Japanese Scholarship MEXT 2025-2026: Important dates, expert tips to get selected
Important dates for MEXT 2025-2026: The Ministry of Education Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) scholarship, offered by the Japanese government, has begun the online application process for the academic year 2026. Through the scholarship international students with the opportunity to pursue higher education in Japan with full financial support. For Indian students aspiring to study in Japan, the 2025 MEXT scholarship offers a valuable opportunity to pursue quality higher education, while promoting international exchange and mutual understanding.
Funded by the Japanese government, the scholarship supports foreign students at various academic levels including undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programmes as well as specialised training and research studies
As announced by the Embassy of Japan in India, the application window for MEXT 2025 (for admissions in 2026) is open across four categories. Below are the details:
To be eligible for the MEXT Scholarship, applicants are required to meet the following general requirements:
– Applicants must be nationals of countries that have diplomatic relations with Japan.
– For research students, applicants should be born on or after April 2, 1990.
– Applicants must have the necessary academic qualifications to enter the desired program in Japan. For research students, this typically means having completed a bachelor's degree or higher.
– Applicants must be in good physical and mental health to pursue studies in Japan.
– While not always mandatory, proficiency in Japanese or English is often required, depending on the program.
Aspirants planning to apply must know that the application process for the MEXT Scholarship generally involves the following steps:
Application submission: Applicants submit the required documents to the Japanese Embassy or Consulates in India.
Document screening: The Embassy reviews the applications to shortlist eligible candidates.
Written examination: Shortlisted candidates may be asked to appear for written tests in subjects relevant to their proposed field of study.
Interview round: Candidates who qualify in the written exam are interviewed by embassy officials.
University allotment: Shortlisted candidates are recommended to MEXT, which then communicates with Japanese universities for final admission.
Final selection and confirmation: MEXT confirms final selections and issues scholarship offers.
Applicants typically need to prepare the following documents before they begin applying — academic transcripts, graduation certificate or degree, letters of recommendation, medical certificate, research proposal or study plan (for research applicants), proof of language proficiency (if required),
However, note that this is not an exact list of documentation requirements. Additional submissions may be required while applying via the Embassy's portal.
According to a former MEXT scholar, Anirban Chakraborty, who is now an Associate Faculty at the Hosei University in Tokyo, Japan, shares tips that can help aspirants apply successfully.
Start early: Begin document collection and research planning well in advance
Stay informed: Regularly check embassy notifications and updates
Be precise: Tailor your application for the program you're applying to
Seek mentorship: Reach out to past MEXT scholars or mentors for feedback
Proofread and polish: Ensure error-free, professional presentation of all materials
Communicate purpose: Clearly outline your academic and professional goals
For candidates applying in research domains, he says that crafting a strong research proposal is an essential part of of the application process. According to him, a well-structured proposal should include:
–A concise and descriptive title reflecting by our research focus
–Background and significance of the problem, literature, and importance of the topic
–Specific goals and the research questions you aim to answer
–Your approach, techniques, and tools to be used
–Expected outcomes and potential contributions to the field
–Justification for pursuing this research in Japan, linking it to the Japanese academic environment
For more details, aspirants can visit the official website for the Embassy of Japan in India at in.emb-japan.go.jp.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
26 minutes ago
- India Today
Japan's ispace Moon landing Live: Resilience to perform de-orbit burn shortly
Japan ispace's Resilience spacecraft Landing Live Updates: Resilience spacecraft is targetting to land in Moon's Mare Frigoris region. It is a vast, dark basaltic plain in the Moon's Northern Hemisphere, stretching over 1,400 kilometres in diameter. While Resilience was developed by ispace, the rover it is carrying dubbed Tenacious was developed by ispace-Europe in part with funding from the Luxembourg Space Agency through a European Space Agency (ESA) contract. This shows the global collaboration that goes behind the development of a lunar mission. ESA is also providing ground station tracking services to the Japanese company. “I am very proud to announce that once again, on June 6, 2025, JST, ispace will attempt a historic landing on the Moon as part of Mission 2. Our goal is to build the cislunar economy, one in which the Moon and Earth are economically and socially connected. We view the success of the lunar landing as merely a steppingstone toward that goal. We strongly believe that this endeavor and its long-term success will contribute to making life on Earth sustainable for all humanity," Takeshi Hakamada, ispace Founder & CEO said. Resilience has travelled approximately 1.1 million kilometres to get to the Moon. That’s more than three times the distance between Earth and the Moon. "After months of preparation and precision flying, the final hour is here. ispace crew in Japan and Luxembourg are ready," says