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Kobe University tops our list of 27 PhD universities in Japan at #482 in the QS World University Rankings 2026. It is followed by Kumamoto University (#20 in Japan) and Fujita Health University (#65 in Japan). Across the whole list there are 31 courses to choose from.
27 universities · ranked best first
how we rankPublic University · 1 course in PhD
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Only one university here holds a QS World position — Kobe University at #482 — so it heads the list. The rest are ordered by research impact. Kobe University has the largest research record in this group, with 7,062,570 citations and an h-index of 609.
The split is 27 public to 0 private institutions. The oldest is Kyushu Dental College, founded in 1914. Tokyo University of Foreign Studies is the largest, with 4,268 students.
The most common subjects are Medicine & Health Sciences (6), Education (4), Social Sciences & Psychology (4) and Music & Performing Arts (2). The usual length is 4–6 years and 4 years. 97% are full-time and 1 can be studied online. Start dates lean to Fall (100% of courses with a stated intake). International University of Japan offers the widest choice, with 3 of these courses.
Kobe University (QS World #482), Kumamoto University (#20 in Japan) and Fujita Health University (#65 in Japan) lead this list. QS World positions come first; the rest are ranked by research impact.
27 public and 0 private universities are on this list.
Most listed courses run 4–6 years, with 4 years the next most common.
Fall is the main intake — 100% of courses with a stated start date begin then.
1 of these courses are listed as online.
International University of Japan, with 3, ahead of Kobe University (2).
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