Are there pre-doc positions in TCS? Are there positions for recently graduated bachelor or masters students with a record of research to work as a researcher before committing to their PhD?

TCS has a culture of post-doc positions for recent PhD graduates to do research before attempting to apply for a faculty position. Is there a similar mechanism in place for Bachelor or Masters students to do research before applying for a Ph.D? In particular, if they have a research record already (say a few published papers). I have heard of such positions, but usually they are through your current or future supervisor. Are there other options in industry or at universities/research-centers that are more formal than these personal connections?
The goal of such a position is to work within your field or at an institute you are considering for PhD before committing to it for a longer term.
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Edit:
After a number of answers, I'd like to emphasize the interest is in having an analogue to a post-doc in that it is purely (or almost completely) a research position. Programs where you take courses to ready for a PhD application are not interesting, since the goal is not to prepare yourself for a PhD application as much as it is to do research to make sure research is what you want to do for the long term.
My answer only applies to Japan, I don't know about other countries. There is a special position termed "Research Student". I did that for 6 months before my masters .

I know that in general any student (foreigner or japanese) can do this. However, it is very common for foreigners to do this before starting the masters or phd program. It gives you adaptation time, and you also start studying the basics of your future research. Most student also start preparing for admissions.

During my time as a research student, I worked as a research assistant for my current advisor in different projects. I also took the time to really study quantum computing, which at that time I had 0 intuition for quantum mechanics. That was perfect for me, before doing any serious stuff.

EDIT:

Q: Are research student positions elusively research positions (i.e. no mandatory coursework)?

A: There is no mandatory coursework for research students. However, there are a lot of things you can do. In my case, I started directly doing research (mostly learning the basics), prepared myself for admissions, and colaborated in some projects. I also attended group seminars, school seminars, etc. You gain access to all activities in the university. You can also attend classes if you want, but that doesn't count for coursework in the graduate course. Another example is when you come from another university (from anywhere in the world) and you want to learn the tools of the trade in some field. So you talk with a professor, and if he agrees you can spend some time in his group as a research student.

Q: Also, are you expected to then stay for a Masters/PhD at the institute where you held the research student position?

A: No, you can change universities if you want. I have a friend that did exactly that. This is a position that doesn't give you a degree nor a diploma or anything, besides the experience.

It is very important also to note Okamoto-sensei's comment below. Specially, note that you don't get paid for doing this, unless 1) you have a good scholarship, like MEXT's scholarship; or 2) you get some funds from a company or a professor looking for phd students. 

To give you and idea, I post a couple of links explaining the requirements to be a research student. The first link is from my own university, and the second is from the university of Tokyo:

1) http://www.naist.jp/en/international_students/prospective_students/admission_information/research_student_applications/index.html

2) http://www.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/admission/research-students.html

You can also find more information here

http://www.studyjapan.go.jp/en/index.html