isapce. The Resilience spacecraft will perform a short-duration de-orbit insertion burn to bring it closer to the lunar surface before landing sequence begins. The Resilience spacecraft also carries a 5 kg rover, named Tenacious, in the payload bay at the top of the lander, with a deployment device to set the rover on the lunar surface. The rover is 26 cm tall, 31.5 cm wide, and 54 cm long. It is built of carbon-fiber reinforced plastics. It has a forward mounted HD camera. Communications with the ground will be transmitted through the lander. A shovel mounted on front of the rover will be used to collect a lunar sample, which will be photographed by the HD camera. The decision to target Mare Frigoris is strategic. Unlike the rugged Atlas crater, where ispace’s first lander crashed, Mare Frigoris offers a flatter, more navigable terrain, which increases the chances of a safe landing. According to ispace, the site was chosen for its “flexibility,†providing a broad, relatively smooth area that is less risky for touchdown. Additionally, the location offers extended periods of sunlight and uninterrupted communication with Earthâ€'two critical factors for the lander’s operations and the success of its scientific payloads. Landing in Mare Frigoris also represents a milestone in lunar exploration, as it would be the most northerly landing ever attempted on the Moon. The spacecraft will attempt a brave landing at a site called Mare Frigoris, or the “Sea of Cold.†Mare Frigoris is a vast, dark basaltic plain in the Moon’s northern hemisphere, stretching over 1,400 kilometers in diameter. Its Latin name translates to “Sea of Cold,†reflecting its location in the Moon’s far north, just above the prominent Mare Imbrium and east of Mare Serenitatis. The region is geologically significant, with surface materials dating back to different lunar epochs, making it a target of interest for scientific study. Resilience (Hakuto Mission 2) is an ispace (Japan) lunar lander and rover mission planned as a follow-on to the 2022 Mission 1. The mission launched on 15 January 2025 on a Falcon 9 booster from Cape Canaveral, along with the CLPS Blue Ghost mission. It separated and deployed successfully approximately 90 minutes after launch. It reached the Moon after a 4 month low-energy trajectory involving a lunar flyby. It went into lunar orbit May 6. The Resilience spacecraft is currently in an orbit just 100 kilometres above the Moon. The spacecraft has been slowly lowering its orbit since its insertion into the lunar orbit just a few days ago. Japan's ispace mission control team will shortly begin the landing sequence to initiate the descent procedure for the spacecraft. Welcome to the India Today LIVE Blog as we bring you all the real-time updates from the Moon this time. Yes, you read that right. Moon!! Japan's private company ispace is all set to attempt a daring landing attempt on the Moon.
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Dr Reddy's, Alvotech to co-develop Keytruda biosimilar
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories and Alvotech are collaborating to develop, manufacture, and commercialize a biosimilar version of Keytruda, a highly successful cancer drug. This partnership aims to provide more affordable treatment options globally as Merck's patents begin to expire around 2028. The collaboration will enhance Dr. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Mumbai: Dr Reddy's Laboratories has entered into a collaboration with Reykjavik, Ireland-based biotech company Alvotech to co-develop, manufacture and commercialise a biosimilar version of blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda for the global (generic name is pembrolizumab ), manufactured and marketed by Merck & Co , is the most successful medicine, recording worldwide sales of $29.5 billion in 2024. It is used to treat multiple forms of the terms of the agreement, both companies will be jointly responsible for developing and manufacturing the biosimilar candidate and sharing costs and responsibilities, Hyderabad-based DRL said in a statement on to certain exceptions, each party will have the right to commercialise the product traditional generics, which often face automatic patent infringement claims, biosimilars are developed more like original drugs, complete with clinical trials and patent disclosures, giving them a better chance of overcoming legal challenges. Also, Merck's core patents on pembrolizumab in the US are expected to start expiring around 2028.'This (collaboration) demonstrates our ability to develop and manufacture high quality and affordable treatment options for patients worldwide,' Erez Israeli, chief executive of DRL, said.Róbert Wessman, chairman and CEO of Alvotech, said, 'The agreement enables us to increase the availability of cost-effective, critical biologic medications to patients worldwide.'Keytruda is approved in the US to treat 40 cancers, unlike most medicines that treat a few indications or medical India, it is approved for use in 17 indications across 10 cancers or tumour types. Oncologists mostly prescribe it to treat certain types of lung cancers, followed by gastrointestinal cancer, triple-negative breast cancer and head and neck helps the body's immune system, which is the T-cells, to detect and fight cancer cells that hide and spread in organs.'Oncology has been a top focus therapy area for us, and this collaboration will enhance our capabilities in oncology, as pembrolizumab currently represents one of the most critical therapies in immuno-oncology ,' Israeli has been out of reach for most patients in India due to its exorbitant cost – roughly about Rs 2 lakhs for each dose. However, with Merck's patent set to expire in a few years and with Indian drug manufacturers looking to come up with more affordable versions of the drug it may play a crucial role in widening adoption across a larger cohort of patients.
