ADMISSIONS GUIDE for INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS 2023-2024

Major Strengths ofKyoto University
Founded in June 1897, Kyoto University has a long
history and enduring traditions. The main campus
is located in the historic city of Kyoto, a center oftraditional Japanese culture. Since its founding,
the University has been dedicated to furthering
higher education and fostering an atmosphereof academic freedom. Graduates of the University play important roles in both insideand outside of Japan, as key players inpolitics, industry, and society.

Cutting-Edge Research HubWorld-Class Education Programs

Kyoto University is one of the worldʼs foremost research
institutions, attracting outstanding researchers and students
in diverse disciplines from all over the world. By providing
state-of-the art facilities and a rich, stimulating academic environment, Kyoto University enables its researchers to fully develop
and grow as scholars, and supports the development of innovative
cutting-edge research projects. Academic freedom that the University
has fostered brought many awards recipients including recipients of theFields Medal, Gauss Prize, Lasker Award, and 11 Nobel laureates. You canstudy in this rich academic research environment.

10Faculties

18Graduateschools

Kyoto University oﬀers a diverse range of exceptional education programs designed to guide students towards realizing
their full potential. Students beneﬁt from the universityʼsrich academic environment, expert guidance, and a diverse
range of experiences that only Kyoto University can provide.
In addition, through various extracurricular activitiesstudents will be able to develop the ability to take active
action, and through such experiences, they will develop theability to play a leading role that will be appreciated by theworld in the future.

12Research
institutes

22,6002,80027Centers & otherorganizations
As of March 2023

Students

13,000 Undergraduate
9,600 Graduate

International students
From 110 countries and regions

Award Winning Research

2

11 Nobel laureates
FieldsMedalists

1

Gauss Prize
Winner5

Lasker AwardWinners

1

Chern
Medalist
As of May 2022

Kyoto City, which has 1,200 years of history, has long been the nationʼs center of art,culture, and scholarship. Many of the cityʼs historic locations, including several of
its approximately 2,000 shrines and temples, have been classiﬁed as UNESCO World
Heritage Sites. In Kyoto, ancient culture and tradition coexist side by side with technological innovation and entrepreneurship. The city is home to several major technology
companies, many of which have cooperative links with Kyoto University.
Through studying in Kyoto and becoming familiar with the city andits culture, students will gain a deep understanding of Japan as awhole, and will also gain new insights into their own cultural identity.
Experience of life in Kyoto is a valuable cultural experience for thoseseeking to broaden their horizons and be active in international society.

LOCATIONJapan

Kyoto University

Japanese Language
There is no specialized faculty or program for students who only want
to study Japanese language at Kyoto University.
However, the Education Center for Japanese Language and Culture of
the Institute for Liberal Arts and Sciences (ILAS) of Kyoto Universityoﬀers Japanese language courses to KU students.
Japanese language courses oﬀered by theEducation Center for Japanese Language and Culture

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/au51h

Kyoto University Degree System

Note: Some faculties have diﬀerent systems. Please refer to the websites ofindividual faculties and graduate schools for further details.

MASTER'S 2 years

BACHELOR 4 years

DOCTORAL 3 years

DOCTORAL 5 years
PROFESSIONAL 2 or 3 years

Undergraduate Faculties

Graduate Schools

Kyoto University oﬀers bachelor programs in a wide range ofstudy areas among 10 undergraduate faculties. The academic
year begins in April. Students must have suﬃcient proﬁciency
in Japanese, as classes are generally taught in Japanese*.
To enroll in these programs, international applicants needto go through the same selection process as domestic
applicants in principle. The Faculties of PharmaceuticalSciences and Engineering also have a special selection for
privately-ﬁnanced international applicants. In addition, theFaculties of Law and Economics have a special selection
for graduates from schools located in countries other thanJapan.

Kyoto University oﬀers a wide range of study areas among
18 graduate schools, of which 10 oﬀer programs which
can be completed entirely in English. The academic year
begins in April or October. The basic language of educationis Japanese*, though supervision may be oﬀered in English
depending on the laboratory / faculty member. Application
requirements and procedures vary depending on the graduate
school / program.
Please refer to the website of each graduate school fordetails. For any questions, please contact the relevant
administration oﬃce.
Graduate Schools
https://u.kyoto-u.jp/graduateschools*There are also programs which can be completed entirelyin English. For information on those programs, pleasecheck the following page.

