What is ICYS ?

Salary

The annual salary is over 6 million yen, *which is the top class in Japan.
*Approximately 23% of annual salary will be deducted as social insurance premium, residence tax and income tax.

Contract

The initial contract term is 3 years, renewed up to 5 years based on annual evaluation.
*If the applicant is already in NIMS as a non-permanent researcher (Post doc et al.), the max contract term depends on work experience at NIMS.)

Research Budget

Annual research budget of 2 million yen is provided for each ICYS Research Fellow. The budget can be used to purchase goods, consumable items or for travel expenses.

Research Facility

ICYS Research Fellows have full access to the various advanced research facilities in NIMS. Usage fees for the common facilities are subsidized.

Mentoring System

Two mentors are assigned to each ICYS Research Fellow. The mentors are selected from among researchers inside and outside NIMS who have expertise in the relevant research field. The mentors will give advice on the direction of the research while respecting the fellow's autonomy to the maximum extent possible.

Networking

ICYS encourages and helps the ICYS Research Fellows to interact with other researchers inside and outside NIMS and to broaden their research network.
Bi-weekly ICYS seminar offers opportunity for the fellows to present their research progress and to obtain new ideas from their colleagues and NIMS researchers through lively and stimulating discussion. Annual ICYS workshop, held in a nice resort area, provides the chance to interact with their colleagues as well as the prominent guest speakers from various countries.

Path to NIMS tenured researchers

Advantage is given when applying to NIMS permanent researcher position. To date, 51% of ICYS Research Fellows who applied for NIMS tenured research positions have been hired (FY 2016-2022). Currently, approximately 50 ICYS alumni are engaged in research as NIMS tenured researchers.

Technical / Clerical Support

ICYS provides a range of other support to enable researchers to pursue their research independently, including applying for patents or competitive funds such as Kakenhi.

A clerical staff with excellent English skills provides assistance with a range of NIMS clerical work, purchasing, and other procedures. Researchers can also make use of the main NIMS support system to help them get acclimated to life in Japan, deal with emergencies, and obtain other assistance as needed.