The KU-STAR (Kyoto University Short-Term Academic Research) Program is a two-month laboratory internship launched in May 2024 by the Division of Graduate Studies. On 1 July 2024, the program's 18 participants — selected from six Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) — shared their research and other achievements over the past two months. The meeting was held at the International Science and Innovation Building with more than 60 in attendance, including faculty and students from the program's host laboratories as well as representatives from Shimadzu Corporation, Fujitsu Limited, the Nippon Indo Cultural and Economic Center (NICE), and the Kyoto City Office.
In the first half of the event, the students shared their research results in the form of poster presentations. The wide-ranging session saw the presenters and visitors actively interacting with each other, with the former eagerly answering questions about their research. Niyas Mon from IIT Madras later commented: "Delivering my first-ever poster presentation, I had wonderful experiences of engaging with people, explaining my work, and learning about my fellow students' research in diverse fields. I also received valuable feedback and suggestions from professors, students, and industry experts."
In the second half, the students gave presentations in the building's Symposium Hall, sharing their learning from the KU-STAR Program and their career plans. They each used their allocated time of two and a half minutes to reflect on their experiences, describing the goals they had set at the beginning and what they had ultimately accomplished.
The presentations were followed by comments from Shimadzu, which the students had earlier visited for a one-day workshop, and Fujitsu, which operates a research center in the Indian city of Bangalore. In addition, this center, Fujitsu Research of India Private Limited, shared online messages from employees who had graduated from the participants' home institutes.
Next, Dr Takao Hirajima, director of the Division of Graduate Studies, and Dr Fuyuki Ishikawa, director of the Kyoto University Research Administration Center (KURA), gave comments on the presentations and the KU-STAR Program, before offering messages of encouragement to the students.
The meeting concluded with the program participants receiving certificates of completion from Dr Akira Murakami, dean of the Graduate School of Advanced Integrated Studies of Human Survivability (GSAIS).
Some of the students were later seen talking to or requesting information materials from the company representatives in attendance.
Lokendra from IIT Madras remarked: "This event was a valuable opportunity for me to connect with Kyoto University's professors and students. It also helped me engage in interdisciplinary dialogue and expand my professional networks."
Kyoto University would like to congratulate the program participants on the growth they have achieved through their experiences of conducting research, visiting a company, and undertaking other activities, and would be delighted to see them eventually return to its campuses or to Japan for graduate studies or other work.