Faculties
https://u.kyoto-u.jp/faculties
How to Apply (Faculty)
https://u.kyoto-u.jp/how-to-apply

Economics*The Faculty of Engineering oﬀers an English-taught program in the Undergraduate School of Global Engineering.
Details can be found on the next page.

Informatics

LettersHuman andEnvironmentalStudies

Engineering

Economics
Agriculture

Letters

Law

Education
Integrated
HumanStudies

Medicine

Biostudies

GlobalEnvironmentalStudies
Advanced
Integrated
Studies in Human
Survivability

Agriculture

Medicine

EnergyScience

Management
Asian andAfrican AreaStudies

Government
Pharmaceutical
Sciences

Education

Science
Law

ScienceEngineering

Pharmaceutical
SciencesEnglish-Taught
Undergraduate Program
Kyoto University oﬀers an English-taught degree program for bachelor
degree in the Undergraduate School of Global Engineering, theFaculty of Engineering.

Enrollment is in April. Please refer to the website for course details
and application procedures.

EngineeringUndergraduate International Course Program ofCivil Engineeringhttps://www.s-ge.t.kyoto-u.ac.jp/int/en

Kyoto iUP
Kyoto University International
Undergraduate Program
Kyoto iUP is a 4.5-year program comprising a six-monthpreparatory course followed by four years of undergraduate study. Japanese language proﬁciency is not requiredat the outset, as the program provides intensive Japanese language classes. Upon graduation, students
are awarded a bachelor s degree in their selectedmajor.
Kyoto iUP
https://www.iup.kyoto-u.ac.jp/

Double / Joint Degree Programs
Kyoto University oﬀers a wide variety of double
and joint degree programs in partnership withoverseas institutions. Details are available bycontacting the Kyoto University graduate schools
running these programs.
https://u.kyoto-u.jp/jddd

Non-Degree Programs
Research Students
Research student is a non-degree seeking
status which allows students to conduct
research at a graduate school/research
institute of their choice.
Many students from abroad enroll as
research students to prepare for the graduate program (masterʼs/doctoral/professional degree) under faculty supervision.
To qualify for this status, applicants must
contact and obtain approval from theirprospective supervisor.

Exchange Students
Kyoto University oﬀers exchange programs
accepting students from institutions witha university-level exchange agreement for
one semester (6 months) or two semesters(12 months) in Kyoto.
Application guides for both programs aresent out to partner institutions in June andDecember.
Applications should be submitted to Kyoto
University through the home institutionʼsinternational oﬃce; direct applications
from students will not be accepted.

Research Students

Short-Term International Students
Short-term international students is a status
designed to enable international students
to study at Kyoto University for a maximumof 3 months. International students enrolled
in a non-Japanese university may apply forshort-term special courses, such as Amgen
Scholars Program, or for a laboratory/supervisor that can host them.
Not all undergraduate faculties/graduate
schools/research institutes take short-term
international students.
Applicants are therefore advised to contact
the relevant faculty for details.

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/ilx5y

Short-Term International
Students

To ﬁnd a prospective supervisor
Activity Database on Education and Researchhttps://kdb.iimc.kyoto-u.ac.jp/search_
private/index.html?lang=en
Faculties, Graduate Schools,
Research Institutes, and other centers

https://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/about/profile/faculty

Exchange Students

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/shorthttps://u.kyoto-u.jp/-sp73

Amgen Scholars Program

University-level student
exchange partners

International Education Initiatives

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/partners

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/amgenscholars

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/initiatives

English-Taught
Degree Programs in Graduate Schools

Letters
Joint Degree Masterof Arts Program inTranscultural Studies(JDTS)

For graduate programs, a variety of study areas are available in English.
The types of degrees and application methods vary depending on each graduate school and major.
For details, please refer to the websites of individual graduate schools.
If you have any questions, please contact the relevant administration oﬃces.
＊The academic year begins in April or October. It depends on thedepartment and the type of degree.
＊In addition to the programs listed below, there may be opportunities
in individual laboratories or with speciﬁc academic advisors to earn adegree in English, especially at the doctoral level.

