Kyoto University Admission 2027: Deadlines, Requirements, Fees for International Students

Admission at a glance

Kyoto University is a national research university with its main campus in Kyoto and a strong reputation across the sciences, medicine and the humanities. Its dedicated route for international undergraduate applicants is the Kyoto University International Undergraduate Program (Kyoto iUP), a 4.5-year programme: a six-month intensive Japanese-language preparatory course, taught in English and Japanese, followed by four years of degree study once the student has chosen a major. No prior Japanese ability is required to apply, and the university states every Kyoto iUP student receives some form of admission and tuition fee waiver, plus a monthly allowance during the preparatory course, funded partly through the Japanese government's MEXT scholarship for a share of each cohort and partly through the university's own support.

Kyoto iUP admits once a year, for an October start, with an application window that opens in early November and closes about a month later, roughly eleven months before the programme begins; guidelines for each year's cycle are usually published from July. Applicants submit an online application with academic transcripts, an evaluation form completed by a school referee, an essay, and an English proficiency form, and pay a JPY 9,800 non-refundable application fee. Kyoto University's other faculties and graduate schools admit separately, mostly in Japanese and on their own department-level calendar, so Kyoto iUP is the clearest single international entry point the university publishes.

Requirements

Bachelor's (Kyoto iUP)

Applicants need to have completed, or be on track to complete, 12 years of school education by the programme's enrolment date, through a recognised national curriculum or an internationally recognised qualification. No Japanese language ability is required at the point of application; the preparatory course teaches it from the ground up.

Master's and PhD

Admission is set by the individual graduate school; a relevant Bachelor's degree (or Master's degree for doctoral study) recognised as equivalent to a Japanese degree is the general baseline, with specific academic and language requirements published separately by each department.

Full requirements and documents