Plan for Graduate School

Find a professor, write a research proposal and prepare thoroughly for graduate school entrance exams

Graduate school exam system is rather different from other countries, so we recommend you to understand this before preparation.Starting with finding a professor you would like to study under, and then creating a research proposal, each student requires a completely different preparation, TLS’s graduate school guidance is mainly a one-on-one style.

求められる人材像

Graduate schools are the place to grow incipient researchers. Each laboratory seeks people who have challenge sprit and can develop the research and raise the academic level of the laboratory or university, and share the issues as a team related to the history of research conducted mainly by professors.

Schools expect to students for the high level of expertise, the ability to make logical statements in discussions and presentations, and the ability to write logical documents. Based on that abilities, to continue research with team mates and aim to contribute to society.

教授とのコンタクト

Very the first thing to be taken care of is finding a laboratory / professor who can realize your research. No matter how great a university or a great professor, it is not possible to enter the university because no one can instruct on the research students are aiming for.

Once the professor is found, the next step is contacting them. At that time, it is needed to follow the rules of each school, such as visiting open campus, school guidance, or contacting through the Academic Affairs Division.

Make sure that it is a place where you can deepen your research, and start preparing for the application.

専門性の追求

The research proposal is the most important in graduate school application. The research proposals, unlike the reason for application, have to be objective and theoretical, based on analysis and consideration with the reasonable numbers and data. Each university set the format, so the proposal needs to be matched to them.

The graduates who have passed so far have subjects during their undergraduate years, and they are choosing to study in Japan in order to solve those subjects. It is not realistic solution just having feeling of what to study to pass the exam.

To ensure that all students do not miss a single step, Toyo Language School offers elective classes exclusively for students wishing to apply for graduate school.

Warming up to prepare for graduate school
Consider the purpose of going on to graduate school
System of Japanese graduate school entrance examination
Make a resume
Research proposal(Structure・Style・Representation)
Consider the research subject
Confirm the research contents
Make an exam plan
How to write emails to professors
Write a research purpose
Research motivation / background content and structure
How to write application forms
Presentation for passing the exam
How to speak to professors
How to quote
How to make a bibliography
Consider research methods
Oral exam preparation

Model schedule for going to graduate school

JLPT N1 level may be set as one of the application conditions for graduate school examinations. It means, it is necessary to calculate back and proceed with learning Japanese so that students can pass N1 according to the timing of application (spring admission, fall admission).

On the other hand, they need to find a university laboratory where they can realize the research, and keep the schedule of open campuses and school guidance held by each university firmly. Preparing a research proposal, confirming the possibility of receiving instruction, and advice on improvement, etc., and preparing for this exam are the keys for going to graduate school.


The following schedule is a model for spring admission.

VOICE

Cheung Puffe

From Hong Kong
Graduated in March 2025
Enrolled in University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Medicine, Department of Medical Science, Master’s Program

On the day the results were announced, I was so nervous that I couldn’t hear what other people were saying. When I saw the “pass” results, I couldn’t believe it for a while, and I remember excitedly reporting it to my family, friends, and teachers.
Although I had been hoping to go to graduate school even before coming to Japan, I had only just started studying Japanese when I first enrolled and didn’t know what I could do. In the beginner’s class, we covered a lot of conversation and grammar that can be used in daily life, which was very easy to understand, and it was the period when my ability improved the most. In addition to classes at school, I worked hard at improving my Japanese by reading books I brought from Hong Kong and watching Japanese movies at home.

Results of JLPTCHECKTLS graduates study atCHECKAdmissionCHECK