If you are applying for the SSP with the application deadline of September 13th, 2024, please click here to view the SSP Application Guideline.
If you are applying for the SSP with the application deadline of April 2025 or later, please refer to the SSP Application Guideline below.

Last updated: September 13, 2024

Pre-Application for SSP Program

Special Scholarship Program (SSP) is only for doctoral candidates. (SSP supervisor list is here)

Prospective applicants must fill out and submit the online pre-application request form via KUT Online Pre-Application Form. The form will be sent to their preferred supervisors who will consider the request. This process will determine (prior to the submission of a formal application) whether the intending applicant meets the supervisor's requirements. You can choose a maximum of two supervisors from the SSP supervisor list and submit a completed online pre-application request to your preferred supervisors. After the supervisor has reviewed your pre-application request, she/he will contact you. When your preferred supervisor contacts you, you must respond promptly. You can formally apply for the SSP program only if he/she agrees to proceed with a formal application. Once you have obtained permission from the supervisor, you must choose only one preferred supervisor, complete all required documents, and submit them to KUT by post. The documents must reach KUT by the deadline.

* The applicants are encouraged to send a pre-application request to their preferred supervisors at least 8 weeks prior to the formal application deadline. (Please find the application deadline in the item 11 "Admission Sechedule" on this page. Only individuals who have obtained the permission of their preferred supervisors are eligible to formally apply to the SSP program.）

* Please note that your pre-application is considered rejected if your preferred supervisor does not reply to you within two weeks from the submission of the Online Pre-application Request Form.

*The system for Pre-Application is unavailable from 18:00 to 20:00 JST on the first Wednesday of every month for maintenance purposes. If the first Wednesday falls on a Japanese national holiday, maintenance will be conducted on the Wednesday of the preceding week.

Application Guidelines for Special Scholarship Program (SSP)

1. PROGRAM OF STUDY

Doctoral Program (3 years)
Department of Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering

2. LANGUAGE

English

3. NUMBER OF STUDENTS TO BE ADMITTED

No more than 3 SSP students can be enrolled concurrently for each supervisor. See the SSP supervisor list for information on professors available to host SSP students.

SSP supervisor List

4. ENROLLMENT TIME

April/October

5. SCHOLARSHIP TERM

Three year
*The term is a total of three years, unless the university terminates the SSP student status for any of the reasons stated in paragraph 14 below, Termination of SSP Student Status.

6. OBLIGATIONS

1. The SSP student must conduct research at KUT under the supervision of the designated KUT professor, based on the research plan approved by that KUT professor.
2. The SSP student must report his/her study and research achievements to the dean of the Graduate School of Engineering at the end of each semester. The submitted report will be evaluated by the dean of the Graduate School of Engineering.
3. The SSP student must comply with research ethics, laws and regulations, and also strive to behave in a way that sets an example for other students.

7. BENEFITS

1. Exemption from 30,000 yen entrance examination fee, 300,000 yen enrollment fee and 535,800 yen/year tuition fee for three years
2. To support living expenses, 150,000 yen/month is paid as scholarship for three years
3. 150,000 yen is provided for travel and initial living costs. (given only to international applicants who are living outside Japan, and who have, or have the intention to acquire, "Student" status of Japanese residence at the time of entry into Japan)

See more about SSP program

8. ELIGIBILITY

Applicants are required to meet all of the following conditions

1. To have permission from the preferred SSP supervisor to apply
2. To hold a degree from an accredited institution comparable to the master's degree offered at KUT after 18 years of education, or to be scheduled to acquire such a degree before the KUT enrollment date
3. To be 35 years old or under at the time of enrollment, in principle
4. To have an excellent academic record and strong bachelor's and master's degrees from reputable universities
5. To have the intention, adequate knowledge and research skill to study in the research field
6. To have high English proficiency（a minimum score of TOEFL iBT72 (Writing 17), IELTS5.5 (Writing 5.5), CET-6 or WSK(PETS-5) . Applicants may not be required to submit English test score if they meet certain conditions.

9. APPLICATION PROCESS

1. Choose a maximum of two supervisors from the SSP Supervisor List
2. Send a complete Online Pre-Application Request to your preferred supervisors via KUT Online Pre-Application Request Form and obtain his/her permission to apply for the SSP program. Applicants are not allowed to make Pre-Application Request to more than two supervisors in a given entry period. Please note that your pre-application is considered rejected if your preferred supervisor does not reply to you within two weeks from the submission of the Online Pre-application Request Form.
3. When your preferred supervisor contacts you, you must respond promptly.
4. When you obtain a permission from the supervisors, choose only one preferred supervisor, complete all required documents and submit them to KUT by post. The documents must reach KUT by the deadline.
   

