What Hokkaido University MEXT Scholarship for International Graduate Students actually covers.
Hokkaido University, situated in Sapporo on Japan's northernmost main island, is one of Japan's premier national research universities and the largest university in Japan by land area. Known for its excellence in agriculture, veterinary science, environmental science, fisheries, engineering, and natural sciences, Hokkaido University offers significant research opportunities for African students whose academic interests align with areas such as sustainable agriculture, food security, natural resource management, environmental policy, or engineering.
The university actively recruits exceptional international graduate students through the MEXT University Recommendation pathway. Under this programme, Hokkaido University identifies outstanding applicants who wish to pursue master's or doctoral research and nominates them to the Japanese Ministry of Education for scholarship funding. Successful nominees receive a monthly stipend of ¥144,000 (master's) or ¥145,000 (doctoral), full tuition and enrollment fee waivers, and round-trip economy airfare from their home country to Japan.
In addition to the MEXT pathway, Hokkaido University administers the Hokkaido University President's Fellowship, which is available to prospective international doctoral students from partner universities who have concluded formal exchange agreements with Hokkaido University. Fellows under this scheme receive tuition fee waivers in return for research assistant duties, providing a fully-funded doctoral track for eligible candidates.
For African students, particularly those from agricultural or environmental science backgrounds, Hokkaido University is an especially strong option. The university has active research collaborations across East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa, and faculty members in several departments hold deep expertise in African ecological and agronomic contexts. The October 2026 intake is actively recruiting, with applications accepted through both the embassy-recommendation route via Japanese embassies in Africa and the university-recommendation route for applicants already in contact with a faculty supervisor.
Who can apply.
Open to masters, phd applicants seeking to study in Japan. Eligible nationalities are listed below.
46 more eligible countries — full list available on the official application page.
Every academic discipline is accepted.
This programme does not restrict by field. Research proposals across humanities, sciences, engineering, agriculture, and medicine are all accepted.
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Other scholarships worth a parallel application.
Same eligibility window or destination. Many strong applicants apply to three or four programmes per cycle.