For a while now I've been wanting to move to Japan, go to a college, and get a job, but I'm realizing this will not be as straightforward as I imagined.

I've heard about a MEXT scholarship that may get me through college, but finding a place of residence will have to be done with my own money. I still have a lot of research and things to look into in regards to this though, so I could be wrong...

As for a job, I've been seeing a lot of people mentioning that it's best to have connections with somebody in Japan. The thing is, I have no connections at all with anyone in Japan And then I would have to get a worker visa, but I'm not 100% sure on the requirements of that, and I think MEXT has some requirement on the type of visa you can have. I have very little work experience (2 months as a dish washer about 4 years ago), and finding work where I'm at now is proving a challenge too.

In short, I still have a lot of researching to look into before I even begin to think about moving to Japan, but for now I plan on getting a decent understanding of the Japanese language.

My one concern I had though about MEXT was some sort of age requirement. If my very limited understanding of MEXT is right, I can enter any course I want (specifically, I'd like to study something in Computer/Network Administration), as an undergrad, but the age limit is at 22. There are other types of scholarships, for older ages, but those are for specific fields, such as teaching? I turn 21 in February, but I'm wondering if my understanding of Japanese would be good enough by the time I can sign up to MEXT.

Is there a particular reason you feel the need to go to College/University in Japan as opposed to your home country? Moving to a country with a high cost of living as well as paying for higher education are not conducive to living on a low budget (though perhaps your "low budget" was referring to scholarship+job).

Unless they've changed things since I last looked into it a few years ago, if you do get accepted to a University in Japan, you will probably come on a Student Visa. I believe the Student Visa allows you to work up to 20-30 hours per week if you fill out the right form (Permission to work outside your residence status permit requirements). You will pretty much need to have a job lined up before you can get this, as it will ask for the name and location of your employer, the number of hours you'll be working, and the expected pay (might also require some info from the company you'll be working for). Don't worry about this form too much- if you get to Japan as a student, it's something that is actually pretty easy to fill out and file if you do find a part time job, so you won't necessarily need to have a job lined up before you get here as a student.

I would look at the threads about MEXT already, even the ones about the graduate level. The topic is still relevant. I would ask what your goal/reason would be for doing undergrad in Japan and what your long term goals are.

Language isn't a requirement for the scholarship though, which shows you really need to look into it quite a bit more.

I'll just say the same thing I've mentioned before. The MEXT undergrad is quite competitive. There are exams you have to pass as well (check prior versions of the exam, they should be on the consulate pages for Japan). If you aren't heavily committed to this then you'll have trouble.

You also do realize that you get a monthly stipend plus tuition waived on the MEXT right?

six8ten Wrote:You will pretty much need to have a job lined up before you can get this, as it will ask for the name and location of your employer, the number of hours you'll be working, and the expected pay (might also require some info from the company you'll be working for). Don't worry about this form too much- if you get to Japan as a student, it's something that is actually pretty easy to fill out and file if you do find a part time job, so you won't necessarily need to have a job lined up before you get here as a student.

No you dont need to write any of that.


Just get to japan,

apply, leave the fields that you dont know blank and you will get your part time working permit within one month, you will need to give your passport to them for a month so dont plan on doing anything that requires a passport during that one month period.

vix86 Wrote:I would look at the threads about MEXT already, even the ones about the graduate level. The topic is still relevant. I would ask what your goal/reason would be for doing undergrad in Japan and what your long term goals are.

My goal would be to go through college, find a job, eventually buy a house, and basically just live in Japan.

vix86 Wrote:Language isn't a requirement for the scholarship though, which shows you really need to look into it quite a bit more.

I thought I read that if you weren't proficient in Japanese, MEXT required you to take some 6 month language course, and in which case if you still weren't proficient, you had to give up the scholarship. But in any case, I mainly wanted enough knowledge of Japanese to get around without too much trouble.

vix86 Wrote:I'll just say the same thing I've mentioned before. The MEXT undergrad is quite competitive. There are exams you have to pass as well (check prior versions of the exam, they should be on the consulate pages for Japan). If you aren't heavily committed to this then you'll have trouble.

Hmm, wasn't actually aware of any exams either. Guess I really have a lot to look into.

vix86 Wrote:You also do realize that you get a monthly stipend plus tuition waived on the MEXT right?