   *You can submit the Online Pre-application Request Form to two supervisors. Even if you obtain permission from both supervisors, you must choose one supervisor at the time of the formal application. Since it is anticipated that it will take a considerable amount of time for applicants to prepare the documents for the formal application, we strongly recommend applicants to send a pre-application request to his/her preferred supervisors at least 8 weeks prior to the formal application deadline.

List of Required SSP Application Documents　

10. ADMISSION DECISION

As mentioned above, only applicants who have obtained the permission of their preferred supervisor are eligible to submit an application with documentation to KUT. The admission decision will be made after screening of the submitted documents, interview, and exam in the specialized subject.

Note 1: Applicants may be rejected before they take the interview and exam.
Note 2: The examination (interview and exam in the specialized subject) may be conducted via Webex or other communication tool.

11. ADMISSION SCHEDULE

October 2025 Enrollment: (The Second Deadline)

横スワイプで表の続きをご覧いただけます。

*note 1: The applicants are encouraged to send a pre-application request to his/her preferred supervisor at least 8 weeks prior to the formal application deadline.
*note 2: All the required documents must arrive at KUT by the each deadline.
*note 3: The interview and exam for specialized subject is basically conducted online by the supervisor.
*note 4:If interview or exm for specialized subject cannot be conducted during the designated period, there may be a delay in announcing the results.

April 2026 Enrollment: (The First Deadline)

横スワイプで表の続きをご覧いただけます。

April 2026 Enrollment: (The Second Deadline)

横スワイプで表の続きをご覧いただけます。

12. SPECIAL NOTICE

1. If you are still working towards your master's degree, a verified original master's degree certificate in English /Japanese from your university will be required before your enrollment can be completed. If you are not able to produce such a document, you will not be enrolled.
2. Students who join the projects in Economics and Management will conduct their research at Eikokuji campus which is located in down town Kochi City, 25 km from the main campus (Kami campus), and those students are also required to take classes once or twice a week at main campus. The most common means of transportation between Eikokuji campus and Kami campus are bus or JR train, and it takes around one hour.
3. If your application to KUT is successful and your resident status in Japan is "Student", KUT will assist you in finding appropriate single accommodation.
   At Kami campus, you can live in the International House if there is vacancy.
   At Eikokuji campus, you can live in the Takasone Dormitory C if there is vacancy.
   If you wish to bring your family members and live with them in Japan, or if you wish to change your accommodation, you must initiate your own apartment rental.
   In any case, you need to bear your own costs.
   ・International House (Kami Campus)
   ・Takasone Dormitory C (Eikokuji Campus)
   ・Renting a room individually
4. To complete the doctoral program, candidates must meet the following conditions:
   a. Three-Year Enrollment: Candidates must be enrolled in a doctoral program at KUT for at least three years.
   b. Course Credits: Candidates must earn 10 or more doctoral course credits.
   c. Preliminary Examination and Final Defense: Candidates must successfully complete the final public defense, which can only be taken after passing a preliminary examination held at least one year prior.
   d. Research Publication: Candidates must have at least one academic paper published in a high-level peer-reviewed journal by the final defense. In special circumstances, significant research achievements may be considered in place of a journal publication.
   As a SSP student, in addition to the above requirements, you are expected to stay motivated to publish multiple papers in high-level peer-reviewed journals before completion of the program.
5. Students enrolled in this program can obtain Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering or Doctor of Philosophy depending on the research field.
6. Newly admitted foreign doctoral students will be charged about 33,000 yen as insurance premium. The students who do not have "Student" status of Japanese residence will be charged 3,000 yen as insurance premium (The price is subject to change).
7. 10,000 yen will be charged as dues for alumni association membership (The price is subject to change).
8. In any case where a SSP student is selected as a recipient of another institution's scholarship, or to receive any other financial assistance, his/her monthly pay as described in "7. Benefits" 2. will be adjusted according to KUT's rule.
9. The abstract of your doctoral dissertation and the results of your dissertation defense will be published on the web within 3 months after the conferment of your doctoral degree, and the full text of your dissertation will be published on the web within 1 year after the conferment of your doctoral degree. In cases where it seems inappropriate to publish a doctoral dissertation on the web due to a patent application related to the research, or some other special reasons, Kochi University of Technology may suspend the publication of the full text of a dissertation, and publish only its abstract on the web. Even in such cases, if publication of the full text of a dissertation is requested, and Kochi University of Technology agrees to the necessity, the full text of your doctoral dissertation may be disclosed.
10. Please note that KUT takes trust, truthfulness and academic integrity very seriously and we therefore expect applications to contain only true and complete information about the applicant. Applicants should be aware that KUT will take stern, corrective measures such as payment of exempted tuition fees, and return of the amount of any scholarships already paid or even expulsion from the university, against any student found to have applied with false, incomplete, or missing information, including omission of information regarding educational background.
11. In the event that Kochi University of Technology alters the system of SSP, the terms and conditions will be revised accordingly.
12. An SSP student can engage in teaching or research assistantships within KUT. In principle, working hours are limited to 40 hours per month.

