Universities set to accept Brazilian science majors

Osaka University

Japanese universities are being asked to accept about 1,300 Brazilian science majors over the next three years in a program funded by the South American country aimed at building its industrial development and helping Japanese firms advance into its market, government officials said.

According to the plan, the 1,300 will include 550 students seeking a Ph.D., 350 doctorate candidates who will study for one year and 100 undergraduates, said Kenji Shimboku, an official with the student exchange department of the Japan Student Services Organization.

The plan is a response to the Brazilian government’s scholarship program, which aims to nurture human resources in the fields of science and technology as well as to boost the country’s global competitiveness.

Some in Ph.D. programs already enrolled this month, while the program for undergraduates is starting in the fall, according to Shimboku. Participating schools include Hokkaido University, the University of Tokyo and Osaka University.

The scholarship program, which was announced by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in April 2011, is funded by the Brazilian government.

In this country, the Foreign Ministry is asking firms doing business in Brazil to hire Brazilian students as interns, a ministry official said, in order “to help cultivate Brazilians who are familiar with Japan.”

“It will eventually contribute to enhancing economic exchanges between Japan and Brazil, if people who did internships work for Japanese companies later,” the official said.