Scholarship Program Overview（Direct Application)

1) Amount of scholarship

Annual sum of ¥2.0 million, ¥1.5 million or ¥1.0 million
Annual sum of ¥500,000 for applicants receiving scholarships or benefits from other sources (the sum total of scholarships or benefits from other sources received during the scholarship period must be less than 1.8 million yen) 
*Determined on the basis of evaluations by our selection committee. 
*An annual sum of ¥2.5 million may be awarded to a small number of renewing applicants demonstrating excellent research performance and personal integrity.

Note: A scholarship recipient's failure to make satisfactory academic progress or any unethical or immoral behavior or illegal act by the recipient may result in a reduction or withdrawal of his/her scholarship.

2) Period covered by scholarship

One year: From April 2024 to March 2025
*Recipients must be enrolled in their university for the entire period covered by the scholarship. Recipients may apply for a renewal of their scholarship in subsequent years, up to the minimum total number of years required for completion of the final degree they aim to complete.
*Fiscal 2023 recipients enrolled in fall and scheduled to graduate (within the standard period for completion) in fall 2024 may apply for a renewal of half a year (If they are successful, they should submit in fall 2024 a document to certify their completion, such as a certificate of degree. The recipients must not receive any other scholarships.).

3) Applicant categories

1. New applicants: Applicants who have not previously received a scholarship from the Foundation
2. Renewing applicants: Applicants who have previously received a scholarship from the Foundation
*For renewing applicants, we accept only those who had enough achievements and advancements over the past one year.
*Copying of the past application materials will cause you to be disqualified.

4) Grounds for withdrawal of scholarship support

(1) The scholarship recipient withdraws from school.
(2) The recipient takes a leave of absence from school or does not attend classes for an extended period.
(3) The recipient fails to advance toward his or her degree or is at risk of failing to meet graduation requirements.
(4) The recipient is not expected to graduate due to injury or illness.
(5) The recipient fails to make satisfactory academic progress or engages in unethical behavior.
(6) Circumstances render the scholarship unnecessary.
(7) Circumstances other than the above arise that disqualify the recipient.
(8) The recipient is expelled from school for disciplinary reasons.
(9) The recipient otherwise ceases to meet scholarship criteria.

Eligibility   <CURRENT RESIDENTS in JAPAN ONLY>

*Those who are outside Japan at the time of application, document screening, interview, announcement of interview outcomes, or certification ceremony are not eligible for selection.

(1) Applicants must be self-supporting international students residing in Japan with "college student" status and must be 38
     years old or younger as of April 1, 2024.
(2) Applicants must be enrolled in an official degree program at a university or graduate school in Japan and pursuing studies in
     a field directly relating to human health (such as medicine, dentistry, pharmacology, biology, nutrition, physical education, or
     engineering {for engineering, must also be a field directly relating to medicine/pharmacology}) or business
     administration (for students from developing countries where business administration is not an established discipline,
     "international relations" is also acceptable). 
     *For engineering, applicants will be disqualified unless the relationship with medicine/pharmacology is clearly stated
      (including achievements such as the presentations at academic conferences and research papers) in the Scholarship
      Application Form.
     *Students in the first and second years of undergraduate degree programs are not eligible to apply. Third- and higher-year
      undergraduate students are neither eligible to apply, except for those with particularly excellent academic records, such as
      those with straight A's.
(3) Applicants must be highly motivated, possess an outstanding academic record, and demonstrate personal integrity.
(4) Applicants must be involved in creative or innovative research.
(5) Applicants must be able to have their supervising professor or other person provide appropriate guidance and pre-checking
     of the documents they submit to the Foundation (including application documents). 
(6) Applicants are not permitted to leave Japan for 40 or more days in total (including the departing date) during the period covered by the scholarship. 
(7) Applicants must have an international perspective and demonstrate the ability to lead and serve as a bridge between Japan
     and other countries.
(8) Applicants must demonstrate a need for financial aid.
(9) Applicants must give full support and cooperations to events held by the Foundation and must contribute to building network
     between scholarship recipients.
(10) Applicants must be motivated to study the Japanese language.
      *The Scholarship Application Form may be completed in English, but selection points will be deducted if applicants fail to
       show any motivation to study Japanese in the Scholarship Application Form and interview .
(11) Applicants must be committed to contributing to society through their research.
(12) Applicants must meet the requirements specified in (1) to (11) above and other requirements stipulated by the Foundation.
      *Those who are unlikely to complete their studies within the standard period for completion are ineligible.
      *Those who have classes only at night or over weekends, or who are enrolled in a correspondence education program are
        ineligible. 

Applications

1) How to apply

We have introduced an Application Support System. Applicants must complete online submission then mail the original documents to the Foundation.

