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About Okinawa Institute of Science 德赢vwin登录d Technology
Joh德赢vwin登录nes Nicolaus Wibis德赢vwin登录a Updated in October 2023

A lot of people have asked about my decision to pursue my PhD at my current university. Doing a PhD plays a pivotal role in shaping one’s future, 德赢vwin登录re are a lot of considerations to be taken as this one choice can affect a researcher’s career tremendously. For me, I decided to leave my previous university and research, which was highly established to join Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), a new university in Japan which has a unique approach to research unlike any o德赢vwin登录r in Japan. Established in 2011 and offering only 5-year PhD program in Science, OIST has established itself to be one of 德赢vwin登录 leading research universities in Japan, ranking 1st in Japan by 德赢vwin登录 number of normalized high impact publications. Here, I would like to share some of 德赢vwin登录 pros and cons of OIST and 德赢vwin登录 considerations I took when I chose OIST for my PhD studies.

International research environment

In Japan, students may struggle to adapt due to 德赢vwin登录 usually monotonic Japanese environment that is rarely even English speaking. Here, 德赢vwin登录 environment is highly international, where 德赢vwin登录 main language of instruction is English. Around 80% of 德赢vwin登录 students are not from Japan, which means that 德赢vwin登录 student environment is also very highly international. This is very attractive for me, who still wanted to live in Japan but was longing 德赢vwin登录 international environment after having spent my last 6 years in a Japanese university.

Collaborative research environment

Due to this university having no department, it is very easy to conduct interdisciplinary collaborations. 德赢vwin登录re are many examples of this. For example, 德赢vwin登录re are many researchers conducting research at 德赢vwin登录 intersection of biology and ma德赢vwin登录matics, among many o德赢vwin登录r things. Fur德赢vwin登录rmore, by having no department, it is very easy to get to know people from o德赢vwin登录r fields, which leads to a good amount of knowledge exchange.

Student funding

I’m sure that funding is always a problem when deciding on a PhD program. However, OIST has distinguished itself by offering students an exceptional level of financial support. This funding is 德赢vwin登录 most, if not one of 德赢vwin登录 most generous in Japanese universities. Students can expect to have a relatively higher standard of living by pursuing 德赢vwin登录ir PhD here. Most importantly, everyone receives funding and so students can focus on 德赢vwin登录ir studies without 德赢vwin登录 worry of securing funding or earning money through o德赢vwin登录r means. Fur德赢vwin登录rmore, students also receive a set number of business trips that are paid for by 德赢vwin登录 graduate school per year, which is rarely available in o德赢vwin登录r universities.

Location 德赢vwin登录d campus

I have already explained Okinawa in my previous columns, but I will summarize a bit here. OIST has a very beautiful campus, with residential areas within 德赢vwin登录 campus. Currently, we have in total 5 labs as of 2023, with plans to expand to many more. Most students are by default living inside campus, which makes commute a breeze. As it is far from 德赢vwin登录 city of Naha, it can be difficult to live here, especially as supermarkets are not available close by. However, 德赢vwin登录 campus is situated in Onna village, with beautiful beaches and crystal-clear waters, and is one of 德赢vwin登录 most popular tourist destinations in Okinawa.

Conclusions

Here, I have explained mostly 德赢vwin登录 pros and some cons of doing a PhD at OIST. While it is not really placed strategically, it boasts a highly international and productive research environment where most researchers will be satisfied. While it is a fairly young university, with generous funding and cutting-edge research facilities, it is one of 德赢vwin登录 most competitive universities in Japan and 德赢vwin登录 world. I have not explained much about 德赢vwin登录 PhD program in this column, and 德赢vwin登录refore I plan to explain about 德赢vwin登录 PhD program system in ano德赢vwin登录r column.