The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) has been carrying out the RONPAKU (Dissertation PhD) Program since 1978.
The aim of JSPS RONPAKU (Dissertation PhD) Program is to provide tutorial and financial support for promising researchers in Asia and Africa or other specified countries who wish to obtain their Ph.D. degrees from Japanese universities through the submission of a dissertation without matriculating a doctoral course.
Grantees under the program (RONPAKU fellows) are required to conduct their dissertation research under the joint supervision of an advisor in Japan and an advisor in their home country, and are expected to obtain their PhD degree within a maximum period of three years.
RONPAKU fellows are required to visit a Japanese university to conduct research under the direct supervision of their advisor in Japan. The advisor may visit the RONPAKU fellow’s home university or research institution when deemed necessary to supervise the fellow’s research together with his/her home advisor.
The applicant under this program is the advisor on the Japan side.
If there should be any differences between the original guidelines in Japanese and its translation into English, the original Japanese text is valid.
Eligibility Criteria
Eligibility of Advisor in Japan
The candidate’s advisor in Japan must be a full-time professor or associate professor who, as of 1 April 2023, is engaged in implementing a doctoral course at the Japanese university to which the prospective RONPAKU fellow will submit his/her PhD thesis.
Offered Benefits
- Total funding provided to Japanese host university
- Maximum of 3.6 million yen (Up to 1.2 million yen per fiscal year)
- The following expenses can be covered by the above funding:
- Travel expenses (RONPAKU fellow’s visits to Japan, advisor’s visit to fellow’s country), goods/materials, other dissertation related expenses
- Payment procedure
- JSPS will enter into a contract with the Japanese host institution commissioning it to carry out the RONPAKU program’s operation.
This program is administered based on the annual budget, paid and executed each Japanese fiscal year (from 1 April to 31 March).
Duration of program: Maximum of 3 years starting from 1 April 2024
Application Process
- Applications for this program are received via JSPS’s electronic application system.
- Only applications submitted by the applicant’s (Japanese advisor) affiliated institution together with the required documents (listed in ? below) by the deadline will be accepted.
- (Applications submitted individually by applicants or candidates or submitted by postal mail will not be accepted.) For details on using the system, please refer to the electronic application system guide at https://www-shinsei.jsps.go.jp/ (in Japanese).
Please note: Being awarded a RONPAKU fellowship does not automatically guarantee the obtaining of a PhD degree. Each RONPAKU Fellow is responsible for making the necessary effort to succeed in his/her dissertation research.
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Application Forms
- Application Forms
- Application Guidelines⋅Forms
- Steps to Applying for a JSPS RONPAKU (PhD dissertation) Fellowship
- Role of RONPAKU Home Advisor
