Kyoto

Research & Internships

Internship Opportunities

The Kyoto program combines a Winter or Spring Quarter of academic study in Kyoto with a subsequent Summer internship, normally located elsewhere in Japan. Internships are arranged by the Kyoto program officer in Kyoto and are designed to introduce Stanford students concentrating in engineering, science, finance, management, and political economy to Japanese and multinational firms and research institutions located in Japan. Working in such a corporation or research laboratory exposes students to the organization and culture of a Japanese professional environment.

All students are encouraged to participate in an internship, which lasts for ten weeks. Student's living expenses are covered during the internship period. This introductory experience often leads to ongoing contact with a firm and may result in employment. Some students later return to Japan for a more extended period of time for further study or work.

Past internships have involved students writing software programs to address production issues at a Japanese machinery firm, working as part of a design team to create new functions and user-friendly features for cell phones, testing the strength of materials at a heavy industrial company, researching aspects of Alzheimer’s disease at a neuroscience lab, shadowing and assisting doctors and nurses at a hospital for children with special needs, structuring derivatives at an investment bank, and writing and editing materials at a major economic organization to promote regional development in the Kansai area, among many others. See the section, What I Did in Kyoto, for some specific cases of current and past Student Advisors.

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Research Opportunities

A limited number of participants will have the opportunity to conduct independent research. All projects must be developed in consultation with the director, Andrew Horvat. Projects should focus on an aspect of Japanese culture, society, or public policy. Students are encouraged to discuss proposed projects with the director as early as possible, and no later than the start of the student's quarter in Kyoto. Research projects typically earn two to three units of credit.

Student Grants for Research Overseas

Undergraduate Advising and Research (UAR) administers several grants that can support research overseas, including the Quarterly and Major Grants. Help to prepare for the grant competitions is available via email. For deadlines, directions, and specific policies regarding off-campus research, please visit the UAR student grants website.

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