Introduction of Kyoto iUP

Japan's population of 18-year-olds, which gradually decreased after peaking at 2.49 million in 1966, is currently less than half of this, 1.2 million, and is expected to continue to decline in the future. So far, Kyoto University has gathered students with a high level of academic excellence from all over Japan, a situation we will continue to work towards maintaining, however, the decline in the number of possible students naturally affects quality. Despite this situation, producing outstanding graduates who can lead the next generation of education and research at Kyoto University and play important roles in wider society remains a central mission of Kyoto University.

In response, the university launched the Kyoto University International Undergraduate Program (Kyoto iUP) so that we can actively receive not only Japanese students - our core target up to this point - but also high-achieving international students.

Kyoto iUP has been designed to minimize the language and financial hurdles that often prevent talented international students from pursuing study, and ultimately careers, in Japan. It is a 4.5-year international scholarship program comprising a six-month preparatory course followed by four years of undergraduate study. A key feature of the program is that no Japanese language proficiency is required at the outset, as the program provides an intensive Japanese language component. Admission and tuition fees are exempted, and students receive a monthly scholarship of up to JPY 120,000 for the 4.5 years of the program.

In the first two years of the main program (following the six-month preparatory course), students take liberal arts courses and fundamental courses in their respective majors, which are taught in English and/or Japanese. The final two years of the program focus on specific subjects in the students’ majors, which are taught mainly or exclusively in Japanese. The international iUP students attend the same classes as regular Japanese undergraduate students, which imbues the classes with a rich multicultural component. Upon graduation, students are awarded a bachelor’s degree in their chosen major. Companies and organizations in the private sector provide various forms of support for the program, including support for student scholarships.

The Kyoto iUP office, which consists of ILAS instructors and staff from International and General Education Promotion Department, is responsible for managing and administrating the implementation of Kyoto iUP, organizing curricula and student class selection, communicating between the various faculties involved, providing support for study and daily living, as well as running public relations and recruiting activities necessary to obtain exceptional students from prestigious foreign high schools.

Curriculum Overview