Call for Applications to Science Tokyo SPRING（MD）Program for the 2025 Academic Year by Eligible Students (*Autumn admission)
Application Requirements
October 1, 2025
To all graduate students:
Call for Applications to “Next Generation Front Runner Training Program for Comprehensive Knowledge and Humanity” Science Tokyo SPRING (MD) for the 2025 Academic Year for Fall Admission
Students who wish to apply to the Science Tokyo SPRING (MD) should read the following information carefully and submit their application before the deadline (i.e. no later than 12:00 noon, Thursday, October 16, 2025).
* For this year's fall admission, as in previous years, support will be provided without distinction between Japanese and international students, in principle up to the standard period of study.
Please note that support for students adopted through applications submitted in academic year 2026 and beyond is currently undetermined, and eligibility requirements may change from the current system.
○ Science Tokyo SPRING (MD)
Under the “Support for Pioneering Research Initiated by the Next Generation (SPRING)” by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), selected universities choose outstanding doctoral students who will lead the future of science, technology and innovation, and provide them with a research environment in which they can devote themselves to challenging and integrative research while also supporting the development of diverse career paths.
This university was selected for the SPRING project in AY2021 and continue to support graduate students as “TMDU WISE I/II Program”, “TMDU-SPRING Program”, and after the integration of the universities “Science Tokyo SPRING (MD)”. We aim to strategically foster “Clinician Scientists” who will lead outstanding and pioneering research and researchers who will be active across a wide range of fields in academia and industry, based on the university’s “Top Science Incubator Concept.”
Specifically, the program will select outstanding doctoral students and provide them with a monthly stipend of 180,000 yen to concentrate on their research (equivalent to living expenses) and an annual research grant of 400,000 yen for research expenses (additional grants may be available) during the standard term of study. In addition to organizing research results debriefing (retreats), seminars to improve research skills, and seminars on career development, the program also provides individual support (increasing research funds) for international travel, joint research, etc.
*Support for Pioneering Research Initiated by the Next Generation
https://www.jst.go.jp/jisedai/
*After the integration of the universities, we have supported the students as Science Tokyo SPRING students (MD), including those who have already been adopted. However, there may be some changes in support after the university integration.
○ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible to apply for Science Tokyo SPRING (MD), you must be a graduate student enrolled in a doctoral course at Science Tokyo who possesses excellent research skills, wishes to dedicate time to research and meets one of the following criteria as of October 1 of the year of application.
Up to 2 students (*Fall Admission)
(1) Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences / Medical and Dental Sciences (4-year course): 1st year students (including students from the MA program, MD-PhD/DDS-PhD program and researcher training courses)
(2) Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences / Biomedical Sciences and Engineering (3-year doctoral course): 1st year students
(3) Graduate School of Health Care Sciences (5-year integrated course): 3rd year students
[Students Deemed Ineligible for Application]
(1) Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellows DC1 or DC2, government-sponsored international students
(2) Those receiving a stable salary, etc. (in principle, those whose annual income is 2.4 million yen or more for any consecutive 12-month period during the term of enrollment. If the term of enrollment is less than 12 months, those whose 12-month equivalent income is expected to exceed 2.4 million yen). This applies to most of the University Residents.
However, unstable salaries such as part-time work (including as doctors, dentists and other medical professionals1, salaries as teaching assistants (TA) and research assistants (RA) at the university or other universities, salaries as clinical assistants (CA) or healthcare assistants (HCA) at the university, and scholarships stipulated in the scholarship award regulations for students entering the Early Career Development Course (the university’s MD-PhD and DDS-PhD courses) do not need to be counted toward the “income or estimated income” (stable salary, etc.) above.
1 In principle, students who earn more than 2.4 million yen per year are eligible for enrollment in the program insofar as the income is unstable and from part-time income that can be explained. However, the scholarship may be terminated if the part-time job were to impede research, career development, or efforts related to training content.
(3) Students who expect to receive a total of 2.4 million yen or more per year in benefit-type scholarships and applicants whose total income or estimated income plus benefit-type scholarships will amount to 2.4 million yen or more. However, benefit-type scholarships that are limited in usage to tuition and research expenses are not included in the “income or estimated income” above.
(4) Students who are receiving or expect to receive a separate scholarship, which cannot be received in conjunction with the fellowship benefits provided to Science Tokyo SPRING (MD) students.
(5) Students who have exceeded the standard number of years of study due to extension of their education. However, this does not apply to long-term students who have not exceeded the standard number of years of study.
(6) Students who have already been selected for enrollment in Science Tokyo SPRING (MD).
○PAYMENT PERIOD
The payment period shall be within the standard term of study (Example: Students with limited-term adoption). However, a mid-term evaluation will be conducted before the student advances to the final year of study. If there is a significant delay with the progress of research, subsequent funding may be discontinued.
○APPLICATION METHOD
Submit all required files via the BOX file upload system within the applicant application form (Forms) below and complete the form responses by noon on Thursday, October 16.
Please ask the actual research supervisor to respond separately via the Research Supervisor Confirmation Form.
●Application Form
Application Form
https://forms.office.com/r/BrVMP2umts
* Save a screenshot of the screen after submission.
Uploading files to BOX, Files to be submitted
・Research Achievement Statement (Form A)
Upload the research achievement statement (Form A) file in Excel format with the filename formatted as “Student ID [half-width] _Name_Form A.xlsx”.
・Research Plan (Self-Promotion) (Form B) (PDF)
Convert it to PDF format and upload it with the filename “Student ID [half-width] _Name_Form B.pdf”.
・Confirmation Form
Upload it with the filename “Student ID [half-width] _Name_ Confirmation Form.pdf”.
