Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program 2020 for Developing Countries Nationals (Fully Funded to Japan)

Application Deadline: October 24, 2019.

The Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP) is open to women and men from developing countries with relevant professional experience and a history of supporting their countries’ development efforts who are applying to a master degree program in a development-related topic.   

Since 1996, the Graduate School of Business and Commerce of Keio University has been training promising tax personnel in the field of tax policy and administration with its Master’s Degree Program in Taxation Policy and Management. This program brings together the cooperation of Keio University, the National Tax Agency of Japan (NTA), and the World Bank in an alliance between public and private institutions.

Funded by the GOVERNMENT OF JAPAN and administered by the WORLD BANK Keio University, a leading private university in Japan, established the program as one of the partnership programs of the Joint Japan /World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP). Funded by the Government of Japan and administered by the World Bank, the JJ/WBGSP is a personnel training project which awards scholarships to help developing countries strengthen their human resources.

Application Eligibility

• Be a national of a Bank member country that is eligible to receive Bank financing and not be a national of any country that is not eligible to receive the Bank financing. For the list of eligible World Bank countries, see eligible country list.
• Not hold dual citizen of any developed country.
• Be in good health with respect to the capacity to be a productive scholar for the duration of the Graduate Program, as certified by a medical doctor.
• Hold a Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent with superior academic achievement earned at least three (3) years  prior to the Scholarship Application Deadline.
• Not received any scholarship funding to earn a Graduate degree or its equivalent from any sources funded by the government of Japan.
• Be employed in a paid and full time position at the time of the Scholarship Application Deadline unless the applicant is from a country identified in the World Bank’s “Harmonized List of Fragile Situations”. 
• Have, by  the time of  the Scholarship Application Deadline, at  least three（3）years of recent full time paid professional experience in the field of tax policy and administration at a public body (institution) after a Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent in the applicant’s home country or in another developing country; If the applicant is from a country identified in the World Bank’s “Harmonized List of Fragile Situations” at the time of the Scholarship Application Deadline, the recent professional experience does not have to be full time or paid.
• Not be  an  Executive Director,  his / her alternate, staff of  the World  Bank Group（the  World Bank, International Development Association, International Finance Corporation, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, and International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes）, or a close relative of the aforementioned by blood or adoption with the term “close relative” defined as: Mother, Father, Sister, Half-sister, Brother, Half-brother, Son, Daughter, Aunt, Uncle, Niece, or Nephew.
• Accepted to the University unconditionally or conditionally only upon securing financing.
• Demonstrate proficiency in the English language at the level of a TOEFL score of 79 (iBT) or  better, or an IELTS score of 6.0 or better.
• Meet any other criteria for admission established by Keio University.
• Applicants must not be currently pursuing a Master’s or Ph.D. program in industrialized countries.
• Applicants must not have had one or more years of training / studies and / or residency in an industrialized  country.
• Applicants must not be permanent residents / nationals of industrialized countries.

Scholarship Worth

A Monthly stipend: JPY 152,000 
 *To cover all living expenses (accommodations, food, etc., including books).
Application Fee, Admission Fee, and Tuition Economy-class air travel between your home country and Japan at the start of your study program at Keio and immediately following the end of the scholarship period.
In addition to the two-way air travel, scholars will receive a USD500 travel allowance for each trip;

Application Procedure

• Applications are accepted upon completion of Online Registration and Submission of Application Documents.
• Online Registration must be completed by October 24, 2019.   
• Application documents must be submitted by mail and must reach the Keio University by October 31, 2019. We do not accept applications via fax or email.
• Send the original copy of the application documents. Copies of the application will not be accepted.
• Please make a copy of all the application documents for your records. The World Bank may ask you to submit the copy in the selection process by the World Bank.
• Late applications and incomplete applications will not be accepted. Keio will not notify applicants of missing  documents.
• Application documents may also be downloaded from the homepage of the Master’s Degree Program in Taxation Policy and  Management.
• Applicants who have applied for a program offered by Keio and have passed the selection process by Keio will be asked to complete additional online application by the World Bank, which will make the final admission  decision.

For More Information:

Visit the Official Webpage of the Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program 2020