India.com
3 hours ago
- India.com
India's Rs 548 crore Space Leap: Shukla rides the Falcon 9 to the ISS
On June 10, 2025, at 5:52 PM IST (8:22 AM EDT), Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will lift off to the International Space Station (ISS), becoming the first Indian astronaut since 1984 to undertake such a journey. As the pilot of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), he will fly aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After approximately 28 hours of travel, the crew is expected to dock with the ISS by 10:00 PM IST on June 11, 2025. Shukla joins an elite international crew: Commander Peggy Whitson (USA, Axiom Space), and Mission Specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski (Poland, ESA) and Tibor Kapu (Hungary, Hunor Programme). The team will spend up to 14 days aboard the ISS, conducting over 60 scientific experiments from 31 countries, including seven from India, such as research on plant growth in microgravity, muscle regeneration, and tardigrade resilience. Born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Shukla is a decorated Indian Air Force test pilot with over 2,000 flight hours. He has undergone rigorous astronaut training in Russia and at SpaceX facilities in the US, and will assist in spacecraft navigation, docking, and emergency procedures during the mission. But beyond his technical role, Shukla carries India's cultural pride into space—bringing along items designed by National Institute of Design (NID) students, performing yoga in microgravity, sharing Indian delicacies like mango nectar and moong dal halwa, and planning live interactions with Indian school children and possibly Prime Minister Narendra Modi. SpaceX has revolutionized space travel economics. While NASA pays around $55 million per seat under its commercial crew program, private clients like Axiom Space are charged $52–55 million per seat, excluding stay-related fees. NASA charges $35,000 per night per astronaut for use of the ISS. India's investment for Shukla's mission seat is around ₹548 crore (approximately $65 million), while the total private mission cost per astronaut can go up to $100 million, including training and logistics. In comparison, Russia's Soyuz costs around $80–86 million per seat, Boeing's Starliner costs about $90 million, and the now-retired Space Shuttle had a cost of approximately $170 million per astronaut. For reference, cargo missions on SpaceX's Dragon cost anywhere between $21,000 and $89,000 per kg, while human missions are far costlier due to added life support and safety systems. Shukla's mission is more than just a spaceflight—it's a symbol of India's return to human space exploration. He carries a special swan named 'Joy', representing wisdom (India), resilience (Poland), and grace (Hungary). The scientific experiments onboard are expected to contribute to India's ambition of establishing a space station by 2035 and support its moon mission goals set for 2047. This mission also strengthens international space ties, especially between India and the US, following commitments made during PM Modi's 2023 visit. In every sense, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla's journey aboard the human-rated Falcon 9 rocket is a giant leap for India—both in science and symbolism. With his successful flight, India not only rekindles its human spaceflight legacy after four decades but also sets the stage for greater roles in global space partnerships, cutting-edge research, and inspiration for the next generation of Indian scientists, engineers, and dreamers. —E.O.M (Girish Linganna is an award-winning science communicator and a Defence, Aerospace & Geopolitical is the Managing Director of ADD Engineering Components India Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany )
