[Answer]
First of all, your cousin needs to decide his main objective of studying
in Japan, based on the field he would like to study, his Japanese language
ability and financial situation. Here are basic plans he can choose from:
① Short-term study is one option if his goal is not
earning a diploma and he plans to study for less than a year. If your cousin is
currently enrolled in a university at home, he can talk with an international
exchange counselor at his school to see if his university has any exchange
program with a Japanese counterpart. Most of the programs available are a
half-a-year or one-year course of Japanese language or culture studies, which
are chiefly conducted in English. Some courses are offered in Japanese and
others are for students interested in learning specialized subjects. Applications
to this course should be made through his school at home. He should keep paying
his tuition to his original school in his country, not to his host university
in Japan, even if he is studying in Japan. Sometimes, however, he is required
to pay additional fee to his host university in Japan to participate in certain
programs.
He can also apply for the students exchange support program scholarship available
from the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) or scholarship run by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).
Application to these scholarships is made via a host Japanese university while
he is studying at his home school.
② If earning a degree is his goal, he needs to
consider several elements – whether he has completed the required 12 years of
primary and secondary education at home, his academic ability, financial
situation, and Japanese language proficiency (classes at universities are
usually conducted in Japanese). Most universities provide a special entrance examination
for international students, alongside of general examination designed for
Japanese students. Foreign applicants usually go through documentary screening,
an interview session in Japan, and written tests, before admissions. Some schools
use the results of standardized tests such as the Japan Study Test and Japanese
Language Proficiency Test, while others use their own Japanese language tests
to measure the level of Japanese language skill of the applicants. If he wishes to take this course, he can
select several schools that meet his goal and inquire for more detailed
information by contacting each school directly before making application.
Here is a list of scholarship programs he can apply to before coming to
Japan to study at a Japanese university.
*MEXT-sponsored Scholarship can be applied from Japanese embassies abroad
or in some cases, through Japanese universities you are going to enroll in.
*“Reservation
Program for Honors Scholarship for Privately Financed International Students” offered
by the JASSO is applicable at the time of taking the Japan
Study Test.
③ If he wishes to study Japanese language
intensively, he can enroll in a Japanese language course attached to a university,
or privately-run Japanese schools. Most of the schools offer preparatory
courses designed for students planning to enroll in a Japanese university after
graduation. Therefore, in principle, they are expected to meet university
entrance qualifications to be admitted to Japanese language schools. The number
of scholarship programs available to Japanese language school students is
limited. Furthermore, even those which are open to such students, most of them
can be applied only after applicants are admitted to school. If he is not
interested in pursuing his study at university in Japan, short-term course
mentioned in ① may be more suitable.
Other courses offered to international students are:
1) Short-term program open to students from any schools abroad. In this case
tuitions should be paid to the host Japanese university.
2) “Pre-arrival admission course” enables applicants from abroad to obtain
admission based on their scores of entrance examination tests held overseas.
3) English degree courses
4) Japanese language courses are offered at the MEXT-authorized institutes for
students without 12 years of education outside Japan. Students from some countries,
who have only 10 or 11 years of education before completing high school, are
qualified to enter Japanese university once they finish their study at these
institutes.
For more information, please refer to “Information on Study in Japan” at JASSO’s homepage, where you can
find the following information;
Guide to study in Japan
A list of specialized courses
Search engine to help find school based on “major”
Information on scholarship programs
How to find information to study in Japan abroad (Japan study fairs, overseas
offices)
Information centers in Japan (Tokyo/Kobe)
As for scholarship sponsored by your government, please ask for information
at your government agencies.