Your new life in graduate school is about to begin. But how is graduate school different from undergraduate school?
On this page, we will explain the administrative aspects of credits, lectures, etc., while including personal experiences

Graduate school lectures

Required credits

The number of credits required is about 30 for a master's degree and 20 for a doctoral degree (including master's and doctoral theses). The details differ depending on the graduate school and course, so please check the handbook distributed at the orientation. First, it is important to understand the required courses such as seminars and graduation theses. For the remaining credits, you may be allowed to take lectures outside of your course. You may also be allowed to take lectures for undergraduate students

Course plan during enrollment

Graduate students are primarily focused on research. Therefore, even though there is no upper limit on the number of credits they can take, it is not a good idea to cram too many lectures into your studies. However, the later you are in your studies, the busier you tend to be with research for your graduation thesis and so on, so it is best to get all your credits as soon as possible. In a master's program, if you take about 6-7 classes a week, you will be able to get most of your credits by the second year, so it should not be too much of a burden. One of the great things about graduate school is that there are no strict restrictions on credits
Students who proceed to a doctoral program may be able to carry over any extra credits they have earned during their master's program to the doctoral program

Notes on course registration

To register for lectures,UTASPlease note that the course registration period for S semester (summer semester) is usually very limited, lasting approximately two weeks in April

Lecture content

There are a variety of lectures available at graduate schools, but compared to undergraduates, there is a higher proportion of seminar-style lectures. In other words, a certain piece of literature is read by a group, the lecturer gives a presentation, and students deepen their understanding through questions and discussions about the content. The quality of the resumes is often high, so careful preparation and a considerable amount of prior knowledge are required. However, if you change your perspective, your research topic can be used in any presentation, so the more motivated you are to work at it, the more interesting your seminar will be
Depending on the laboratory or department, you may also be required to attend seminars once or twice a week (these are required courses). These seminars mainly consist of research presentations and paper introductions, and are often held jointly with other laboratories, providing an opportunity to broaden your research horizons

About TA

At the master's level, you may be asked to work as a teaching assistant (TA), helping with lectures and mentoring undergraduate students. Often, the position naturally comes up within the lab, and it's usually a part-time job with an hourly wage of around 1,300 yen. Students appreciate this position because it allows them to attend classes while also working part-time, making it an easy way to earn money on campus. In addition, the time spent on tasks such as preparing materials may also be reflected in your salary. However, the workload may increase at the end of the semester, as you may have to compile reports for undergraduate students and grade tests. Since this position often overlaps with busy periods for job hunting and research, it's a good idea to understand the job content beforehand

Life in the lab

The role of graduate students

In many laboratories, first-year master's students are tasked with running and managing the independent seminars and meetings held within the lab. Graduate students also primarily maintain student rooms and laboratories, and plan events both inside and outside the lab, such as research meetings and training camps. Depending on the lab, graduate students may also be responsible for updating the website, ordering supplies, and managing invoices. Another important role for graduate students is mentoring junior students. In laboratories with a particularly large number of fourth-year undergraduate students, graduate students may be asked to check slides and meeting materials and offer advice on research. While circumstances vary somewhat from student to student, there is no doubt that graduate students are the core of the lab. Laboratories are places with deep ties to society, and graduate students are expected to behave as members of society. Graduate school is also a place to learn about society

About part-time jobs

According to the 2019 Student Life Survey, 65.6% of graduate students at the University of Tokyo have part-time jobs, comparable to the 67.1% of undergraduate students (according to the same survey in 2020). By type, 33.3% are TAs, 17.6% are cram school/preparatory school instructors, and 7.9% are private tutors. Some students work part-time in the food service industry or as office staff, while others focus on research during the week and work part-time jobs on weekends. Research is largely at the discretion of the individual, and it is possible to find time through careful time management. However, time commitments vary greatly depending on the lab. Some labs require students to come to the lab on weekends, and many labs have frequent research commitments, making part-time work difficult. It's a good idea to consult with your seniors and professors before starting

Enjoying life in the lab

While laboratories are places where research and chores are carried out, they are also places where people with various backgrounds gather and talk. There are many laboratories where members get along well both inside and outside of school, and they often meet up for drinks every weekend or play sports together on the days off. At the same time, it is also true that some people struggle with interpersonal relationships in the lab or suffer from academic harassment from faculty. If you have any concerns, please seek help from a harassment counseling center or student counseling center