13. SUSPENSION AND RESUMPTION OF SSP QUALIFICATION

If a SSP student is found not to be fully fulfilling his/her obligations, KUT may suspend his/her SSP benefits for a set period of time. During the suspension period, tuition fees will not be waived and scholarships will not be paid. If the reason for the suspension is resolved, the benefits (tuition waiver and scholarship payment) will be resumed after the suspension period expires. However, if by the expiration of the suspension period it is found that the reason for the suspension has not been resolved, the SSP benefits will be suspended for an additional period of time.

14. TERMINATION OF SSP STUDENT STATUS

SSP student status will be terminated in the following cases

1. In the case where a student's report, submitted in accordance with term "6. Obligations" 2., is assessed as being below the standard for SSP students.
2. In the case where a student has not completely fulfilled his/her obligations and there is no prospect of improvement; or it is deemed that the situation in which the obligation are not fully fulfilled will continue.
3. In the case of behavior which is deemed inappropriate for a SSP student.

15. ADMISSION /CURRICULUM /DIPLOMA POLICIES

Doctoral Program

16. OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE

All inquiries and application documents must be addressed to:
International Relations Section
Kochi University of Technology
Tosayamada, Kami City
Kochi 782-8502, JAPAN
Tel: +81-887-53-1130
E-mail: international@ml.kochi-tech.ac.jp

17. Security Export Control

Kochi University of Technology（KUT）has established the Kochi University of Technology Security Export Control Regulations in accordance with the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act for the purpose of contributing to the maintenance of international peace and security while giving due consideration to the sound development of academic research. KUT is implementing the appropriate security export control measures with regard to the provision of technology, export of goods, and admission of foreign nationals (international students, researchers, etc.). Should any of these regulations apply to you, there may be restrictions imposed on your desired research activities, or you may be unable to receive education at KUT. Therefore, please check with your prospective academic advisor before submitting your application. In addition, international students (all Degree-seeking Students and Visiting Students) who will be conducting educational and research activities at the university shall be required to sign a pledge at the time of admission.

List of Required SSP Application Documents

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Admission

• Special Scholarship Program(Doctral Program, SSP)
  • Outline for Prospective Applicants
  • SSP Application Guidelines for Prospective Applicants
  • SSP Supervisor List for Prospective Applicants
  • List of Required SSP Application Documents for Prospective Applicants
  • Requirements when submitting electronically authenticated documents
  • Dissertations of Graduated SSP Students
  • Students Voice
  • List of International Conferences SSP students joined
• Special Scholarship Program(Doctral Program, SSP)(2019~April2024)
  • Outline for Prospective Students
  • SSP Application Guidelines for Prospective Students
  • List of Required SSP Application Documents for Prospective Students
  • SSP/CSC-KUT Research Project List for Prospective Students
• CSC-KUT Scholarship Program (Doctoral Program)
  • Outline
  • CSC-KUT Scholarship Program Application Guidelines (Full-time PhD Students)
  • CSC-KUT Research Project List
  • List of Required Application Documents for CSC-KUT Full-time PhD Student
  • CSC-KUT Scholarship Program Application Guidelines (Co-supervised Doctoral Study Student)　
  • CSC-KUT Co-supervisor List
  • List of Required Application Documents for CSC-KUT Co-supervised Doctoral Study Student
• Other Postgraduate Programs
  • Ordinary Program Application Guidelines for Prospective Students
  • List of Required Ordinary Program Application Documents for Prospective Students
• Other Postgraduate Programs(~April 2019)
• Non-degree Program
  • Short-term Exchange Program
  • List of the laboratories for special research students from partner universities
  • Short-term Research Support Program for International Graduate Students from Partner Universities
  • YOSAKOI Summer School (International Summer Program)