Eligibility Criteria
At the time of application students must be:
- At least 18 years old
- A Japanese citizen or permanent resident
- A female, currently enrolled, degree-seeking undergraduate student in good academic standing at a Japanese institution of higher education
- A B1, B2, B3, or B4 undergraduate student* (B4 students are only eligible to apply if they will be a degree-seeking graduate (M1) student as of April)
- Majoring in a science or engineering field and interested in conducting research in a related field
- Able to express a demonstrated interest in international science and engineering research and future graduate study in your field
- Sufficiently fluent in English to successfully conduct research in a U.S. university lab
*Undergraduate students who are enrolled in a six-year, undergraduate program, such as in medicine, are eligible to apply. To confirm eligibility, send an email to tomodachistem@rice.edu. In your email, list the name of your university, the program/field of study you are enrolled in, and the month and year you will graduate from your undergraduate program.
Preferred Fields
Students in any science or engineering field are eligible to apply and potential host labs are available within the School of Engineering or School of Natural Sciences at Rice University. For more details, see our Research Host Labs page.
Students cannot apply for placement into the School of Architecture. Architecture is a separate school/faculty at Rice University and does not participate in this program. Architecture and non-STEM students should review our Other Related Programs for Japanese Students page.
Selection Criteria
When reviewing applications, the program seeks to select students who have:
- A strong and well-defined interest in international research, particularly in the U.S.;
- A desire to develop the skills necessary to become a globally competent scientist or engineer;
- A strong and well-defined interest in the pursuit of future research and graduate study in a science or engineering field;
- The conversational English language skills necessary to conduct research in the U.S.; and
- Demonstrated financial needs and/or come from rural areas where educational equity may be limited
English Language Requirements
- Fluency in English is not required; but your spoken English language skills must be sufficient to conduct a four-week research internship in an English-speaking laboratory.
- It is recommend that applicants be at the intermediate to advanced level in terms of your spoken English language skills.
- Finalists will be required to take an English Proficiency Interview via Skype prior to final acceptance into the program.
- Participants will enroll in a weekly Conversational English Class for the duration of their 4-week research internship at Rice University
- Click HERE to learn more