Faculty of Science

Message

　Science is an academic field to study the principles or laws of nature, but it is not only about satisfying intellectual curiosity. Space development, genetic engineering, computers, financial engineering, development of new materials, and advanced technologies in environmental protection are all based on science. The basic study of natural phenomena is essential for finding the direction towards a better future.
　The Faculty of Science consists of the Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Information Sciences Departments. Although the size is small, this faculty covers a wide range of fields that are the basis for scientific studies, and also, various studies at basic as well as advanced levels are conducted. Features of this faculty are high-standard education and studies, and elaborate instruction due to a large number of instructors for a small number of students. There are also study support facilities such as the Information, Media and Education Square, Marine and Coastal Research Center, Radioisotope Research Center, Low Temperature Laboratory, and Genetic Engineering Laboratory to cover the range from traditional academic fields to advanced research. At the undergraduate as well as graduate level, students can study their specialization, take lectures from other departments or courses, participate in the credit transfer system* with the Tokyo Institute of Technology or Tokyo University, and participate in the academic exchange or student exchange program** with overseas universities. There are a large number of study support systems*** implemented in this faculty to develop people who have profound knowledge and study skills and who will open the way to a new era.
　This faculty is distinctive since there are only a few women's universities having a Faculty of Science, and has trained many women scientists and instructors for over 50 years. After graduation, 60% of students on average enter agraduate school, and it is another characteristic of this faculty that high percentages of undergraduate as well as graduate students find employment in the field they wish to work. After graduation, students work in the fields of R&D, education, finance, government, and mass communication.

Mini lectures

*What is the "credit transfer system"?
　The Faculty of Science has made academic arrangements with multiple undergraduate and graduate schools in the Tokyo area, such as the undergraduate school of the Tokyo Institute of Technology and graduate schools of Tokyo University, Tokyo Institute of Technology, and Japan Women's University. Students can take lectures at these schools and the credits obtained there can be used towards graduation at Ochanomizu University. Co-ed schools tend to have the disadvantage that female students are overwhelmed by the activity level and the number of male students, but Ochanomizu University can provide small-group lectures for female students, and also for some subjects, students can go to different universities to take the lectures.

**Academic exchange and student exchange?
　Foreign researchers often visit our university or give lectures at our university. At the joint forum held by the Faculty of Science of three women's universities, including Ewha Woman's University, in 2001, many students gave presentations in English about their studies. Also, students from the Faculty of Science use the student exchange program (see page 102) to study abroad.

***What is the study support system?
　This program offers extra lectures to those who did not earn sufficient credits in senior high school subjects that are required for specialized study at the university. This system also offers reeducation, seminars, and lectures for those who have finished their undergraduate education.

Find the future of the world through the science of nature