The Young Leaders’ Program (YLP) aims to contribute to cultivate future national leaders in Asian and other countries, to contribute to establish friendly relationship among various countries and to improve policy planning activities by forming a network among national leaders through deepening their understanding of Japan. The YLP is one of the Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship Programs.
The deadline of the applications differs according to the country. Please contact with Japanese embassy or consulate general in your country.
Eligibility Criteria
- Nationality: Applicants must be nationals of countries eligible for the Young Leaders Programme (YLP).
- Age: Applicants must be, in principle, under 40 years of age, as on 1st October, 2020 (i.e. born on or after 2nd October 1979).
- Academic Background: Applicants must hold a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent from a recognized/accredited university or college, and have achieved shown excellent academic performance.
- Work Experience: At least 3 years of full-time work experience in public administration (preferably 5 years or more).
- English Proficiency: A minimum TOEFL-iBT score of 79 (TOEFL-PBT score of 550), IELTS 6.0 or equivalent.
- Health: Applicants must be in good health.
- Visa Requirement: In principle, selected applicants must acquire “College Student” (ryuugaku) visas before entering Japan. The visas should be issued at the Japanese legation, located in the country of applicants’ nationality. Applicants who change their resident status to any status other than “College Student” after their arrival in Japan will immediately lose their status as a Japanese government scholarship student.
- Applicants who meet any or all of following conditions are not eligible. If identified after acceptance of the scholarship grantees, the applicants will be required to withdraw from the scholarship
Documents Required for Application
- Application for Admission
- Photographs
- Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions attended
- Recommendation Letter from the recommending authority
- Recommendation Letter from the applicant’s direct superior at work
- Recommendation Letter from the applicant’s superior at work, or supervising professor of the university
- Certificate of Health
- Official degree certificates or certified copies of diplomas from all undergraduate and graduate institutions attended
- Essay explaining applicant’s aspirations and future plans following program completion
- Certificate of Citizenship
- Family Register
- Copy of the Passport
- English Proficiency Certificate
- Answer to the Essay Questions
Application Process
All YLP applications must be made through the specific recommending authorities for each course. Applicants must submit the following documents as listed above to their recommending authorities by the designated date. Documents submitted will not be returned.
The deadline of the applications differs according to the country. Please contact with Japanese embassy or consulate general in your country.
