Internationalization
Prioritizing quality internationalization, KGU will establish the environment to enable increased interaction with overseas partner institutions.
To pursue this, the following will be implemented: expansion of the quarter system, courses taught in English, student exchange programs and joint/double degree programs, and the improvement of faculty/staff personnel system to increase international applicability and mobility.
Student Mobility: Outgoing
Send 2.5 times more students to overseas partner institutions
In terms of the number of students to be sent overseas based on university partnership agreements, KGU is currently the 4th highest ranking in Japan (resource: Japan Student Services Organization, 2012). The University is aiming to be the top university by increasing the number by 2.5 times from 1,000 in 2014 to 2,500 in 2022.
To achieve this target, English language education will be enhanced. The pre-/post-dispatch education programs will be also systematically arranged.
The number of students dispatched based on agreements with international organizations such as the United Nations, international cooperation agencies and NGOs will also be increased. Hereby KGU will expand development cooperation to developing countries.
Student Mobility: Incoming
Accept 1.6 times more international students: 1,500 students/year
KGU, as the University ranked highest in ‘most recommended university’ in the West Japan Arts and Science category by the Association for the Promotion of Japanese Language Education in 2014, will increase the number of international students from 900 in 2013 to 1,500 by 2023: To achieve this target, KGU has been enhancing relationships with partner institutions overseas: degree programs taught in English will be also expanded from 5 programs to 11.
‘Fusion’, or international collaboration on campus
KGU has been prioritizing the value of international interaction on campus. For instance, the University has implemented buddy programs in which every international student will be allocated a designated local student as ‘partner’ who helps studying and living in Japan. Furthermore, exchange programs developed in cooperation with partner institutions, where students from differing universities learn together, have also been implemented.
KGU will intensively enhance the ‘fusion’, or international interaction, of exchange and cooperation on campus. As a measure of the enhancement, three student dormitories in which local students and international students live together will be completed by 2023.
Overseas Liaison Offices
In addition to the existing overseas liaison offices in Jilin (China) and Toronto (Canada), KGU is planning to set up new offices in Suzhou (China) and a city in ASEAN. The offices will function as hubs for support for overseas studies, enhancing international collaboration, information exchange, educational program development, and dissemination of Japanese culture.
The introduction of KG international fellow system, in which local experts are appointed as the KGU delegates, is also being examined.
