With support from The Nippon Foundation, the Kaigai Nikkeijin Kyokai (Association of Nikkei and Japanese Abroad) administers the Nikkei Scholarship — a program designed to provide individuals of Japanese descent with the opportunity to study in Japan.
While this program previously focused primarily on Nikkei residents of Central and South America, the association expanded the scope of eligible countries last fiscal year and has since been conducting recruitment and operations on a broader scale.
Applicants must:
- Be of Japanese descent (regardless of nationality, educational background or previous visits to Japan)
- Be 18 to 35 years old
- Be recommended by overseas Japanese descendant organizations
- Have a dream of acquiring technical knowledge and, after graduation, playing active roles in their countries of residence and local communities
- Have a dream of working as a bridge for their countries of residence and Japan by making most of overseas study experiences.
About 30 students will be accepted from the North and Latin American region and the Southeast Asian region. The recruiting period ends July 31.
Primary selection will be done in late August, followed by secondary selection, including interviews, in early to late October. Final notice of acceptance or rejection will be given in early November.
Any educational institution is acceptable. Applicants, however, must select a school and negotiate with it on enrollment formalities. If applicants want to study at Japanese-language schools, they must be those designated by the foundation.
Scholarship payment will include round-trip airfare; any expense to be paid to the school, including examination fee, admission charge, tuition, etc.; living expenses, housing expenses, medical insurance premiums, etc.; expenses for group workshops.
The maximum period of overseas study is five years.
It is desirable that the applicant is proficient enough in Japanese that he/she has no trouble listening to lectures at the school or leading daily life in Japan. If applicants wish to improve their Japanese, they will be able to take Japanese lessons for six months to one year.
For further details regarding this program, visit the following websites: