In August 2026, Tohoku University signed an agreement with Korea University (KU), a partner institution under a university-level academic exchange agreement, to promote and encourage collaborative research between the two universities, establishing a joint seed fund. Based on this agreement, we are pleased to announce the launch of the call for proposals for the 1st round of the KU–TU Co-Seed Fund 2027.
If you wish to apply, please review the application guidelines, consult with your partner researcher (PI) at KU regarding the project proposal, and submit your application to the designated contact address below by the deadline. Please refer to the details below.
Application Period
Friday, September 18, 2026 – Monday, November 9, 2026 (17:00 JST/Korea Standard Time)
Research Areas
Applications from all fields are welcome, but proposals related to the following fields will be prioritized:
1. Materials Science
2. Data-Driven Medicine
3. Disaster Science
Funding Scale & Value
– Awards: Maximum of 4 projects
– Value: Up to KRW8,000,000 (JPY 900,000) per project from each respective institution
Funding Period
From Friday, January 1, 2027 to Friday, December 31, 2027
Where to Submit
Global Strategy Office, Tohoku University
Email: E-mail：kokusai-c*grp.tohoku.ac.jp (Please replace * with @.)
*Note: Principal Investigators (PIs) from both universities must submit the application separately to their respective institutional contact offices via email (in PDF or Word format). Applicants from KU are also required to submit an additional application form designated by KU.
Application Guidelines and Application form
◇Guidelines: KU-TU Research Co-Seed Fund_Guidelines 2027
◇Application Form: KU-TU Research Co-Seed Fund_Application Form 2027
Japanese Version: Link to Information in Japanese
[Reference] 2026-2027_Schedule for Joint Matching Funds with Overseas Institutions (Tentative) (As of September 15, 2026)Contact Information
Global Strategy Office
TEL: +81-22-217-6311
E-mail: kokusai-c*grp.tohoku.ac.jp (Please replace “*” with “@”)