Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research are competitive research funds that are intended to significantly develop all scientific research (research based on the free ideas of the researcher), from basic to applied research in all fields, ranging from the humanities and the social sciences to the natural sciences. In 2021, the rate of new selection for Grants for Scientific Research is an average of 27.9%; however, Hitotsubashi University obtained over 62.3% and ranked first. Hitotsubashi University has ranked first for 15 times since (the incorporation of all Japanese national universities in) 2004

In 2021, a total of 211 (except for Grant-in-Aid for JSPS fellows) research grants have been selected.