Stage 3 of 8 · 9 lessons · ~4 weeks

Choose programmes and supervisors

Build a shortlist of 6 to 10 programmes chosen on what you will actually learn, who you will work with, where graduates end up and what it costs to live there. For research degrees, find the groups and supervisors whose work fits yours.

Start: Using rankings carefully

Lessons· one lesson for each topic, in this order

Do this

Pull 20 candidate programmes from official portals and subject rankings.
Read the module list or handbook of each and cut the ones that do not fit.
Check entry requirements for your country and your converted grades.
Look up where recent graduates of each programme work, especially international ones.
Compare total cost including city living costs.
For research degrees, list 10 researchers and read two recent papers by each.
Email up to 5 potential supervisors with specific, short messages where the programme expects it.
Fix a final list of 6 to 10 in three tiers.

Start with

ScholarshipFree
Study in Japan
Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO)
Search Japanese graduate schools and English-taught programmes

Practise

Google Scholar
Find who publishes in your topic and read their recent papers before emailing anyone

Keep handy

Mastersportal
Compare programmes across countries by field, tuition and duration
FindAPhD
Advertised PhD projects and funded masters by research, filterable by funding

Also worth your time

EURAXESSGo deeper
The EU portal for research jobs, including many paid PhD positions

Before moving on: A shortlist of 6 to 10 programmes in three tiers, each with modules or a research group that fits, graduate outcome evidence, total cost and entry requirements checked, plus a list of 10 researchers with papers you have read if you are applying for a research degree.

Tauseef's advice

Read the module list and the research group pages yourself. Rankings and consultants will point you at the same twenty names everyone applies to. The programme where two professors work on exactly your topic, in a city you can afford, is often the better bet.