Wasn't aware of this either, but this sounds pretty nice.

So it does still seem I have a lot to look into. My main concern still is the age limitation on MEXT. If I understand right, the undergrad goes up until 22. From what very little I understand, there are other types of scholarships for MEXT, but I'm assuming they are a bit more limited on what they offer?

You're not going to be eligible for the undergrad scholarship because of your age. There are graduate level scholarships but you'd have to go ahead and finish your degree in the US before you can apply for them.

Just finish your education and get skills in demand in Japan in the US and then come over after you graduate.

Espionage724 Wrote:So it does still seem I have a lot to look into. My main concern still is the age limitation on MEXT. If I understand right, the undergrad goes up until 22. From what very little I understand, there are other types of scholarships for MEXT, but I'm assuming they are a bit more limited on what they offer?

I had always read the application to mean that you had to apply by your 22th birthday and get accepted. That would be something to look into though.

The other scholarships available won't cover undergrad really. Just do what kitakitsune said and get your education in the US and then go over and do grad school or find work. There's almost no way you'll be able to pay for living + tuition and work at the same time. Sorry to burst your bubble.

six8ten Wrote:I believe the Student Visa allows you to work up to 20-30 hours per week if you fill out the right form (Permission to work outside your residence status permit requirements). You will pretty much need to have a job lined up before you can get this, as it will ask for the name and location of your employer, the number of hours you'll be working, and the expected pay (might also require some info from the company you'll be working for). Don't worry about this form too much- if you get to Japan as a student, it's something that is actually pretty easy to fill out and file if you do find a part time job, so you won't necessarily need to have a job lined up before you get here as a student.

I just got this; you can leave the employer information section blank and they'll still give you the permit.

Quote:you will need to give your passport to them for a month

At least for the Shinagawa office this isn't true; you have to come back and bring your passport again once they finish processing your permit, but you don't have to leave your passport with them.

Quote:My goal would be to go through college, find a job, eventually buy a house, and basically just live in Japan.

Why? Have you lived in Japan before?

You can still apply for the MEXT undergrad scholarship next year. You only have to be under 22 years of age at the time of applying. There are two or three people in the program here who turned 22 after they applied.

Edit: Let me add that there was only one recipient from the US this year (who's a good friend of mine) and his Japanese is pretty good. I hear it's not uncommon to have no undergrad recipients from the US either.

Wow. Out of the some thousand that they select. Almost none come from the US? Is it because of the exams? Are the scores really that bad? Or do people just flop the interview I wonder.

It's because the scholarship is primarily for people from developing countries. It's a form of international aid in a way.

They only select one hundred or so people for the undergraduate scholarship every year, it's tiny. This year, sixteen of the hundred are Korean. This favouritism has been going on as long as anyone knows of. In contrast, there isn't a single Chinese person.

Moral of the story - don't even waste your time applying for MEXT.

Get an education and come over on the JET program. You get a free flight and a cushy job with nice tax free pay. If you like Japan and want to stay longer, you can branch out into your field and get a real job.

kitakitsune Wrote:Moral of the story - don't even waste your time applying for MEXT.

I wouldn't quite say that. I just wouldn't bother with the undergrad MEXT. The research student one is a bit more doable and I think I've heard of a few people getting the 専門 one.

yudantaiteki Wrote:

six8ten Wrote:I believe the Student Visa allows you to work up to 20-30 hours per week if you fill out the right form (Permission to work outside your residence status permit requirements). You will pretty much need to have a job lined up before you can get this, as it will ask for the name and location of your employer, the number of hours you'll be working, and the expected pay (might also require some info from the company you'll be working for). Don't worry about this form too much- if you get to Japan as a student, it's something that is actually pretty easy to fill out and file if you do find a part time job, so you won't necessarily need to have a job lined up before you get here as a student.

I just got this; you can leave the employer information section blank and they'll still give you the permit.

Quote:you will need to give your passport to them for a month

At least for the Shinagawa office this isn't true; you have to come back and bring your passport again once they finish processing your permit, but you don't have to leave your passport with them.

I'm (almost) sure it's the same in Tachikawa too.

Unless you get a really sweet scholarship setup then it is an infinitely better idea to get your degree in the states as well as some professional work experience.