At Ochanomizu, education is centered on the achievement of three fundamentals: knowledge, critical thinking and tolerance. We are convinced of the importance of personal qualities that enable individuals to acquire solidly based, advanced specialized learning, and to use that learning to make appropriate judgments, all the while showing respect for others.

To help our students achieve these fundamentals, we began a process of educational reform in fiscal 2008. In that year we launched an interdisciplinary education program entitled the 21st CenturyLiberal Arts Education, integrating Humanities and Sciences, and in 2011 we began a multiple program elective course system, with a view to restructuring our education programs at the baccalaureate degree level. The aim of our education programs is to train students to develop a broad perspective when approaching issues, and to examine problems from multiple angles while using their problem-solving abilities in their own specialized field. The programs are designed so that students can, through their participation, exhibit independence of thought while tackling problems that arise, and develop the ability to find ways to solve such problems. We expect that after graduation they will, from this experience, be empowered to deal successfully with a wide array of issues and become effective driving forces in society.

Ochanomizu University’s advanced education is supported by the excellent research being undertaken by its faculty.

Our university has established itself as a base for international research through the 21st Century COE (Center of Excellence) Program and Global COE Program, and has implemented a number of programs and research projects, including a program to restructure its graduate school, a program to accelerate the internationalization of its university education, and a project promoting research in practical social sciences.

Ochanomizu University is known for its emphasis on both basic research and applied research that focuses on living. For scholarship to advance, basic research is essential. And academic studies only become socially relevant when they are undertaken from a practical perspective. The very act of living, and the essence of humanity, forms the basis of this practical perspective, and these themes are important aspects of learning. I believe this approach is important especially today, when it is common to question both the relationship between humanity and nature, and the value of scientific progress and technological development.

There is no doubt that science has brought many advantages to people’s lives since the advent of modern times, but we have come to realize that science has also caused us to lose much. The task now facing universities, as institutions of higher education and research, is to search for ways to promote both scientific progress and the development of a bountiful social environment where new technologies are applied in an appropriate manner. So our task as universities is to foster the development of the next generation of people endowed with the ability to do this.

“Technology is simply a means to achieve human goals — in itself, it is neither good nor bad. The important thing for humanity is, what it will make through technology, what it will use technology for, and how it will assert sovereignty over technology. The question is what type of person can avoid being controlled by technology, and can instead control technology.” So wrote the eminent philosopher Karl Jaspers in 1949 VomUrsprung und Ziel der Geschichte (The Origin and Goal of History), and the significance of his thoughts can guide us today.

It is my sincere wish that, through our emphasis on humanity and through education based on advanced research, our university will contribute to the development of truly abundant, benevolent societies.

Ochanomizu University is working hard to develop female leaders, taking advantage of its status as a national women’s university. A leader is more than someone who occupies an upper echelon position in an organization — leadership takes many different forms. Perhaps we can say that leadership in a person is a quality that enables them to exhibit their talents in their own way, and as a result change and improve their surroundings. Our university has developed such leadership qualities in numerous fields over more than 130 years since its establishment.

Our curriculum includes a Career Design Program and a Leadership Development Program, as part of our current efforts to enhance practical leadership education.

When exhibiting leadership, a feeling of togetherness with others is important, so we established new spaces on campus to promote this ideal of togetherness. One such space is the Learning Commons set up in 2007 in the Ochanomizu University Library. There, students and faculty staff share time and space in many ways, in a common area offering opportunities for studying and developing together. Then in 2011 we established a new student dormitory called Ochadai Student Community Commons (SCC), to promote the ideal of students living, studying and developing together. These places are designed for students to work together in the same shared space, helping them boost their communication skills and hone their leadership abilities.

Ochanomizu University enjoys an especially high reputation among all national universities in Japan for the educational opportunities it provides (including the efforts mentioned above), its research, its contributions to society in Japan and to the international community, and its administrative operations. We intend to continue to enhance these special characteristics, and to ensure our university is a place where women can realize their earnest dreams while developing skills to promote the achievement of truly abundant, benevolent societies.

It is my sincere hope that students, blessed with fine abilities and boundless possibilities, will study at our university and fully demonstrate their talents, so that through their leadership in Japan and the international community, they will promote the development of a wonderful future. I pledge to work together with our students to help them achieve this.