese university (if acceptanceby the graduate school has been decided).
Japanese universities are required to submit the set of application documents concerning the respective scholarship
candidates whom they have decided to recommend to YSF. If acceptance of the candidate at the graduate school isundecided at the time of submitting the application documents, please promptly submit a copy of the certificate or letterof acceptance as soon as the candidate’s acceptance has been decided.
10. Changes after Application
If any material changes arise in the content of the application documents after recommending a candidate to YSF, theJapanese university is required to contact YSF promptly. Material changes include the following.
・ Change in preferred university, graduate school or specialization
・ Change in theme of research scheduled to be conducted after enrollment
・ Change in advising professor (who wrote the letter of recommendation), etc.
11. Payment of Graduate School Entrance Examination Expenses
If a candidate recommended by the Japanese university needs to visit Japan temporarily to take an entrance examinationof the graduate school, YSF will pay the following expenses:
・ Travel expenses to Japan (round -trip economy-class airfare at cost);
・ Entrance examination fee; and・ Travel expenses and accommodation expenses in Japan (for up to three nights).
Entrance examination expenses will be paid by transfer into the recommended candidate’s bank account based on receipts
and other evidence. The recommended candidate will not be required to pay back such expenses even if he/she is not
accepted at the graduate school.
12. Scholarship Approval
Scholarship approval will be given to candidates recommended by each university after the content of their application
documents are checked by the Managing Director of YSF (who also concurrently serves as a member of the scholarshipscreening committee). YSF will notify applicants of scholarship approval through the Japanese university.
13. Contact Information
Yoshida Scholarship Foundation’s administration officec/o YKK60 Building
3-22-1 Kamezawa, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 130-8521 JAPANE-mail: webmaster@ysf.or.jp
URL: http://www.ysf.or.jp

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