Japan's government scholarship — MEXT — is one of the oldest and most complete funding packages in the world: tuition exempted, a monthly stipend of around ¥144,000, and your airfare paid, for Master's and PhD study at Japanese national universities. If you've ever dreamed of researching in Tokyo, this is the system that makes it realistic for a student from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh or Nepal without family wealth behind them.

This season, Dare To Dream is tracking three separate MEXT doors — the University of Tokyo, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, and the Institute of Science Tokyo — plus two fully funded undergraduate research programmes at the University of Tokyo and a paid teaching route into Japanese public schools. One honest warning that runs through this page: in August 2026, MEXT notified universities that recruitment for the University Recommendation route for 2027 may be suspended — a final decision is still pending. The universities below are still accepting applications, but apply early, keep copies of everything, and read each D2D post for the latest status before you pay any application fee.

Japan scholarships and opportunities open now

Listed by deadline, soonest first.

1. JET Programme — Assistant Language Teacher (ALT), Japan

Deadline: October 30, 2026 · Paid job (not a scholarship) · View on Dare To Dream

Not a scholarship — a real job, and a good one. The JET Programme places Assistant Language Teachers in Japanese public schools on one-year, renewable contracts, with first-year remuneration of approximately ¥4.02 million and your airfare to Japan provided by the contracting organisation. This intake is coordinated by the Embassy of Japan in India, so it is open to Indian citizens with a bachelor's degree in any field (or graduating by July 2027). You'll assist Japanese English teachers, support school activities and act as a cultural ambassador in your community — and applications close within days, so if this is you, move now.

2. MEXT Scholarship — University of Tokyo (Graduate School of Science)

Deadline: October 30, 2026 · Fully funded Master's & PhD · View on Dare To Dream

The University of Tokyo is Japan's most prestigious university, and this MEXT university-recommendation route funds Master's and PhD students in its Graduate School of Science for an October 2027 start: ¥144,000/month for Master's students and ¥145,000/month for PhD students, full enrolment and tuition exemption, and economy-class airfare. Two things catch applicants out every year: you must complete both the MEXT application and the Graduate School of Science admission application online by the deadline (Japan time), and you must be born on or after April 2, 1992. If you're a science graduate with a strong record, this is the single best Japan deadline on this page — and it closes this week.

3. MEXT University Recommendation Scholarship — Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU)

Deadline: November 5, 2026 · Fully funded Master's, PhD & MBA · View on Dare To Dream

APU, in Beppu, is one of Japan's most international universities, and its MEXT recommendation covers the full admission fee and tuition, a monthly subsistence allowance of ¥144,000, and round-trip economy airfare for September 2027 entry to the Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies or the Graduate School of Management (MBA). There is no separate MEXT application: you apply to APU graduate admission first, and APU selects the candidates it recommends to MEXT. Now the honest caveat, copied from the D2D post because it matters: MEXT has warned that University Recommendation recruitment for 2027 may be suspended, so APU may not be able to nominate candidates — and the application fee is non-refundable. Apply with your eyes open.

4. MEXT Scholarship — Institute of Science Tokyo (IGP-A)

Deadline: November 22, 2026 · Fully funded Master's & Integrated Doctoral · View on Dare To Dream

Science Tokyo's International Graduate Program (A) is an English-taught Master's and Integrated Doctoral route across 14 departments — no Japanese language requirement — with a full tuition waiver, a monthly stipend and travel support under the standard MEXT University Recommendation package. The step students miss: you must secure a prospective supervisor's consent before applying, and the consent letter is due a week earlier, on November 15, 2026. The same MEXT suspension warning applies here — Science Tokyo is accepting applications and lists MEXT recommendation as possible, but final quotas depend on MEXT's pending decision.

5. UTSIP Kashiwa — University of Tokyo Summer Internship Program

Applications expected December 2026 · Deadline: January 2027 (exact date to be announced) · Funded undergraduate research · View on Dare To Dream

Still an undergraduate? UTSIP puts you in a real University of Tokyo laboratory for about 7 weeks in summer 2027, at the Graduate School of Frontier Sciences' Kashiwa campus — materials science, biosciences, environmental studies, IT and sustainability — with lectures by leading researchers and Japanese culture events. Funding is a ¥130,000 UTSIP scholarship plus provided accommodation and health insurance; honestly note that a non-refundable participation fee of ¥70,000 also applies. The cohort is tiny (around 14 students), and last year's deadline was January 13 — prepare your file in December, when the 2027 call is expected to open.

