Organization

Founding Year

Founded in 1932 with an endowment of Emperor Showa, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), or Gakushin for short, is Japan’s sole independent funding agency, established by way of a national law for the purpose of contributing to the advancement of science in all fields of the natural and social sciences and the humanities.
JSPS is an independent administrative institution under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).

Organization

Number of Executives and Employees
and Male/Female Ratio

Excluding fixed-term employees, the number of staff members is 176.
In recent years, there have been about 10 newly hired staff members each year, and the percentage of permanent employee (excluding seconded employees) in the total workforce has been increasing.

As of April 1, 2022, including fixed-term employees

Organization

Average Age of Staff Members

JSPS is an age-diverse workplace. Supervisors are approachable to their subordinates, being receptive to their opinions and ideas.

As of April 1, 2022

Organization

Number of Staff Members with
Postgraduate Degrees

There are some staff members who have experience of Research Fellowships for Young Researchers (Doctoral Course Students; DC) of the JSPS programs.
Staff members well-versed in the front lines of research also engage actively at JSPS.

As of April 1, 2022

Organization

Staff Composition

JSPS is composed of a diverse group of staff members, including those seconded from universities and other institutions across Japan and from the MEXT.

As of April 1, 2022

Organization

Annual Budget

In recent years, the operating subsidy from the national government has remained at approximately 27 billion yen each year. The overall scale of JSPS projects, including the Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research and other programs, is approximately 270 billion yen each year.

Supporting Research Funding

The Grants-in-Aid for Scientific
Research (KAKENHI)

For the Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) program, more than 8,000 researchers peer-review nearly 100,000 applications each year.

Supporting Research Funding

The Ratio of JSPS-supported
Researchers to the Japanese Nobel
Prize Winners in the Natural Sciences

Of the 25 Japanese Nobel Prize winners in the natural sciences (physiology or medicine, physics, and chemistry), 21 winners are the researchers who have ever received support from the JSPS, including Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI).
Through the various continuous support from JSPS, including KAKENHI, many researchers have been honored with Nobel Prizes.

Encouraging International Exchange

JSPS’s Overseas Offices

Main functions
・Collaborating with overseas academic promotion organizations
・Holding symposia
・Supporting overseas activities of Japanese universities
・Developing alumni networks among former JSPS program participants
・Sharing academic information in Japan and gathering information, such as global trends in scientific research
・Supporting researchers in their fieldwork

Encouraging International Exchange

Number of Researchers Sent Abroad

The JSPS programs have sent 5,459 researchers to 97 countries /areas around the world. (FY 2019 results)

Encouraging International Exchange

Number of Researchers Invited from Abroad

The JSPS programs have invited 3,040 researchers from 94 countries/areas around the world. (FY 2019 results)

Encouraging International Exchange

Number of International Joint Research Programs

The JSPS programs have supported 11,991 international joint research programs with 152 countries /areas around the world. (FY 2019 results: The total does not equal the sum of the programs in the circles because there are some joint research programs conducted with multiple countries.)

Encouraging International Exchange

Researcher Community
(Alumni Community)

To form, maintain and strengthen the networks among former and current JSPS fellows, an alumni community, supported by JSPS with follow-up activities, has been established.　
At present, 20 alumni associations of former JSPS fellows have been established around the world.

Fostering Researchers

Number of Research Fellowships for
Young Scientists

Doctoral students and outstanding young researchers with doctoral degrees are offered “Research Fellowships”, which allow them to devote themselves to their research at research institutions.

As of FY2022

Fostering Researchers

Percentage of the Recipients of
Research Fellowships for Young
Scientists for Full-time Research
Career Positions

82.4% of the Research Fellowships for Young Researchers (Doctoral Course Students or DC) recipients are in full-time research positions within 10 years after finishing their fellowships.

As of April 1, 2021

Enhancing University Education and Research

Research Centers established by World Premier
International Research Center Initiative (WPI)

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) established the WPI in FY 2007. It commissioned JSPS to conduct the program’s grant selection and project assessments processes and to perform support functions aimed at maximizing the WPI Program’s achievements.
Starting from 2007, 17 WPI centers, hosted by universities and research institutions, have been established. They attract outstanding research talent from around the world and carry out research projects that produce excellent, milestone results.
All WPI center have achieved its goal of 30% foreign researchers (in the supported period). In FY 2019 (before the pandemic) the average percentage of foreign researchers at each of the 13 WPI centers was 37.2%; that is, 520 foreign researchers out of a total 1,401 researchers.