English-taught degree programs

Economics

Science
International Graduate
Programme for East
Asia Sustainable
Economic Development Studies

International Course inPrimatology andWildlife Research

Agriculture

Informatics

Special Course in
Agricultural
Sciences — For the
Global Future of Life,
Food and theEnvironment

International
Program inIntelligence Scienceand Technology

International
Program in Social
Informatics

International
Program inCommunications andComputer Engineering

International ProjectManagement Program(i-PM)

International Business
Administration
Program (i-BA)

Kyoto-Cornell
International
Collaborative Degree
Opportunity(KC-CDO)

MBAMBA

MBA/MMH

International Joint
Master Degree
Program in Global
Markets, Local
Creatives

https://u.kyoto-u.jp/english-taught-degree-programs

Engineering
International Course inManagement of Civil
Infrastructure in the
Department of Civiland Earth Resources
Engineering

International Course in
Urban and Regional
Development in theDepartment of Urban
Management

Energy Science

Degrees available
DoctorIntegrated Engineering Course, Human
Security Engineering
Field

International Energy
Science Course

MasterBiostudies
Global Frontier inLife Science

Management

GlobalEnvironmentalStudies
International
Environmental
Management
ProgramGeneral flow of the application process
Find a prospective
supervisor anddecide your program

Check the admission
informationon the program website※Details of the application process vary by
graduate school and department.

Apply to Admissions
Assistance Oﬃce (AAO)

Complete
AAO Application*

Apply tothe graduate school＊This step may be skipped for some programs.

Activity Database on Education and Research
You can search for faculty members at Kyoto University by name, research keywords, etc.
https://kdb.iimc.kyoto-u.ac.jp/search_private/index.html?lang=en

Admission Assistance Oﬃce (AAO)
Applicants who have graduated or expect to graduate from non-Japanese universities may need to go throughthe AAO application. Please visit the graduate school website and check whether it is required.
For further details of the AAO application, please refer to the website.
https://u.kyoto-u.jp/graduate-admissions-for-overseas-graduates

Graduate Admission Guide for International Applicants
You can also refer to the following website for graduate admissions including the information on how to ﬁnd acourse, an academic supervisor, or application guidelines.
https://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/education-campus/education-and-admissions/intl-admissions

Scholarships
There are several types of scholarships available for international students, including the Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship.
For more information about scholarships, please visit the website below.

■ Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship
Kyoto University accepts three categories of MEXT scholarship students: Research Students (graduate degree students and research[non-degree] students), Undergraduate Students, and Japanese Studies Students. There are two ways to apply for the MEXT scholarship.
Applications must be submitted before coming to Japan.
① Apply through a Japanese diplomatic mission (embassy recommendation)② Apply through a Japanese university (university recommendation)

As the types of scholarships which students are eligible for vary depending on the faculty or graduate school they wish to enroll in, pleasecheck the following website and ask the relevant faculty/graduate school oﬃce for details.
Kyoto University Japanese Government Scholarship : https://u.kyoto-u.jp/mzp45

Japanese Embassies and Consulates : https://www.mofa.go.jp/about/emb̲cons/over/index.html■ Foreign Government Scholarship
Kyoto University accepts international students who are receiving scholarships from the government of their home country. For further
details, please contact the appropriate agency in your home country.

■ Scholarships from Private Foundations
Kyoto University recommends students for several diﬀerent scholarships throughout each year. Most of the scholarships can be applied
for after admission. Please see the website below for more details.
University-nominated scholaships : https://u.kyoto-u.jp/university-nominated-scholarships■ Reference
JASSO “Scholarships for International Students in Japan” : https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/planning/by-style/pamphlet/

Tuition and Fees (As of April 2023)
Student Categories

Exam Fee

Admission Fee

Tuition*2

Undergraduate Students

17,000 JPY

282,000 JPY

535,800 JPY per year

Graduate Students

30,000 JPY*1

282,000 JPY

535,800 JPY per year

Law School Students

30,000 JPY

282,000 JPY

804,000 JPY per year

Research Students

9,800 JPY

84,600 JPY

29,700 JPY per month*1 The fee may be reduced depending on the method of the selection process. For speciﬁc details, please check the guidelines foradmission of the graduate school you wish to enter.
*2 Should tuition fees be revised during a studentʼs period of enrollment, the new amount will become eﬀective from that point on.

Tuition https://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/current/how-to/tuition

Kyoto University International HouseKyoto University has accommodation facilities available for international students
and researchers. Please check the details on the Kyoto University International
Service Oﬃce website.

KYOTO UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL SERVICE OFFICE
https://kuiso.oc.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/
On the above website, you can also access information about visa
requirements, obligations, and other related procedures in Japan.

CONTACThttps://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/contact

PUBLICATIONS

https://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/printed-materials

https://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en