Program Overview

WISE Program for One Health Frontier Graduate School of Excellence

The WISE Program for One Health Frontier Graduate School of Excellence is offered by Hokkaido University's Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine and Graduate School of Infectious Diseases. This program provides a curriculum that encompasses two expert training courses: the Special Course for Zoonosis Control Experts and the Special Course for Chemical Hazard Control Experts. The aim of this program is to nurture researchers in veterinary science with broad outlooks and extensive knowledge and skills in their own fields of expertise and elsewhere.

Program Description

The program leverages the global networks developed by the faculties of the two schools to foster the development of international research leaders capable of contributing to the One Health initiative. Students in this program gain practical experience outside Japan through overseas field studies, internships, joint research with overseas institutions, and other programs.

Admission Requirements

To be eligible for the doctoral program, applicants must:

• Be a non-Japanese citizen residing outside of Japan
• Be not more than 35 years of age on April 1 of the previous year to be eligible for the MEXT scholarship
• Meet one of the following conditions:
  1. Graduate of a School of Veterinary Medicine with a five-year or more course
  2. Graduate of a School of Medicine, Dentistry, or Pharmaceutical Sciences with a five-year or more course
  3. Graduate of a Graduate School Master's course (obtaining a Master's degree is generally required)
• Have completed eighteen years of formal education in principle; if not, applicants must have their ability and knowledge evaluated by the graduate school prior to submission of application
• Be certified as both physically and mentally fit by a qualified and recognized physician with documented certification
• Be fluent in English

Completion Requirements

To obtain the degree, students must:

• Complete 38 credits: 23 in the required bracket and 15 in the elective bracket of the Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine
• Complete 38 credits: 18 in the required bracket, 10 in the required elective bracket, and 10 in the elective bracket of the Graduate School of Infectious Diseases
• Complete a thesis based on their own research results conducted during the course and submit this thesis to multiple examiners (1 principal and 3 or more adjunct referees)
• Complete their thesis within 4 years
• Publish 2 scientific papers as a first author in peer-reviewed international scientific journals within defined fields of interests before submitting their doctoral thesis.