For this purpose the Center holds periodic meetings. Twice a month, senior program officer meetings, attended by the Center’s director, deputy directors, and the senior program officers of each research group, are convened to exchange and compile information and views and to formulate proposals and advice from scientific perspectives on the full spectrum of JSPS’s programs. Once a month, the program officers meet to exchange updated information and news on research in their respective fields and to consider ways of applying them to JSPS’s operations.

Two program-improvement working groups are established within the Center, one for Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research and the other for the JSPS Research Fellowships for Young Scientists. Each group meets once a month to consider ways of enhancing the solicitation and selection systems of their respective programs and to draft related recommendations for JSPS.

(1) Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research
Program officers prepare lists of examiner candidates and chair review meetings. To ensure fairness and transparency, they do not participate in the screening or selection processes.

(2) JSPS Research Fellowships for Young Scientists
Program officers prepare lists of examiner candidates and participate in review meetings. They select candidates for the JSPS Prize and JSPS Ikushi Prize.

(3) JSPS’s international exchange programs
Program officers prepare lists of examiner candidates.

Program officers conduct surveys of science-promotion policies and research trends. The results of these surveys are applied by JSPS to enhance research quality, improve screening and assessment procedures, and design innovative programs.