Financial Support

Scholarships available at the Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine are shown below.
(As of May 1, 2023)

Refer to the list of scholarships.

Honor

Graduate School of Medicine

Best Paper Award

Selected applicants receive a certificate and 100,000 yen.
Qualified recipients: Master's Program / Doctoral Program enrollees

Takakuwa Eimatsu Scholarship

Every year, 3 or 4 outstanding young researchers (including graduate students) are awarded this scholarship (80,000 – 100,000 yen per awardee as a one-time grant).
Qualified recipients: Master's Program / Doctoral Program enrollees

HIROKO International Academic Exchange Foundation

This fellowship grant was introduced for researchers who study cancer at overseas universities or research laboratories and return to Japan (applicants must be 35 years old or younger when applying). As a general rule, selected applicants receive 1,000,000 yen per person, and up to 2 applicants are selected per year.
Qualified recipients: Doctoral Program enrollees

Hokkaido University

Hokkaido University Ohtsuka Award

This award was introduced as a part of a gender equality project to assist outstanding female students who aspire to become researchers. Those eligible for the award are outstanding female students in the final year of the Doctoral Program who will complete the program during the said period (in principle; except for students who repeat a year). Selected applicants receive 300,000 yen.
Qualified recipients: Doctoral Program enrollees

Graduate School of Medicine

Otowa Hiroji Scholarship Fund

Both Japanese and foreign students are eligible. Every year, up to 10 Japanese students and 10 foreign students receive this scholarship (150,000 yen per awardee as a one-time grant). Selection is based on both academic and personal excellence.
Qualified recipients: Master's Program / Doctoral Program enrollees

Students of the MD-PhD Program

Students will receive a non-refundable scholarship (covering the examination fee for the Doctoral Program, admission fee and 3 years' tuition for graduate school).
Qualified recipients: MD-PhD Program enrollees

Hokkaido University

Nitobe College for Graduate Students

The Honors Program offers a scholarship to selected students.
Successful applicants will be selected based on a comprehensive assessment that includes the academic achievement in the Foundation Program and their motivation for applying as described in the application form.
Qualified recipients: Master's Program enrollees

Hokkaido University Ambitious Doctoral Fellowship (SDGs)

To help outstanding students work to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), regardless of their research field, this program provides financial support (amount paid in FY 2023: 150,000 yen per month for support to devote time to research and an annual subsidy of 400,000 yen for research expenses).
Qualified recipients: Doctoral Program enrollees

Hokkaido University DX Doctoral Fellowship

With the aim of developing Japan’s science, technology, and innovation, and fostering outstanding doctoral students with the ability to creatively solve important issues and open up the future, this program provides selected applicants with a research incentive grant of 150,000 yen per month and an annual research grant of 400,000 yen (amount paid in FY 2023).
Qualified recipients: Doctoral Program enrollees

Other Scholarships

Check the website for details ⇒ Scholarships

• Scholarships for Prospective Students

Several competitive scholarships of differing amounts are available for students wishing to study at Hokkaido University. Please see the sections below for the scholarships you can apply for prior to leaving your home country.
· Japanese Government Scholarships (MEXT)
· Hokkaido University Scholarships
· Other Scholarships

• Scholarships for Current Students

There are various scholarships available to self-supported international students, and either applied for through the University, or directly.

Master's students

Teaching Assistant (TA) Program
  (Teaching Assistants in the School of Medicine)

As part of the university education, the TA program was introduced to train able faculty members and specialists with experience in education.
Selected applicants are paid an annual salary of approximately 70,000 to 100,000 yen, depending on their work performance.

Research Assistant (RA) Program (Research Assistants in the Faculty of Medicine)

The RA program was introduced to improve young researchers’ research abilities as well as to enhance the research environment by encouraging outstanding students in the Master’ s Program to participate in research projects as research assistants at the Faculty of Medicine. Selected applicants receive an annual salary of approximately 500,000 yen based on their work performance.

Exemptions of admissions fee, examination fee

Those students who are expected to complete the Hokkaido University Master’s Program and intend to take examinations for the Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, or government-financed international students (persons receiving MEXT Scholarship grants) are exempted from this fee but must include a statement to this effect when submitting the application.

Teaching Fellow (TF) Programs
  (Teaching Assistants in the School of Medicine)

As one part of the graduate school education, this program aims to provide students in doctoral programs (who have experience of working as teaching assistants (TA)) with opportunities to be employed as teaching fellows (TF) and be responsible for teaching subjects mainly in the School of Medicine sharing the teaching with members of the faculty. Annual rewards vary depending on the subject they are put in charge of, and an annual stipend of approximately 80,000 to 120,000 yen is paid to such TF depending on their work performance.

Teaching Assistant (TA) Program
  (Teaching Assistants in the School of Medicine)

This program aims to strengthen the university education by providing economic support for graduate students and offering training opportunities on the path to become faculty members and researchers. As teaching assistants (TA), students in this program engage in educational assistance work in subjects provided mainly in the School of Medicine. The annual rewards vary depending on the subject a TA is put in charge of, and an annual stipend of approximately 70,000 to 100,000 yen is paid to such TA depending on their work performance.

Research Assistant (RA) Program
  (Research Assistants in the Faculty of Medicine)

The RA program was introduced to improve young researchers’ research abilities as well as to enhance the research environment by encouraging outstanding students in the Doctoral Program to participate in research projects as research assistants at the Faculty of Medicine. Selected applicants receive an annual salary of approximately 500,000 yen based on their work performance.

Strategic Research Assistant (SRA) Program
  (Research Assistants in the Faculty of Medicine)

Doctoral students with outstanding research achievements have a chance to be employed as research assistants. Hours of employment depend on their research performance.

The possibility of fixed-term employment as a specially appointed assistant professor

A student who achieved outstanding research performance may be employed as a fixed-term, specially appointed assistant professor.

• At least 2 research papers written in English with the student as the first author have been published or accepted for publication by the time of the completion of the MD-PhD Program, and
• The total Impact Factor of the journal(s) publishing the 2 research papers is at least 5 (including those with a Total Impact Factor of 5 after rounding off), or
• At least 1 research paper written in English with the student as the first author has been published or accepted for publication by a journal having an Impact Factor of at least 10.