Graduate Programs in Japanese
In the master’s and doctoral programs taught in Japanese, lectures and workshops are normally carried out in Japanese. Prospective international students should bear in mind that it is required to have adequate command of spoken and written Japanese language (i.e. Japanese Language Proficiency Level 1) before applying.
International students take classes and are evaluated in the same manner as Japanese students. Other important information about study and research guidance, official procedure, etc. in our faculty is also usually given in Japanese. Therefore, prospective international students would be often required to be able to listen and read Japanese adequately.
Master’s Programs in Japanese
In addition to the general entrance examination mainly for Japanese students, the special entrance examinations for international students are conducted. For detailed information, please refer to
this page (in Japanese only).
A）The Examination for International Students with Japanese Government Scholarship
This examination is applicable and designed only for International Students who have already been granted a Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship, and are studying in one of the Japanese universities as research students. The admission is in April. An Oral examination (in Japanese) based on the Research Plan and a careful evaluation of all other application documents will be conducted. The two letters of recommendation (one from a faculty member of the foreign university the applicant graduated from and the other from a faculty member of the Japanese university that accepted the applicant as a research student) are particularly closely scrutinized, but the academic transcript will also be evaluated. There is no written examination for this type of candidates.
B）General Examination
For International Students who are not categorized above may take the General Examination as Japanese students do. The admission is in April. This examination consists of a written examination in Economics and foreign languages. (English and a second foreign language including English.) For the latter, a required score on the TOEFL test can act as a substitute for those language tests. The TOEFL test must have been taken within the last 2 years.
Doctoral Programs in Japanese
In addition to the general entrance examination mainly for Japanese students, special entrance examinations for international students are conducted. For detailed information, please refer to
this page (in Japanese only).
A) The Examination for International Students with Japanese Government Scholarship
This examination is applicable and designed only for International Students with Japanese government (MEXT) scholarship, who are studying in Kyushu University or one of other Japanese universities as master’s students or research students (6 months or more) and whose scholarships are expected to be extended after getting enrolled in doctoral programs. The admission is in April. This examination is designed to measure the applicants’ academic ability and language proficiency and consists of the screening of a master thesis, examination in foreign language and interview. For the latter, a required score on the TOEFL test can act as a substitute for the language tests. The TOEFL test must have been taken within the last 2 years.
B) General Examination
International students who do not belong to the categories mentioned above may take the same General Examination with Japanese applicants. This examination is designed to measure the applicants’ academic ability and proficiency in language and consists of three parts: consideration of submitted academic papers (such as a Master’s thesis or equivalent), written examination in English and the second foreign language including English, and oral assessment. For the latter, a TOEFL score can act as a substitute for these language examinations. The TOEFL must have been taken within the last 2 years.
