The (long and complicated) pre-departure process that you should know if you’re exchanging to Japan (UTokyo).

mars 3, 2025

I wish I could say that the paperwork leading up to my departure was minimal and straightforward, but it really wasn’t. Luckily, I got help from the student who went on exchange to UTokyo last year, and she was a godsend! So, here are details on the whole application process, which I hope can give a useful overview to those planning on exchanging to UTokyo in the future.

(I had to apply for a visa as I am staying in Japan for over 90 days, but you wouldn’t need to if you are visiting for less than that.)

1. Find a Lab

First, I found and contacted a lab at the University where I would like to do my project. I browsed through the university’s webpage, which admittedly, is sometimes not the easiest to navigate. I started contacting labs in April which worked well for me, but as it also often takes time for PIs to reply, it doesn’t hurt to start even earlier.

2. Contact the University for an Acceptance Letter

Afterwards, I contacted the Graduate School of Medicine regarding receiving an acceptance letter. However, to be issued an acceptance letter, I needed to submit a form filled out by me and the lab’s PI confirming that they have taken me in as a ”Special Research Student”.

I was not quite aware of this step, so I did not submit my Special Research Student application until mid-July. Then, I had to wait until their next committee meeting in September before they could issue me my acceptance letter. I was likely unfortunate with the timing and just missed their previous meeting, but I ended up receiving my letter by the last week of September.

3. Certificate of Eligibility (CoE) Application (sent physically by post)

The acceptance letter from the university is required for another application for the Certificate of Eligibility (CoE), which is a requirement for a student visa. (Yes, it’s a lot of steps and documents).

In the meantime, while waiting for my acceptance letter, the graduate school recommended that I complete my CoE application first as I needed to physically mail it to the University. The Graduate School of Medicine is the one responsible for submitting my CoE application for me, but they can only do so once I have received my Acceptance Letter. The processing time of the CoE is supposed to take 2-3 months. That stressed me out slightly as it would have been the end of December by 3 months. However, I got mine in November after just 1.5 months, as predicted by the graduate school.

Filling out the CoE application properly is very important, and the graduate school was very helpful in that regard. I would send them a copy of my digitally filled application, and they would proofread and reply with any changes that are required.

Once completed, I printed it out and mailed it to the University with the other documents they required at the end of August. The graduate school submitted my CoE application with my acceptance letter at the end of September. Then, I received my CoE by email from the graduate school in mid-November.

4. Make an Appointment for Visa Applications at the Japanese Embassy in Stockholm.

Once I had my CoE, I made an appointment with the Embassy of Japan in Stockholm to apply for my student visa at the end of November. Documents I needed for that included the visa application form, my passport, the CoE, and another photo.

I received a call from them about 1.5 weeks later that my visa was completed. I then picked it up from the embassy at the beginning of December. A single-entry student visa costs 230kr, but note that the embassy only accepts cash payment for the visa.

Quick tip, also make sure that your cash is not outdated. I was very unlucky in that aspect as one of my 20kr notes was not accepted. I ended up spending an extra hour hunting for an ATM before I could get my visa. :’)

5. Finally Relax, and wait for departure!

After the visa, I could finally relax and wait for my departure to Tokyo in January and that’s that! The whole process needed a lot of documents and time, so my main tip would be to start early. Contact the university regarding what to do since there are a lot of steps, and in case things go wrong.

While this is an exchange agreement between KI and UTokyo, KI wasn’t involved with my contact with UTokyo. You are independent in sorting all of this out. Therefore, having an overview of this complicated process from the beginning would save a lot of time and stress. Nonetheless, I hope I’ve provided people with some idea about the pre-departure processes with this blog and maybe made everything less terrifying to those hoping to exchange after me!

See you next time!