DOWNLOADS (Japanese versions only)　
Download the Scholarship Application Form and the Letter of Recommendation (Include the Ranking and the Statement of Reasons if applicable) from below.
*When preparing a typewritten recommendation letter, either the PDF or Excel format may be used. However, the signature must be handwritten by the recommender.
*There are different application forms for applicants from the medical fields and for applicants from the business fields, as well as for new applicants and for renewing applicants. Your application will be ineligible if you do not use the correct form.

[Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacology, Biology, Nutrition, Physical Education, or Engineering majors]
2024 Application Form for New applicants <Medical fields>: PDF format (approx. 228kb)
2024 Application Form for Renewing applicants <Medical fields>: PDF format (approx. 240kb)

[Business related majors]
2024 Application Form for New applicants <Business fields>: PDF format (approx. 225kb)
2024 Application Form for Renewing applicants <Business fields>: PDF format (approx. 232kb)

[Letter of Recommendation]
For New applicants: Excel format (approx. 29kb)
For Renewing applicants: Excel format (approx. 30kb)

[Important Notes when writing the application form]
We have written comments on the points where many applicants make mistakes. Every year, many applications are disqualified due to insufficient contents. Please be sure to read these instructions before writing the application form.
・Instructions for filling out the application form: PDF format (approx. 271kb)

1. From the top page of the Foundation's website, choose "Apply Now" to enter the Application Support System. Follow the instructions under "Application Process" to enter your basic information and submit your Scholarship Application Form (excluding letter of recommendation), Academic Transcript, and Japanese translation (only if you completed the application form in English) as PDF files. (Do not upload papers or other undesignated documents.)
*Lack of pages or necessary documents will cause you to be disqualified. (The page with photograph should be scanned in colors.)
*Be sure to attach a photograph to the Scholarship Application Form you submit online.
*Be sure to use a scanner to digitize your form as a PDF file. (We do not accept PDFs created from photographs using smartphone applications and the like. Do not scan using horizontal [landscape] orientation.)
*You will be disqualified if there are any differences between the content of the Scholarship Application Form and the basic information you entered. (Special attention should be paid to your name and research subject.)
You cannot cancel your online submission, so please be cautious when making online submission.

2. Write the reference number issued after online submission in the required five spaces (refer to STEP04 of the "Application Process") on your application documents, and mail the documents to the Foundation. In addition to these five spaces, you must also write the reference number on the envelope containing your letter of recommendation, the envelope in which you send your Scholarship Application Form, and all other envelopes used in the application.

【Address】
Otsuka Toshimi Scholarship Foundation Office
Otsuka Group Osaka Headquarters Building
3-2-27 Otedori, Chuo-ku, Osaka
540-0021, Japan

Notes:
*You will be disqualified if there are any differences between the content of the Scholarship Application Form you submitted online and the one sent to the Foundation by mail. The academic transcript you submitted online should also be the same as the one sent by mail.
*Documents submitted will not be used for any purpose other than the business of the Foundation.
*The documents will not be returned to applicants.

2) Application materials

1. Scholarship Application Form for your application category (Use the form designated by the Foundation, printed on a single side on A4 size paper. Please leave pages unstapled. You will be disqualified if the application form lacks any of the pages.)
   *All documents other than the letter of recommendation must be handwritten in Japanese or English by the applicant (Use pens with black ink. Do not use erasable pens nor pens with blue ink). Applications completed in English must be accompanied by a Japanese translation (those submitted without complete and accurate Japanese translation will be disqualified. You will also be disqualified if the Japanese translation fails to indicate the character counts of the sections that have predetermined character limits). If you are to submit the applications in English, make sure to read parts explaining about Japanese translation in our Application FAQs. 
   *Please note that application forms are different for new and renewing applicants, as well as for the medical fields and the business fields applicants. Your application will be ineligible if you do not use the correct form.
   *Renewing applicants must not copy from a Scholarship Application Form submitted for a previous application. You will be disqualified if you copy any material from a previous application. Even if there has been no change in your future aspirations and research subjects, you should rewrite your application in new words.
   *Applicants submitting application documents (including the contents of the Scholarship Application Form and Japanese translations) that appear not to have been checked appropriately by their supervising professor shall be disqualified.
2. Letter of recommendation duly signed by the recommender (the signature must be handwritten and not typed) and placed in a sealed envelope for submission (letters written in English must be accompanied by a Japanese translation).
   *If a professor is to recommend two or more applicants (regardless of whether they are new or renewing applicants), please rank the applicants and state the reasons behind, then enclose the statement of reasons (推薦順位とその理由書) in the same envelope with the letter of recommendation.  (This does not apply when only one applicant is recommended.)
3. Color photograph: 4.5 cm x 3.5 cm photo showing the applicant facing forward from the chest up, taken no longer than six months ago (Paste the photo to the application form.)
4. Academic transcript: Most recent transcript, with course titles, credits earned, grades or other evaluations of student performance, and explanations of what the evaluations mean. (Pass/fail records alone are not acceptable.) Send a transcript current as of the most recent year (must cover one full year) for which level evaluations or grade evaluations were made. (Student grade reports are not acceptable. A statement of reasons for not having grades in the institution currently attended is not acceptable. A transcript of Japanese language school or vocational college is not acceptable.)
   *At least one year's worth of academic transcripts are required. If your most recent transcript only covers half a year, submit the one from the previous year as well.
5. Student registration certificate (in Japanese) issued on or after April 1, 2024. Photocopies are not acceptable.
6. Certificate of residence: Official copy of full record issued on or after the call for applications is made. Photocopies, records that do not show "Nationality/Region" and "Status of Residence, etc.," and records that include an Individual Number (nicknamed "My Number") are not acceptable.
7. [When applicable] Documents showing information on other scholarships and research grants: If the applicant is receiving a scholarship or research grant from another source between April 2024 and March 2025, include a copy of a document showing the name of the granting organization, the scholarship/grant amount and period, and other relevant information.

