Ookayama Campus, home to the Institute of Science Tokyo headquarters, in Meguro Ward, Tokyo.
On January 23, the Institute of Science Tokyo was designated an "University for International Research Excellence," a government program that provides concentrated aid to develop world-class research capacity.
Following approval of its institutional plan and the determination of grant funding, the university will formally assume its status in April.
Roughly 80% of the subsidies, exceeding ¥10 billion JPY (around $64.9 million USD) in the first year, will be used for research personnel.
Built around the interdisciplinary "Visionary Initiative" (VI) in the graduate schools, the effort seeks to boost research capacity through fiscal 2050.
A New Flagship in Tokyo
Established in October 2024 through the merger of Tokyo Institute of Technology and Tokyo Medical and Dental University, the Institute of Science Tokyo focuses on medical–engineering collaboration. It draws on strengths in science, engineering, medicine, and dentistry.
Designated universities can receive concentrated government support for up to 25 years. This is financed by returns from the government-established University Fund, valued at ¥10 trillion (around $64.9 billion).
Allocations depend on the amount of external funding each university secures. Tohoku University, for instance, received about ¥15.4 billion (around $99.9 million) this fiscal year, while the Institute of Science Tokyo is expected to receive over ¥10 billion (around $64.9 million) in its first year.
Why the Program Matters Now
The initiative was launched amid growing concern over Japan's weakening research capacity, illustrated by its slide behind countries such as South Korea and Iran in high-impact scientific publications.
With science and technology central to economic competitiveness and national security, restoring research strength is an urgent priority.
The government plans to limit the top-tier designation to a small number of Japanese universities. In this evaluation round, Kyoto University was also identified as a candidate and asked to refine its institutional plan.
The University of Tokyo will be reviewed to determine whether it should remain a candidate after an associate professor was arrested in the fall of 2025 on suspicion of bribery.
Rewriting the Research Model
In its transition, the Institute of Science Tokyo will make the VI framework within its graduate schools the core of its reform, implementing it within the first three years.
All graduate schools will be consolidated into a single Graduate School of Integrated Sciences (tentative name), with multiple VIs established inside it. Likewise, all professors, associate professors, and principal researchers will be affiliated with several VIs.
VIs are vision-driven, cross-disciplinary research groups. The six existing VIs each pursue distinct goals, spanning fields such as space habitation, cyber-physical co-creation, green transformation (GX), and disaster- and pandemic-resilient societies.
Kotaro Inoue, the Institute of Science Tokyo's finance director, said today's challenges cannot be addressed within a single field, explaining the need for cross-disciplinary research.
"We will maximize interdisciplinary research through the VI," he said.
The university plans to increase the number of VIs to eight by April and will continue to review and adjust them as needed.
Turning Research Into Practice
Meanwhile, the International Institute for Medical Engineering Collaboration and the Institute of New Industry Incubation function as platforms for translating VI research outcomes into real-world implementation.
The International Institute for Medical Engineering Collaboration is headquartered at the Institute of Science's Yushima and Surugadai campuses, home to its hospitals in central Tokyo. It aims to promote medical–engineering collaboration by using the hospitals as active clinical sites.
One focus area is technological innovation using medical-specific artificial intelligence, quantum technology, semiconductors, and robotics.
The Institute of New Industry Incubation has established new research facilities with stringent security measures at its Campus in Yokohama's Midori Ward and its International Campus in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture.
Such isolated environments allow research on highly sensitive technologies related to economic security and corporate confidentiality.
The "I4C" group will also play a key role in shaping the vision behind the VI framework. Echoing "I foresee," it anticipates future trends by drawing on insights from researchers at international conferences and analyzing emerging and critical technologies.
Putting Money Behind People
To that end, the Institute of Science Tokyo will direct roughly 80% of its first-year grant funding — over ¥10 billion ($64.9 million) — to personnel expenses.
Specialized research support staff, including research administrators and technical and administrative personnel, will increase by 1.5 times, to about 3,460.
The move is intended to reduce researchers' administrative burden by sharing tasks such as grant applications and equipment maintenance.
Doctoral enrollment will nearly triple to about 7,620 students. Japanese doctoral students, excluding working professionals and international students, will receive salary-level stipends equivalent to full-time salaries to help cultivate highly skilled talent.
Including tuition waivers of about ¥600,000 ($3,890), average annual support is expected to reach ¥4.4 million ($28,500) in the program's sixth year. And by the 25th year, it's expected to hit ¥5.4 million ($35,000) with top performers eligible for up to ¥10 million ($67,000).
The government program aims not only to strengthen research capacity but also to create new value through education and research and to cultivate outstanding talent.
As the first to be selected in the Tokyo metropolitan area, the Institute of Science Tokyo must deliver concrete results. Sustained progress and ongoing evaluation will be critical.
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Author: Shinji Ono, The Sankei Shimbun
(Read this in Japanese)
