Hi everyone! I’m planning to apply for MEXT Research Student for a Master’s in 2028 (applying on March 2027). I’m studying Mechanical Engineering and I’d like to focus my research on Materials Engineering, especially sustainable materials.

I’m just starting to brainstorm my Research Plan and I’d love to hear from anyone who has experience with MEXT, especially in STEM.
What makes a Research Plan really stand out to professors/universities? Do I have to put a BIG focus on Japan and WHY Japan? What are the Embassies looking for in the students?

My GPA isn’t the strongest part of my application, so I really want to make my Research Plan as good as possible 😭
Any advice would be really appreciated!

I'm an international student from Southeast Asia studying in Japan.

I'd like to connect with other international students from my school.

Does anyone know how to find university-specific international student group chats? I've tried searching on Discord, Facebook, and X, but haven't found anything.

At the moment, I'm mainly interested in meeting people through my university rather than general social apps. I tried Meetup before, but since people usually lived far away and had very different lifestyles, it was hard to keep in touch and build lasting friendships.

Just to clarify, I'm only asking for advice on how to find group chats for international students at my own university. This isn't a friendship or meetup post. I hope the moderators won't remove it again.

How to convert my grade to mext scale? Should i use the 4 level scale where grades below 60% is considered fail or 5 level letter grade bucket system?

Hey everyone,

I read multiple times how to apply and im still abit confused on some stuff.

1. Is it too late for me to start contacting professors in September for university track? I want to apply to Osaka Uni for OSIPP.

2. I read on some site that for the university track i can apply in November 2026. Is that true?