Thank you for your interest!
This page summarizes my usual approach to inquiries and applications for the JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship (Standard), based on my past experience.
Before contacting me, please read the UNOFFICIAL Guide to the JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship (Standard) , which summarizes the general structure of the program, typical timelines, and practical points.
I sometimes discuss applications with more than one candidate in a given round, and in some cases may proceed with applications for more than one candidate as the host, in accordance with the JSPS guidelines. I believe it is better to be transparent about this from the beginning, so that candidates can make informed decisions.
If you are comfortable with this, the process is usually as follows.
Please email me your CV and publication list by the deadline indicated in the schedule below.
After reviewing the documents, I will invite a subset of candidates to a short Zoom interview.
In the interview, I usually ask candidates to briefly introduce their research background and ideas for a JSPS project. You are also very welcome to ask questions about the research environment, expectations, and practical matters.
If we mutually agree that the match is good, we proceed with the application.
The application documents are then prepared mainly according to the schedule below, in order to meet the internal university deadline.
Please also note that both the host researcher and the candidate are required to prepare a substantial amount of written material as part of the application. For this reason, draft research plans and related documents should be shared at an early stage, and the application is usually prepared through close communication between the candidate and the host.
Please note that the internal university deadline is often much earlier than the official JSPS deadline. In practice, this internal deadline is the most important one, and missing it means that the application cannot be submitted to JSPS, even if the JSPS deadline itself has not yet passed.
I usually encourage candidates to also look for other potential host researchers in Japan, rather than relying on a single option.
For a (non-exhaustive) list of other potential host researchers in Japan, please refer to the UNOFFICIAL Guide .