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Pre-Admission Support System (PSS)

Before applying to Hokkaido University as a research or graduate student, you will be required by many of our graduate schools to obtain the provisional approval of the faculty member who will be your supervisor after admission. Our Pre-admission Support System (PSS) allows you to contact your desired supervisor with minimal steps for provisional  approval or disapproval.  PSS is here to assist you in applying to Hokkaido University.


*Currently, only the following graduate schools support obtaining provisional approval through PSS: 
Humanities and Human Sciences; Education; Law; Economics and Business; Information Science and Technology; and Medicine.
(Scheduled to be implemented: Veterinary Medicine; Biomedical Science and Engineering; and Infectious Diseases)

Contacting your potential supervisor by using PSS to obtain provisional approval

How to use the Pre-admission Support System

1. Check the application guidelines in the "Information for Applicants" of each graduate school.

Please be sure to check the application guidelines posted on the website of each department, which state the period during which you can apply for PSS.


*Currently, only the following departments and departments are able to obtain tentative approval through PSS.
Humanities and Human Sciences, Education, Graduate School of Law, Economics and Business, Graduate Information Science and Technology, Medicine, Graduate School Veterinary Medicine, Biomedical Science and Engineering, Infectious Diseases

2. Find a faculty member who you would like to be your supervisor.

For your convenience, there is a link to the "List of Faculty Members" on each graduate school page on this website.

3. Prepare the documents required for PSS application.

Please note that the PSS application documents are different from those for entrance examinations.

4. Create an account on PSS and submit your PSS application.

PSS applications are only accepted during the period set by the graduate school to which you wish to apply. Please check the application guidelines for the PSS application period required to obtain provisional approval.

5. You will be notified of your results from the Hokkaido University Pre-admissions Support Desk (PSD) in 2-3 weeks.

You will receive an email from PSD once your professor has completed their review.
Once you have been approved, you will need to submit your application within the specified period.

Preparation of PSS application documents

Before you begin your PSS application, please prepare the following documents required for the application:

①Research plan and supplemental materials
Each graduate school has a different format.
Please download the specific format, if any, from the links below and check the necessary supplemental materials.

Department Research Plan Supplemental documents that need to be submitted

*For details, please check the website of the application department.

Humanities and Human Sciences download Letter of recommendation, document proving Japanese language proficiency
Education download None
Law download Letter of recommendation, document proving Japanese language proficiency
Economics and Business Download for research students

For Master’s and Doctoral Program

Research students: Japanese or English exam scores

Regular students: Japanese and English test scores

Information Science and Technology download None
Veterinary Medicine TBD TBD
Biomedical Science and Engineering TBD TBD
Medicine download a document that serves as proof of your ability to cover the expenses, such as a bank balance certificate or a copy of your acceptance letter to receive a scholarship in your home country

 

*The following expenses are required for studying in Japan.
The attached certificate should indicate that you are able to pay for the following expenses.
*This proof is to confirm that you can afford to pay the necessary expenses for studying in Japan.Please attach the proof with making account number and other unnecessary information unseen.

 

《Estimated tuition + living expenses》
Research student for 6 months: 1 million yen
Research student for one year: 1.9 million yen
Master’s student for two years: 4 million yen
Doctoral student for four years: 8 million yen

Infectious Diseases TBD TBD

 

② Letter of recommendation
It's not required, but we strongly recommend that you obtain one if possible.

③ Certificates related to your university
The documents required vary depending on the location of the university (university in mainland China or university outside of mainland China) and enrollment status (currently enrolled or graduated), please see below.

A. University in Mainland China

Those who have already graduated from university

Documents 1) to 3)  in English issued by CSSD (Centre for Student Services and Development, Ministry of Education, PR China).

1) Online Verification Report of Higher Education Degree Certificate

2) Verification Report of China Higher Education Student's Academic Transcript
*If the document cannot be issued in time, you may also submit a PDF version of the university-issued document.

3)  Online Verification Report of Higher Education Qualification Certificate

Enrolled in university

Documents 1) and 2)  in English issued by CSSD (Centre for Student Services and Development, Ministry of Education, PR China).

1) Online Verification Report of Student Record

2) Verification Report of China Higher Education Student's Academic Transcript
*If the document cannot be issued in time, you may also submit a PDF version of the university-issued document.

B. University Outside of Mainland China

Those who have already graduated from university

1) Certificate of Graduation or Diploma in English

2) Academic Transcript in English

*In principle, digitally certified certificates should be uploaded. Photocopied certificates may be uploaded only when certificates that have not been digitally authenticated can be issued.

*If the certificate is a translated version, the original certificate (in a language other than English) should also be attached.

*For those who have graduated or completed their studies at a Japanese university, a Japanese-language certificate may be submitted.

Enrolled in university

1) Certificate of Expected Graduation / Enrollment in English

2) Academic Transcript in English

*In principle, digitally certified certificates should be uploaded. Photocopied certificates may be uploaded only when certificates that have not been digitally authenticated can be issued.

*If the certificate is a translated version, the original certificate (in a language other than English) should also be attached.

*For those who have graduated or completed their studies at a Japanese university, a Japanese-language certificate may be submitted.

④Documents proving English and Japanese language proficiency (optional)

⑤Certificate showing that you are planning to receive a scholarship (only if you are planning to receive a scholarship)

⑥Photo: A photo of your face from the shoulders up facing forward (jpg, gif, png)

Applying for PSS

Account registration

Please access the following website during the application period designated by your graduate school and begin the PSS application process.