6. UTRIP — University of Tokyo Research Internship Program

Applications open November 2026 · Deadline expected early January 2027 · Fully funded undergraduate research · View on Dare To Dream

UTRIP is the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Science's flagship summer research programme for international undergraduates in the natural sciences — physics, astronomy, chemistry, earth and planetary science, and biological sciences. Six weeks from late June to early August 2027, fully funded with accommodation, meal support and a Japanese language course, working hands-on under UTokyo professors. You need to be in your second year or above and enrolled at a university outside Japan. Many UTRIP alumni later return to Tokyo for funded graduate study — treat this as both a summer and a scouting trip.

Also watch: JASSO and the MEXT embassy route

Two routes not yet listed as D2D posts, verified on official pages. First, if you're already studying in Japan as a privately financed student, the Monbukagakusho Honors Scholarship run by JASSO pays ¥48,000 per month at undergraduate and graduate level (¥30,000 at Japanese language institutes) for 12 months — or 6 months for October starters. You cannot apply directly: your enrolled institution recommends you, so ask its international office early in the academic year. Second, the MEXT doors above are all University Recommendation. MEXT also runs an Embassy Recommendation route, where you apply through the Japanese embassy in your own country on its own calendar — the official Study in Japan portal (studyinjapan.go.jp) is the place to watch for your country's announcement. Serious Japan applicants usually prepare for both routes.

How to apply for scholarships in Japan

  1. Choose your MEXT door deliberately. Tokyo, APU and Science Tokyo are three separate applications with three separate deadlines (October 30, November 5, November 22). There is no single "MEXT form" for the university route — each university recommends its own candidates.
  2. Start with the supervisor, not the form. For Science Tokyo's IGP(A), the supervisor consent letter (due November 15) comes before the application itself. For any Japanese research degree, a professor who has agreed to supervise you is half the battle.
  3. Check the age rule. MEXT graduate routes on this page require applicants born on or after April 2, 1992. Confirm it before investing weeks in an application you're not eligible for.
  4. Build one master document file. Transcripts, certificates, recommendation letters and a research plan are reused across every MEXT application — our guide on preparing scholarship documents walks through it.
  5. Watch the suspension news. MEXT's decision on 2027 University Recommendation recruitment is pending. The D2D posts above carry the warning in full; check them again before paying any fee.

Frequently asked questions

What does MEXT actually pay for? On the routes listed above: full enrolment and tuition exemption, a monthly stipend of ¥144,000 for Master's students (¥145,000 for PhD at the University of Tokyo), and economy or round-trip airfare. It is one of the few scholarships in the world that genuinely covers the full cost of a degree abroad.

University Recommendation or Embassy Recommendation — which is better? They're parallel doors, not better and worse. University Recommendation means a Japanese university selects and nominates you (all three MEXT posts above work this way, and APU has no separate MEXT form at all). Embassy Recommendation means you apply through the Japanese embassy in your country, usually on a spring calendar. Apply to whichever is open and fits — many students prepare for both.

Do I need Japanese language skills? Not for these programmes. Science Tokyo's IGP(A) states there is no Japanese language requirement, the Tokyo summer programmes (UTSIP, UTRIP) include Japanese courses rather than requiring the language, and JET needs excellent English, not Japanese. MEXT does expect English or Japanese proficiency evidence, and daily life in Japan is easier with some Japanese — the funded students we see succeed usually start learning after they're selected.

I'm an undergraduate. Is there anything in Japan for me? Yes — two of the six listings above. UTRIP and UTSIP Kashiwa are both University of Tokyo summer research programmes for enrolled undergraduates, and both are funded. They open in November–December 2026 for summer 2027, so this autumn is exactly when to prepare transcripts and a statement of purpose.

Keep exploring

Dare To Dream verifies every listing against official sources. Deadlines and stipends above are copied from the individual scholarship pages — always confirm final details on the official programme page before applying.

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