University of Tokyo Counseling Support Research and Development Center

About international students and English

About international students

Graduate school offers significantly more opportunities to interact with international students than undergraduate school. There are 4,274 international students (as of November 1, 2021) in master's, doctoral, and research programs across the graduate school, with 3,829 coming from Asia. Generally, there are more international students in science laboratories, and in some laboratories there are even more international students than Japanese students. When an international student is enrolled in a laboratory, graduate students act as tutors, helping with government applications and daily life. Interacting with international students also provides an opportunity to learn English, so be sure to actively engage with them

English in research settings

In graduate school, whether in the sciences or humanities, there are many opportunities to use English. This is a field that has hardly been studied in Japan, and many specialized books are only available in English. Some schools hold all meetings in English, so if you can't speak English, you will have a very hard time
Some graduate schools also offer special English lessons with external English instructors

Graduate school life of seniors

C.K. (1st year master's student, Comprehensive Analytical Informatics course, Department of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies)

About the lecture

　I thought I would try to get all the credits other than my master's thesis during my first year of the master's program so that my research life would be easier later. In fact, professors at the graduate school recommend that you take all the required credits, such as introductions, that you can take in the first year. In my lab, students take a certain amount of the same lectures, so I was able to schedule all the general meetings and thesis discussions at times when those lectures were not available. There are fewer lectures than in undergraduate programs, so it may seem easier, but it is busy when you include research activities (searching for papers for research, working and studying, preparing for presentations at meetings, etc.), so it is important to balance lectures and research activities in a well-planned manner
　If it is difficult to find a fixed time each week, you can also take intensive courses. The Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies holds an exhibition where students from various courses come together, and these courses are also recognized as credits if taken properly

C.K.'s timetable

Intensive Lecture: Fundamentals of AI Systems
Intensive Lecture: AI Systems Practice
Intensive Course: Special Lecture on Comprehensive Analytical Informatics XIIIA

Year-long intensive course: Introduction to Interdisciplinary Information Studies III

Research Life

　My research mainly involves programming and conducting demonstration experiments to build smart building systems. Previously, many students would go to the lab every day, but due to the impact of COVID-19, almost all research activities, such as general meetings and team meetings, can now be carried out from home. However, some students still go to the lab to work in order to concentrate
　In my field, research often uses machine learning, so our lab is equipped with several high-performance computers. While managing access rights and other matters has been left to students, there's no need to worry if you check handover documents or ask your professors or senior colleagues for any questions. Our lab is also divided into teams based on research fields, and we hold weekly team meetings where we can report and discuss the progress of our research activities with our professors. When you're unsure how to proceed with your research, it's important not to worry about it alone, but to consult with your professors or senior colleagues. They may be able to point out solutions you might not have noticed on your own
　My current concern is balancing my research activities with job hunting, but I would like to continue trying my best to find an interesting research topic through trial and error and use it to contribute to my master's thesis

T.K. (1st year master's student, Graduate School of Education, Department of Educational Sciences)

About the lecture

　It can be difficult to predict how long research will take, so it is wise to complete all the credits you need to complete your studies as soon as possible
For those who enrolled from outside the university (I myself had a different major in undergraduate studies), it is important to attend undergraduate lectures and learn the basics. Although there are restrictions on undergraduate lectures, some can be counted as credits toward graduation, so I actively attended them. I also attended seminars for other courses to broaden my knowledge
　What was difficult was the increased number of chores, such as being in charge of lab management, running seminars, and arranging dinner parties. I think it's the same in any lab, not being able to devote all of your time to studying and research. As a graduate student, I've come to realize that self-management of time and schedules is more important than anything else

T.K.'s timetable

Research Life

　The amount of time spent on research depends on the content of the research. If the research involves digging into materials, many people find themselves spending all their time in the library outside of lectures and seminars
　Additionally, those who conduct full-scale fieldwork will spend around a month in a local community, conducting repeated interviews and other research, then returning to the same field after some time has passed, and so on. The remaining time is spent on analysis, researching references, checking research trends in the field, etc. However, because the scope of education studies is so broad, no amount of time is enough, which is a tough thing for researchers
Finished papers are then submitted to academic journals or presented at conferences, but the pace at which they are done varies from person to person. At the graduate student level, it's good to be able to submit one or two papers a year, but a research project is not easily completed, so in many cases, for example, conferences only provide interim reports on the research process. Conferences themselves seem to be held once or twice a year
　Depending on your research field, you may need to collaborate and interact with laboratories at other universities, external research organizations, social education facilities, etc. In order to broaden your horizons as much as possible and ensure access to resources, it is a good idea to actively visit external organizations rather than confining yourself to your own laboratory