PhD in Division of Applied Physics

Hokkaido University's Division of Applied Physics is a doctoral (PhD) program located in Hokkaido, Japan. The program runs for a duration of 3 years and admits students starting in October and April. Instruction is delivered in English, allowing international applicants to pursue the doctoral (PhD) degree without first developing Japanese-language proficiency. Hokkaido University was established in 1876 as Sapporo Agricultural College and was the first institution in Japan to award a bachelor's degree. Today the university has 12 undergraduate schools and 21 graduate schools spanning nearly all fields of the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, with research recognized across Japan and abroad. The division applies core principles of physics to engineering and technological problems, covering areas such as condensed matter physics, optics and photonics, semiconductor physics, and the physical behavior of materials and devices. Students engage with both theoretical models and experimental methods, developing skills in measurement, instrumentation, and data analysis alongside a grounding in quantum mechanics, electromagnetism, and statistical physics. Applied physics graduates are prepared for work in electronics and semiconductor industries, optical and photonic technology development, materials characterization laboratories, and academic or industrial research. The discipline sits at the interface of fundamental science and applied engineering, training students to translate physical principles into working technologies and to contribute to research at the frontier of physics-based innovation. The Division of Applied Physics suits international students seeking graduate study in this field at Hokkaido University without requiring prior study of Japanese, given the program's English-medium instruction.