3) Application period

*Please note that different application deadlines are set for new applicants and renewing applicants.

1. New applicants: Applicants who have not previously received a scholarship from the Foundation
           Online submissions: Thursday, March 7, 2024, 9:00 a.m. - Monday, April 22, 2024, 5:00 p.m.
           Submissions by mail: Monday, April 1, 2024 - Must arrive at the office no later than Thursday, April 25, 2024, 3:00 p.m.

2. Renewing applicants: Applicants who have previously received a scholarship from the Foundation 
           Online submissions: Thursday, March 7, 2024, 9:00 a.m. - Monday, April 15, 2024, 5:00 p.m.
           Submissions by mail: Monday, April 1, 2024 - Must arrive at the office no later than Thursday, April 18, 2024, 3:00 p.m.

Screening Process, Selection, and Scholarship Payments 

1) Screening process

The screening process involves reviewing the application documents and interviewing candidates who pass the documents review. Scholarship recipients will be chosen by the Foundation's selection committee, with decisions finalized by the Board of Directors. 
Applicants who do not pass the documents review will not be notified. Scholarship recipients will be chosen by the Foundation's selection committee, with decisions finalized by the Foundation's Representative Director. The interview portion of the process is generally carried out between late June and early July in Osaka or Tokyo (tentative).

2) Selection

Scholarship recipients will be selected and notified by mid July. Attendance at the certification ceremony planned on Friday, July 26 and Saturday, July 27, and submission of a Letter of Agreement are compulsory for official certification as a scholarship recipient. (This also applies to renewing applicants selected to receive the scholarship for a further half-year.) You cannot withdraw from or alter your scholarship to enable receipt of another scholarship or research incentive grant after submitting the Letter of Agreement. (It is essential that you contact the Foundation Office in advance if you plan to apply for another scholarship or research grant.)

3) Scholarship payments

Scholarship payments are generally made twice annually on predetermined dates in August and December. Payments will be deposited directly into the recipient's designated bank account.

*You will also receive a book purchase grant toward the cost of purchasing books useful in your research, Japanese language studies, and international understanding (the expected grant amount is approximately 10,000 yen). Please be aware that you will be required to submit a Reading Report (in around November) on all books purchased using the book purchase grant.
*Renewing applicants selected to receive the scholarship for a further half-year will be contacted separately regarding the timing of their scholarship payments. The Foundation plans not to provide such applicants with book purchase grants.

4) Planned number of recipients

Approx. 90 in fiscal 2024 (86 students received scholarships in fiscal 2023, 74 in fiscal 2022)

Scholarship type

1. The Otsuka Toshimi Scholarship is awarded with no obligation of repayment, except when false declaration is made or when
    a recipient fails to perform their obligations.

​2. The Otsuka Toshimi Scholarship is free of any conditions related to post-graduation activities, including employment.

Obligations of Recipients

Scholarship recipients are expected to fulfill the following obligations:
(1) Comply with all rules stated in the Scholarship Guide and inform the Foundation promptly if they cease to satisfy any of the
     conditions for granting the scholarship.
(2) Promptly notify the Representative Director of the Foundation if any of the following occurs:
     i.   Leave of absence, reinstatement, transfer or withdrawal from school
     ii.  Suspension or other disciplinary action
     iii. Change in name, address or other important personal information
     iv. Likelihood of repeating a year of study or not being able to graduate within the standard period for completion
(3) Submit the following documents to the Representative Director of the Foundation:
     i.   Student registration certificate and a report on living condition
     ii.  Academic transcript
(4) Participate in events held by the Foundation.
(5) Even after graduating, participate actively as an alumni and keep the Foundation updated of your current status.