Asian Youth Fellowship

The AYF preparatory course before entering Japanese Graduate School as Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho) scholarship student is offered by The Japan Foundation. AYF program is open to university graduates in the region who wish to contribute to regional cooperation after obtaining a Master and/or Ph. D. Degree in Japanese Graduate Schools as follows:

AYF consists of the following component:
* Coordination of a host professor and research plan development during the preparatory course in Japan
* Preparatory course (Japanese Language and cultural activities)
* Follow ups after completing the preparatory course

Field of Study
* Any of the fields in Humanities, Social Sciences, Engineering and Natural Science is acceptable..
* Students pursuing study areas that would contribute to his/her country or region will be given preference.

Qualifications
（1） Nationality: Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand or Vietnam.
（2） Age: under 35 years of age as of April 1, 2010 (i.e. born on or after April 2, 1975)
（3） Academic Backgrounds: university or college graduates with a bachelor’s degree or Master’s degree
(those who will graduate from a university or college by the Registration Day of AYF may apply, but the grants may be CANCELLED if grantees fail to arrive in Kansai on the starting day of the preparatory course.)
（4） Other requirements:
a. Good proficiency in English is required.
b. Military men and military civilian employees registered on the personnel list are excluded.
c. Applicants should be in good health.
d. The applicant whose spouse has already won a Japanese Government scholarship will not be selected as a grantee, and likewise in the case of a couple applying at the same time.The applicant who has been awarded a Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho) scholarship in the past will not be selected as a grantee unless he/she has had a few years' research or teaching experience after returning to his/her country.

Application Procedure
Applicants must submit the following documents according to the instruction given by the Embassy of Japan in their own country by the date appointed. The documents submitted will not be returned.
DEADLINE: (Please contact the Embassy of Japan in your country) September - November * 2008
for more informations : http://www.asiaseed.org/ayfj/info/info_A3.htm#1

Source: The Japan Foundation