・Attached Literature Certifying Research Achievements * for the number of achievements
* Submit the Research Achievement Statement, Research Plan (Self-Promotion), Confirmation Form, and attached literature certifying research achievements via the BOX file upload within the applicant application form.
* The URL for uploading BOX files is located within the applicant application form.
* Attached Literature Certifying Research Achievements should be a PDF copy of the title page for your published papers (which should include information about the author, title, journal name, date, etc.) and an abstract of your presentation at an academic conference (which should include information about the presenter, title, conference name, etc.).
* Note that research achievements without attached literature will be excluded from evaluation.
*Please upload the files as separate files, not in ZIP format.
●Research Supervisor Confirmation Form
Research Supervisor Confirmation Form
https://forms.office.com/r/ZR0rLt6RbD
* Please ask your research supervisor to respond directly to the form.
[IMPORTANT]
Only applicants who have submitted all required documents, the Application Form, BOX File Upload System submissions, and the Research Supervisor Confirmation Form—will be considered complete.
* After uploading files and completing responses on the applicant application form, be sure to save a screenshot of the “Submission Complete” screen.
〇SCREENING AND NOTIFICATION OF SCIENCE TOKYO SPRING (MD) SELECTION RESULTS
Applications will be screened by the screening committee, and the selection results will be separately notified to the applications chosen to be accepted and their research supervisor. Unsuccessful candidates and their research supervisors will also be notified accordingly.
We will also notify successful candidates regarding the transfer procedures for the stipend and other similar funds, as well as the allocation procedures for research funds.
〇CUTTING-EDGE RESEARCH SEMINARS, ETC.
Information will be provided separately about research results debriefing (retreats), seminars to improve research skills and seminars on career development, etc.
〇MONTHLY STIPENDS, ETC.
Monthly stipend to concentrate on research (equivalent to living expenses): 180,000 yen
Research grant: 400,000 yen per year. However, additional funding for international travel, joint research, etc. may be provided upon request.
*The monthly stipend is taxable, so users of this fund must file a tax return for themselves.
*The research grant should be managed by the research supervisor of the host laboratory (who is generally responsible for the course).
*We can be consulted separately regarding subsidization of international travel, etc.
〇TERMINATION OF MONTHLY STIPENDS, ETC.
During periods of leave of absence from the university, the payment of the monthly stipend will be suspended. After returning to the university, the payment of said monthly stipend will be resumed upon notification.
〇WHEN ACCEPTED AS A SCIENCE TOKYO SPRING (MD) STUDENT
After being accepted, the following procedures will be required (planned). Details will be provided for the successful candidate after the hiring decision is made.
[to receive payment of research grants]
・Read through the “Handbook to Prevent Fraud in Academic Activities” and submit a written pledge immediately if you have not done so already.
・Be sure to sign up for the research ethics e-learning course “eAPRIN.”
・Have your work registered in the “Research Information Database” and update it as necessary.
Note that no research grants will be allocated unless the above three requirements are met.
* Be advised that due to university integration, links on our website may be subject to sudden changes.
≪Reference Links≫
Handbook to Prevent Fraud in Academic Activities
eAPRIN homepage
https://www.tmd.ac.jp/tmd-research/rule/prevention-injustice/#anchor20
Research Information Database (data entry screen)
https://aris.tmd.ac.jp/
〇REVOCATION OF PAYMENT OF MONTHLY STIPENDS, ETC.
If the steering committee for the Science Tokyo SPRING Program deems a student to be disqualified for any of the following reasons or if the student has unenrolled from the university, the student will be disqualified and may be requested to return their monthly stipends, retroactive to the beginning of the academic year (April).
(1) The student has been subject to a disciplinary procedure or suspension from school
(2) Any falsification has been found in the content of the application or other submissions
(3) The student has failed to submit the required notifications without justifiable reason
(4) The steering committee has deemed the student to be inappropriate as a Science Tokyo SPRING (MD) student for other reasons.
[IMPORTANT] Japanese students: Be sure to check the following information
〇Restrictions on Duplication for the Repayment Waiver Program
Restrictions on duplication of the repayment waiver program for JASSO Type 1 students with “Support for Pioneering Research Initiated by the Next Generation (SPRING)”
(1) Overview
In accordance with national government policy, which is based on the results of the Ministry of Finance’s Survey of Expenditure inducting that “In principle, the waiver of repayment of interest-free scholarships, which are in effect equivalent to benefits, should not be duplicated in fellowship programs, etc., so that support may be extended to as many doctoral students as possible,” those who receive support from the “Support for Pioneering Initiated by the Next Generation (SPRING) Program” implemented by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) are not eligible for the “Repayment Waiver Program for Particularly Outstanding Achievements” that is offered as part of doctoral courses at Science Tokyo.
(2) Those who are subject to restriction
This applies to those who will become JASSO Type 1 Scholarship recipients in the 2023 academic year or thereafter.
*If a recipient of an offer of repayment waiver who was accepted as a Type 1 scholarship student in the 2023 academic year and thereafter decides to receive the support, this offer will be rescinded.
■INQUIRIES
Student Support Group, Yushima Student Support Office, Student Support Division.
Email: takuetsu_ssu@ml.tmd.ac.jp)
*Be sure to contact by e-mail. Do not forget to include “Student ID [half-width] _Name_ Science Tokyo SPRING (MD) Inquiry” in the e-mail title.
*Please contact us if you do not receive an e-mail confirming our receipt of your message within two days of sending (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays).
*Depending on the nature of your inquiry, it may take some time to respond, so please allow sufficient time when contacting us.
Yoshikazu Isomura,
Deputy Program Manager, Science Tokyo SPRING (MD)