MEXT reviews "SPRING" program — Living allowance limited to Japanese students only

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) has decided to not provide living allowance support to international students under SPRING (Support for Pioneering Research Initiated by the Next Generation). This applies to newly selected students; international students who are already receiving support or have been pre-selected will continue to receive funding. At the same time, MEXT will implement weighted allocation of research funding to excellent students and enhance support for DC Research Fellowships of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).

Economic anxiety about living expenses and professional instability due to their status as students has been identified as one of the factors that makes excellent students hesitate to pursue doctoral programs. In order to enable excellent doctoral program students to focus on research and advance as researchers, JSPS established the DC Research Fellowships program in 1985. Annual research encouragement grants of 2.4 million yen are provided along with approximately 800,000 yen per year on average as Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows).

MEXT launched SPRING in FY2021, combining economic support with diverse career path development, and providing annual support of 2.9 million yen. The annual support consists of an average of approximately 2.2 million yen per year for research encouragement grants (living allowance equivalent) and approximately 400,000 yen per year for research expenses.

Currently, 90 universities have been selected for SPRING, supporting approximately 80% of doctoral program students across all the selected universities. In FY2024, the program supported approximately 10,000 students in total, with a student support rate of about 80% at the selected universities, and international students accounted for approximately 40% of those selected.

These efforts have led to a slight increase in doctoral program enrollment rates. However, given SPRING's program purpose of "increasing the enrollment rate of domestic students in doctoral programs," living allowance support for international students was deemed inappropriate, leading to the decision to discontinue living allowance support for international students among newly accepted students. On the other hand, comprehensive strengthening of doctoral program student support will be implemented, including increased research funding for excellent students and enhanced career path support.

In the case of the JSPS DC Research Fellowships program, as it is an initiative to attract excellent master's program students to academia, consideration and implementation of increased unit prices for research encouragement grants will be conducted. Also, based on the program's purpose, measures to strengthen connections between DC recipients and PD (Postdoctoral Fellow) programs will be considered to enhance career prospects in academia from doctoral programs. Initiatives to encourage DC students to participate in career support programs for SPRING students currently implemented at universities will be promoted. Furthermore, institutional revisions will be made to allow entrepreneurship based on research results under certain conditions, such as confirming that activities based on research plans recognized as DC are progressing steadily.

In the case of SPRING, based on the program's purpose, research encouragement grants will be provided only to Japanese students, with no support for international students. Working students without sufficient income will continue to be eligible for support. For research expenses, in addition to Japanese students and international students, working students with stable income who are not eligible for support under the current system will also be included as eligible recipients. Support will be stratified and differentiated, with prioritized support through additional research funding for excellent students. For career support by universities, further enhancement and strengthening of support for both Japanese and international students will be implemented. For eligible students, support for research presentations at academic conferences and participation in job-type research internships will be promoted.

"This Does Not Constitute a Policy Change"

In response to this news, some university officials have voiced concerns about whether this represents a negative policy change toward international students. However, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Toshiko Abe stated: "The purpose of this program is to support Japanese students' enrollment in doctoral programs, among other things. After clarifying this, we decided not to provide living allowance support as research encouragement grants to international students. This is a review in accordance with the program's purpose and does not constitute a policy change."