MEXT Scholarship 2025

Overview of the scholarship

Niigata University Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences was allowed to take part in “Special program for priority placement of foreign students” approved by Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT) in 2023.
The following application guidelines were created for selection of students willing to take part in this special postgraduate academic program (PhD course). This program is mainly composed of laboratories that provide infectious Diseases.
In accordance with the following terms and conditions, student admitted as a member of the above mentioned special academic program (PhD course) will be regarded as a regular student of Niigata University.
The target regions for this recruitment are Southwest Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives) and Southeast Asia (ASEAN) (Indonesia, Cambodia, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos).

Application Guidelines for 2025(Updated!)

The application guidelines for 2025 have been released by MEXT. The following required documents must be submitted according to the guidelines.

Application Guidelines 2025.pdf

Application has ended.

<Documents to be submitted>

　(1) Form1.pdf
　(2) Form2.docx
　(3) Form3.pdf

This scholarship program is for PhD course.
Applicants must
１．Be completed or expected to complete 18 years of education period.
２．Have 5 years or more of period of study in the course if your final education is Bachelor’s degree. Also, the major should be Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy or Veterinary medicine in that case.

As a first screening, please send us the following documents to be checked your eligibility to apply for the program.
Email: g-medex@med.niigata-u.ac.jp

　-Curriculum vitae
　-Three preferred laboratories
　-Transcript of academic record (of last graduation)
　-Education History (Click here for the format)

**Only outstanding students with a Grading Point Average (GPA) of 2.3 (out of 3.0) from a Master's program or higher can be accepted. The GPA will be calculated according to MEXT's calculation method.
**It is recommended that you submit proof of language proficiency such as TOEFL and TOEIC. Optionally, you can submit proof of Japanese language proficiency test, etc.

Please send your email with the subject line "MEXT Scholarship 2025".
Email: g-medex@med.niigata-u.ac.jp

The list of candidate laboratories

Here is the list of laboratories available for the scholarship.
If you wish to apply for the scholarship, you will submit three preferred laboratories stating priorities. Please be noted that your preference might be adjusted from the choice.

Graduate School of Medicine

Division of Microscopic Anatomy / Prof. Shinsuke Shibata

We always welcome international students of any background from all over the world. Our research interests include infectious disease, nerve regeneration, developmental biology, pain research, and neurodegenerative diseases. We are developing novel technologies for visualizing various phenomena by using many imaging devices such as electron microscopes and optical microscopes with sophisticated skills.
https://www.med.niigata-u.ac.jp/an3/eng.html

Department of Bacteriology / Prof. Sohkichi Matsumoto

We do
1 : Basic research to clarify the molecular mechanisms of tuberculosis and other mycobacterial diseases.
2 : Both basic and translational research for development of diagnosis, drugs, and vaccines in order to eradicate TB and related diseases.
https://www.med-niigatauniv-bacteriol.org/english/

Department of Virology / Prof. Takayuki Abe

We are actively accepting motivated individuals who are interested in Virology (e.g., the molecular virology of hepatitis, SARS-CoV-2, and pediatric viral infections) and viral immunology. We are studying the molecular mechanisms underlying the viral life-cycle and development of novel antiviral agents against RNA and DNA viruses.
https://www.echigo-virology.org

Division of International Health / Prof. Reiko Saito

Our research aim is the laboratory identification of human respiratory viruses such as SARS-CoV-2, influenza, and RSV in Japan and Myanmar. Currently we only take lab persons, but not epidemiologist.
https://www.med.niigata-u.ac.jp/pub/welcome.htm

Medical AI Center / Bioinformatics Laboratory / Prof. Shujiro Okuda

We have analyzed large amounts of omics data, such as genome sequences, to discover the hidden biological knowledge and developed technologies to realize them. We are now studying how the intestinal microbiota relates to health and conducting cancer genome data analysis for the realization of precision medicine. In addition, we are actively developing artificial intelligence for medical use.
http://bioinfo.med.niigata-u.ac.jp/?lang=en

Division of Respiratory Medicine and Infectious Diseases / Prof. Toshiaki Kikuchi

Our laboratory is conducting extensive research on various respiratory diseases, including allergic diseases such as bronchial asthma, inflammatory diseases such as interstitial pneumonia, lung cancer, infectious diseases, and respiratory physiology.
https://www.med.niigata-u.ac.jp/resp/welcome.html

Brain Research Institute

Neuroscience of Disease / Prof. Hideaki Matsui

Our laboratory explores the nature of life, ageing, disease and death using a variety of research objects, including cultured cells, small fish, mice and human brains. In particular, we focus on the underlying causes of neurodegenerative diseases and ageing, the presence or absence of evolutionary selection pressures due to infection, and the neurodegeneration induced by ectopic DNA of mitochondrial and microbial origin.
http://www.bri.niigata-u.ac.jp/~neuroscience_of_disease/

Department of Pathology Neuroscience / Prof. Mari Tada

As an academic pathology department, we have built a comprehensive collection of human brain tissue resource obtained from consecutive autopsies and surgical resections. We take advantage of opportunities to advance the medical science through individual and collaborative research by using the tissue resource, for understanding path mechanisms underlying brain disorders.
https://www.bri.niigata-u.ac.jp/en/field/pathneu/index.html
https://pathology-bri-niigata-u.jp/en/