General Flow of the Application

The actual flow may be slightly different depending on the graduate school and the program.
For instance, “Go through the AAO process” “Contact the prospective supervisor” in the chart below is not required for some programs.

• Select a supervisor and a graduate school Go through the selection process

Contact the prospective supervisor
• Check the admission information on the school’s website (For applicants of degree programs )

Go through the AAO process Apply to the graduate school

Who needs to go through the AAO process?

This process is for applicants who meet both of the following:
- have graduated or is expected to graduate from a university outside of Japan
- wish to enroll in Kyoto University as a research student or a regular graduate student
(In the case of the Graduate School of Informatics, the process is only for those who wish to enroll as a research student.)

How does the process work?

1. Before getting started
• Select a supervisor and a graduate school/research institute
How to find a prospective supervisor and a graduate school/research institute can be found on Q1 of “Frequently Asked Questions”.

• Check the admission information on the website of the graduate school/research institute
Details of the application procedure vary by graduate schools and programs.
Please make sure to visit the website of your preferred graduate school and check the admission information including the application deadline.

2. The AAO process

• Sign up for the AAO online application system and submit your application
(1) Click “Sign up” on the website and register your email address.
(2) Access the URL on the registration email to complete the registration process.
(3) Fill out your AAO application form and upload the required documents (listed on the next page).
(4) Click “Submit” button and receive a confirmation email.
(5) When your application is ready to be processed, an acknowledge receipt will be sent from AAO. If it is incomplete, you will receive a request for
correction. Please then follow the instructions and resubmit your application.

• Receive the outcome of your application (This may take from a few days up to a month)
< Programs which require applicants to contact the prospective supervisor before applying to the graduate school/research institute >
Your application will be reviewed by the prospective supervisor. S/he will then decide whether or not to initiate contact with you.
If you receive a positive result, you can then contact the supervisor directly. This result does not mean that you have been accepted.

< Programs which do not require applicants to contact the prospective supervisor before applying to the graduate school >
Your application will be sent to the graduate school office for a preliminary review.
Once it has been confirmed by the office, you will be informed of the outcome.

Applicants are advised to start the AAO process at least 2-3 months before the deadline of application to
the graduate school/research institute, so there is enough time to complete all the procedures.
Documents required for the AAO process (Some programs have additional instructions. Please check the details on the next page.)

All applicants
• Photo (above shoulders, facing the front)
The photo may be regarded invalid when edited.
• Statement of Purpose (including Research Plan)
Those applying to the Graduate School of Medicine are required to use the format on the AAO webpage.
The document must not be created by another person - applications will be rejected if any plagiarism is discovered.

Graduates/Students from universities located outside of mainland China

The certificates should be latest official documents issued by the university, written in English or Japanese.
(If you are currently enrolled in or have completed a master’s or doctoral program, please submit the following documents for ALL the programs.)

If you have already graduated

Graduation Certificate Academic Transcript

If you are currently enrolled

Expected Graduation Certificate
Academic Transcript
or Certificate of Enrollment

Graduates/Students of universities in mainland China

(If you are currently enrolled in or have completed a master’s or doctoral program, please submit the following documents for ALL the programs.)

If you have already graduated

Certificate of Graduation Certificate of Degree Issued by the university of graduation, written in Chinese with the student’s photograph

Academic Transcript Stamped with the university’s official seal, written in English or Japanese

Online Verification Report of Higher Education

教育部学歴証書電子注冊備案表 issued from the website (PDF file in Chinese)
Qualification Certificate

If you are currently enrolled

Expected Graduation Certificate
A latest document stamped with the university’s official seal, issued in English or Japanese
or Certificate of Enrollment

Academic Transcript A latest document stamped with the university’s official seal, issued in English or Japanese

Online Verification Report of Student Record 教育部学籍在線験証報告 issued from the website (PDF file in Chinese)

Inquiry
Please first ensure you have checked the “Frequently Asked Questions”.
For further questions, please send an inquiry e-mail with the following subject. Inquiries are only accepted in Japanese or English.
Subject: (AAO-Question) your name, your preferred graduate school/research institute, AAO-ID*
To: AAO, Kyoto University aao-ku[at]mail2.adm.kyoto-u.ac.jp (replace [at] with the @ symbol)
*AAO-ID is informed to applicants who submitted their AAO application. Please mention your ID in the subject if you have already received one.
Programs with additional instructions (for the AAO process)

Master’s Program - East Asia Sustainable Economic Development Studies (application guideline)
Graduate School of Economics
Master’s Program - Japanese-taught (application guideline)

Master’s Programs - (application guideline Japanese / English)

Graduate School of Management
Doctoral Program - (application guideline)
Enter “Undecided” for the supervisor of interest and the research topic.
➡ For the Statement of Purpose, upload a blank file.

School of Law* (application guideline) *This is a different department from the Graduate School of Law

Enter “Undecided” for the supervisor of interest and the research topic.
➡
For the Statement of Purpose, upload a blank file and choose “master’s” for the program selection.

Graduate School of Energy Science Master’s Program in International Energy Science Course, IESC (application guideline)

➡ Applicants do not need to name their prospective supervisor.

Graduate School of Letters The Joint Degree Master of Arts in Transcultural Studies, JDTS （application information）

➡ Please follow the instructions on “JDTS AAO Guidelines” on the above application information page.

Master’s Program (application guideline)

Graduate School of Letters
Doctoral Program (application guideline)

Please submit the AAO application after the application guideline has been announced.
➡
For the Statement of Purpose, applicants can upload a blank file.

Graduate School of Advanced Integrated

5-year integrated doctoral program (application guideline)
Studies in Human Survivability

Please follow the instructions on「※申請方法について【PDF】」on the graduate school’s website.

➡
(Please scroll down the application guideline page mentioned above to find the file.)

Doctoral Program in Medicine

Master’s / Doctoral Program in Medical Science
Graduate School of Medicine Professional Degree / Doctoral Program in Public Health
Doctoral Program in Genomic Medicine, Kyoto-McGill International Collaborative Program
(application guideline)

➡ For the Statement of Purpose, please use the format on the website.