Click "Register an Account" at the bottom of the top screen and register the email address you plan to use.
After registering your email address, you will receive an email from PSD to the registered address. Click on the link to complete your registration.

Compiling a PSS application

Please enter the required information in the lower section of "Application Form (ID:〇)" on the right side of the screen.
Your ID will be assigned automatically.
Items with an "*" in the upper right corner of the item name are required fields. If you do not fill in all the fields, you will not be able to complete your PSS application.

When entering information, please check the following points and then proceed.

■ Basic information
Current Status
・Please describe your current status and situation.
(Example) "Currently studying at XX University", "Currently living in Japan and attending XX Japanese language school",
"After graduating from university, I will not be working for any particular company until I find a place to study abroad," or "I will be working for XX Co., Ltd. in XX country."

■ Application details
Desired enrollment period
・Please enter the time when you wish to enroll at Hokkaido University.
・If you plan to continue on to a Master's degree program after being a research student, please enter the date of enrollment as a research student.

《Graduate school/institution of choice》
・Please select the graduate school you wish to enter. You cannot select a graduate school  that is not recruiting at the time of PSS application.

《Desired enrollment course》
・Please select the course you wish to enroll in. You cannot apply for courses that are not currently recruiting.

《Desired potential supervisor》
・Please select the faculty member you would like to be your supervisor.
Some faculty members may not be accepting students.
If after selecting a faculty member, a notice appears stating that the faculty member is not accepting students, please select a different faculty member.
・Indicating your second choice of faculty member is optional.

"Research Plan"
・Please upload the research plan that you have prepared in advance as specified by your graduate school.
・Please convert it to a PDF before uploading.

Letter of Recommendation
・Please upload a letter of recommendation in PDF format with the recommender's signature.

■Educational Background
・Please fill in all educational history after high school graduation.
If you are/were enrolled in any graduate program(s) in addition to your undergraduate program(s), after entering the required information about your undergraduate program(s), click "Add educational history" on the bottom right and enter the educational history about your graduate program(s), etc.
"school name"
・Select the type and country of location to display a list of university names.
a. Enter the name of the university in English in the search box and search.
b. If your university is not listed, select "Other" and enter the name of your university in the box on the right.

《Certificates》
・Please upload the documents mentioned above in PDF format. Your application will not be complete unless you upload all the required documents.

■ Supplemental Materials
・Please upload documents showing English proficiency (TOEFL, IELTS, etc.), documents showing Japanese proficiency, and any other documents required by the graduate school you are applying to.

■Financial Plan
・Please select your scholarship status.
・If you have been awarded a scholarship or are currently applying for a scholarship, please upload documents showing the status of your application.
 
■ Employment History
If you have work experience, be sure to fill it in.
 
■ Correspondence with PSD
- Please select the language you would like to use for any future contact with PSD.
If there are any other points to note regarding your application, please write them in.

Save and submit your PSS application

Once you have finished filling in all the information, click the "Save" button at the top right or bottom of the screen.

If all required information has been filled in,
the "Send" button will appear at the top of the screen.
A confirmation screen will be displayed, so please check that the information entered is correct.
If there are no errors, click the "Submit" button to complete your application.

If the required information has not been filled out,
the number of errors will be displayed in a red circle at the top of the screen.
Please check the items circled in red and re-enter the necessary information.

Completion of PSS application

Once you click the submit button, your PSS application is complete.
Please wait one week to receive a response from PSD regarding the details of your PSS application within a week.

Q. Can I save my PSS application even though I haven't filled it out completely yet?

A. Even if you are in the process of applying, if you click the save button, it will be saved in its current state. When you log in again, you can resume where you left off.

Q. After completing the PSS application, can I change the information provided or add additional documents?

A. Once a PSS application is completed, the application details cannot be changed. If there are any errors in the details or documents, please contact PSD using the message function on the left side of the PSS application screen.

What happens after applying for PSS?

Reception of PSS application

The PSD will check the PSS application details, and if there are any deficiencies, use the message function to send any questions.
After applying for PSS, please check your registered email address regularly and respond promptly.
Once PSD has completed checking the application details, we will contact you to let you know that your PSS application has been duly received.

Review by faculty members

After receiving your PSS application, our faculty members will consider whether or not you should be provisionally approved. PSD will notify you of the results once the faculty members have completed their review.

About online interviews
In principle, when applying for provisional approval using PSS, online interviews with faculty will not be conducted.
However, please note that an interview may be conducted depending on the content of your PSS application.

PSS application results

In principle, we will inform you of the result of your application for provisional approval via PSS within two weeks of receiving the application. However, please note that it may take longer than two weeks if your desired supervisor is absent for an extended period of time.

○ If approved provisionally
If you are notified that you have been accepted, please check the application guidelines of the graduate school you are applying to and then proceed with the application process. Please note that the PSS application and the entrance examination application procedures are completely separate, so you will need to include the documents you submitted for the PSS application in your entrance examination application documents.
<<Code with provisional approval (PSS code)>>
When PSD notifies you of your acceptance, it may also notify you of the "Code with provisional approval (PSS Code)," depending on the graduate school for which you have applied. Don't forget to save this code, if any, as it will be required for the entrance examination.

○ If not approved provisionally
If your application is not approved, you can, in principle, apply for PSS again to obtain provisional approval from a different faculty member. Please note that you cannot apply for PSS again for the same faculty member.
Please also note that if the PSS application period for obtaining provisional approval set by the graduate school has ended or if you have been notified separately by the graduate school that reapplication is not permitted, you will not be able to submit a PSS application again.