Get your PhD and thrive in a corporate research lab! A message from the Head of Fujitsu Research who earned his PhD while working.

Hello! This is the Fujitsu PR note editorial department.

How did you like the article we shared last week on the "Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program"?
The "Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program" is a system that recruits primarily from master's degree students at universities. If selected, they can become Fujitsu employees at the same time they enter a doctoral program. It is possible to remain at the university to conduct doctoral research while receiving a salary.
Fujitsu also has another program called the "PhD Acquisition Support Program". This program, which began in 1998, supports employees in obtaining a PhD after they have joined Fujitsu. The organization known as Fujitsu Research has long placed great importance on this system. As of September 2023, 172 employees have utilized this program to successfully earn their PhDs. The "Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program" is a system that began on the long lineage of the "PhD Acquisition Support Program," which has been supporting employees in obtaining PhDs for nearly 25 years.
This time, we asked Seishi Okamoto, Head of Fujitsu Research and EVP, who is the founder of this "Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program" and also the first person to earn a PhD through the "PhD Acquisition Support Program," about his expectations for doctoral talent.

Do you feel that the demand for PhD holders in corporate research and development settings is increasing year by year?

Okamoto: The importance of creating new value through the fusion of advanced expertise and addressing social issues is increasing every year. In addition to mass hiring of new graduates, Fujitsu Research is also globally increasing the recruitment of highly skilled personnel with PhDs. Given that the number of PhD holders is increasing overseas, and considering the current situation where most researchers active globally in research fields are PhD holders, I believe this is an extremely natural trend.

What do you think is the background behind why Japanese companies have not sufficiently hired PhD holders until now?

Okamoto: Japanese companies have achieved a certain level of success through mass hiring of new graduates based on seniority-based personnel systems. This is the historical background for why Japanese companies have not sufficiently hired PhD holders. However, today, many Japanese companies, including Fujitsu, are practicing purpose-driven management and adopting job-based personnel systems. From now on, there will be a global demand for talent with PhDs who possess advanced expertise to contribute to the development of a digital society, the improvement of people's well-being, and the resolution of global environmental issues.
The current "drift away from PhDs" among students and in hiring in Japan is a serious problem that runs counter to global trends, and as a company representing Japan, we would like to contribute to solving this urgent issue.

The Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program currently focuses on mathematical AI talent, but do you have any thoughts on increasing the target fields?

Okamoto: We have not only targeted mathematical AI talent in the past. All five technology areas that Fujitsu focuses on are eligible. In particular, we will increase the recruitment of talent who have the potential and ambition to contribute to innovation through domain fusion and the resolution of complex social issues, using their high level of expertise as a weapon. We also intend to continue to firmly develop an environment where young people who utilize the Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program can grow significantly and play an active role to their heart's content.

In closing

A student who was selected for the Excellent Working Doctoral Student Program at Kyushu University and is aiming to obtain a degree commented: "Through this program, I was hired by Fujitsu and participated in a project at Fujitsu that utilizes AI for 'causal discovery,' and I am working in a research field that I had hardly touched upon at the university. If I hadn't been hired by Fujitsu through this program, there is a possibility that I would have spent my days without encountering this research field, and I feel that my research scope has expanded. I believe this is one advantage gained by being selected for this program, in addition to the financial support. By leveraging this valuable, ongoing experience, I want to challenge myself every day so that in the future, as a researcher, I can contribute to Fujitsu's business and, furthermore, to solving social issues."

Increasing the number of highly specialized personnel who have built careers in diverse environments will strengthen the company's future research and development. Please look forward to the future success of doctoral talent at Fujitsu!

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