Three policies
Diploma Policy
Master's students are expected to acquire knowledge and skills in social systems and technology, and to develop visions and implement them in society to address a variety of issues. A master's degree is awarded to students who fulfill the requirements for completion of the master's program. To fulfill the requirements, students must be enrolled for at least the required period, earn the required credits, give a mid-term presentation, and pass their thesis defense and final examination.There is also an option which students can complete their degrees by completing a master's project in lieu of writing a master's thesis. Students who fulfill the specific requirements for each program or course will, at the time of completion, be awarded a Certificate of Completion for that program or course, in addition to a master's degree.
Doctoral students are expected to formulate, plan, and implement their own projects, and apply their original results to the domains of media and governance through the development of new concepts, specialized research, and new methodologies. To be awarded a doctoral degree, they must obtain doctoral candidate status by satisfying requirements regarding, among other things, proficiency in a foreign language, development of an original syllabus, earning of credits for skill-building courses, presenting of a doctoral dissertation research proposal (Thesis Proposal), and teaching of a course appropriate to their degree. (Students pursuing the Career Professional track may be exempt from certain requirements conditional on possessing appropriate professional experience.) Once a student has been awarded Ph.D. candidate status, a dissertation hearing and final examination by the Academic Degree Evaluation Committee are held to determine whether the dissertation and research achievements merit the award of a Doctoral Degree. If both the hearing and final examination are passed, a decision on whether to award a degree is then made by the Graduate School Committee.
Curriculum Policy
The main objective of the master's program is to produce professionals with a creative vision of social systems and technology, expertise to meet various needs, and practical skills to identify and solve problems. Master's students belong to a "Master Seminar" under the supervision of their Main Research Advisor. There they aim to acquire specialized knowledge and practical skills. In addition, students will participate in an "Academic Project" which offers space to conduct interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research activities. Academic Project allows students to engage in their research guided by multiple faculty members who share the same research themes and interests. Through the involvement in Master Seminar and Academic Project, students will not only attend the lectures, but also engage in practical research, fieldwork, internships, and advance the real-life implementation of research projects. A combination of on-site and online instructional formats will allow students to pursue their projects in a flexible learning environment.
The aim of the doctoral program is to train researchers, educators, and other specialists with advanced expertise, accurate reasoning skills, and an abundance of originality. The curriculum is built around research and dissertation supervision. Students will conduct their surveys and research according to their original research plan while receiving supervision and advice from a Research Advisory Group, consisting of faculty members in the Graduate School of Media and Governance and other researchers, on how to pursue their research and write their doctoral dissertation.
Admissions Policy
The mission of the Graduate School of Media and Governance is to inquire into the present state of mankind and society, which is based on advanced technology, from multi-faceted and interdisciplinary perspectives.
We aim to foster researchers, educators, and practitioners so that they can deeply understand each link in the process of creating, researching, testing, implementing, and evaluating ideas to deliver results in our daily lives.
The curriculum is structured to allow students to design their research plan flexibly in accordance with their chosen theme across a wide range of domains, including policy, governance, social innovation, environment, ICT, design, physical skills, and bioscience. The diverse student body of the Graduate School of Media and Governance includes international students and professionals, making it a research platform where many gather to share in intellectual work.
Based on the above, in the master's program, we aspire to attract not only students who wish to make use of their undergraduate specialties and further develop their prior research, but also those who will engage with a variety of subjects and challenges, unconfined by their undergraduate work or past academic domains. In addition, in order to gather diverse students and allow them to leverage their strengths with each other, entrance examinations are held twice a year, and students can choose to enroll in either April or September. The entrance examination will comprehensively evaluate the applicant's research plan and capacities. Overseas applicants will be evaluated solely by means of a document screening.
In the doctoral program, we expect students to earn their degrees by accumulating a variety of achievements, not limited only to academic contributions presented at academic conferences, but also contributions involving the real-world implementation of research, and the dissemination of research results in society through publications or other means. In order to gather diverse students and allow them to leverage their strengths with each other, entrance examinations are held twice a year, and students can choose to enroll in either April or September. Overseas applicants will be evaluated solely by means of a document screening. In the entrance examination, applicants will be evaluated comprehensively based on their research plan, achievements, and language proficiency necessary for conducting research. In addition, the career professional course offers an opportunity for working professionals who have accumulated achievements and work experience, have a clear awareness of issues, and are seeking to earn a degree while working.