MEXT Postgrad Scholarship:Interview Prep

sesungguhnya realiti itu tidak indah;

First and foremost, heartiest congratulations to those who have passed the written examination! The journey towards the scholarship is still far ahead, but worry not as we’ll go through it together.

The MEXT Scholarship is provided by the Japanese Government worldwide to over 168 countries and regions. This post is mainly meant for Malaysian postgraduate applicants who are applying through the embassy. However, feel free to have a read if it might come in handy to you as well!

At this point, I’m pretty sure that many of you are excited to start contacting universities for a Letter of Provisional Acceptance (LPA). While it is good to start the ball rolling by emailing prospective supervisors, it should be noted that most universities will not entertain any applications for LPA without a Certificate of Primary Screening, WHICH will only be issued by the embassy once you’ve passed the interview.

This may differ according to universities of course, but for now the main advice will be to focus on the INTERVIEW FIRST! As a rule of thumb, the interviews are conducted in English (even if you are proficient in Japanese). SO with that out of the way, let’s go over the top 5 things that are most likely to happen during the interview.

1. The First Five Minutes

Just as most interviews, the first five minutes will usually start with you introducing your research to the panel. There will be specialists in your field present, but  there will also be representatives from different associations that are related with the scholarship. Thus, it is always advisable to use layman terms when explaining your research. Of course, this might be particularly difficult in some fields that are very technical and specific, but do try your best as it will be hard for the panel to endorse something that they don’t understand. If you need some practice, get a family/friend from outside your field (I did this with my mum and dad) and try explaining to them your research plan. From there you will be able to identify the parts that need polishing or more work.

2. Why Japan?

If your research is not indirectly tied to Japan in any way, then they are most probably going to ask you why you are choosing the country itself. It’s good to do a bit of homework on this part if you particularly don’t have a strong reason for actually choosing Japan, other than because of the scholarship itself. Although my research was clearly related to Japan, some panel members stated that I could always do my research at Universiti Malaya or Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia as they also have similar programs. Find ways to link your research to Japan and why studying there will be more valuable for your research, compared to studying at other places.

3. Why this University?

During my interview a panel member looked through my university choices and asked why Hiroshima University and Osaka University, one of the top unis in the field of Japanese language education weren’t on my list. I explained to them that I had already contacted the office and that they will require JLPT N1 certification, something I did not have at the time being. Even if I had it, I was more interested in studying in the three universities I listed as they are more advanced in my field, and have the supervisor that I wish to work with. It should be noted that MEXT are usually more likely to send their scholars to national universities over private ones, so take this chance to justify why you need/must go to the university you want!

4. Why is your research important?

The panelists can be quite grueling at times. It’s their job to find flaws in your research plan and question you thoroughly about it in ever aspect possible. During my interview,  the specialist that was in my group told me about a whole program that was basically already doing the work that I was planning to do. He told me that what I was doing was no different from the program and that it would not be wise for them to fund something that is already being done. I was not aware at all about the program that he mentioned and was taken completely off guard. However, while I listened to his explanation of the program, I knew that they weren’t the same, and that there are big differences between the two. Even if they were similar, I highlighted that there are still many things that have no been uncovered that can be answered through my research and this will only complement the current work that is being carried out. He appreciated my response and replied with a very cheeky “we’ll see”. Conclusion is: Be prepared to stand up for your research, but always remember to do so in a calm and collected, confident manner.

5. In the End

Just as it is important to leave a first impression, the last impression you leave can also affect how they perceive you in regards to the scholarship. Regardless of the outcome, it is important  to be respectful and know when to move on. There’s only so much you can do in a short amount of time, so make sure that you have put across what you want and thank all the panelists for their feedback and questions. After that, you can head off to KLCC and grab some pretzels or whatever you fancy as a reward for getting through the interview!

Every interview will undoubtedly differ from one to another, however I do believe that at the core of it all, the panelists will look for someone who is confident and have faith in their research plan despite the amount of criticism that they put forth to the applicant. As long as you know your research by heart, I'm sure that you will do just fine.

Till then, all the best!

p/s I should let you all know that at the Scholarship Award Ceremony, I met again with the critical specialist and we had a good laugh about how difficult he was during the interview. In fact he didn't even remember it as there were too many applicants coming up to him saying the same thing!

Read up on the MEXT Scholarship Overview here.