Hiroshi Mikitani, President of Rakuten, will spend about $ 100 million as an individual to support Japanese students participating in the Fulbright Program, a scholarship program for scholars, educators, graduate students, and professionals studying in the United States. The equivalent 9,000 million yen was donated to the Japan-US Board of Education (Fulbright Japan), and the Fulbright Mikitani Scholarship was established.
According to the US Embassy Press Office, this donation will allow five to six Japanese students to take master's and doctoral programs in the humanities and social sciences at educational institutions in the United States each year for the next three years.Targets are selected by open recruitment based on the individual qualities of the applicant.
The Fulbright Program is selected regardless of skin color, nationality, creed, etc., and aims not only to develop specialists in specific fields, but also to develop leaders who connect Japan and the United States.
President Mikitani and Chargé d'Affaires Joseph Young of the US Embassy attended the announcement, saying, "My father is the first generation of full-bright scholarships, and he studied economics at Harvard University. I taught at university. I hope that future leaders in Japan will also receive international education and gain a global perspective. "
"The Fulbright Program is a great opportunity for Japanese to study in the United States. Students receiving scholarships will join the ranks of seniors who have deepened ties between Japan and the United States," said Chargé d'Affaires Young.
