From the President

Spirit of Tolerance and Ability to Respond Flexibly

Movement of people across national borders has been further expanding in recent years. For example, according to statistics provided by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan, the number of people entering Japan from overseas hit a record high in 2024, increasing to around 36.78 million people from 5.27 million in 2000, although the number sharply dropped due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the three years from 2020. In short, the number of foreign nationals visiting Japan increased by about seven-fold over a period of about 25 years. As for the number of foreign residents in Japan, it reached about 3.59 million as of June 2024. The population of the City of Yokohama was about 3.77 million people as of July 1, 2024, so the number of foreign nationals living in Japan is almost equal to the number of people living in the city. These figures indicate that international cultural exchange is no longer something that is envisioned for the future but is a challenge that needs to be met immediately. Accordingly, we must seriously think of living with foreign nationals, regardless of our personal feelings on the issue.

Gakushuin Women's College was opened in 1998 as Japan's first college for students to specialize in intercultural studies. The College's Faculty of Intercultural Studies is made up of the Department of Japanese Studies, the Department of Intercultural Communication and the Department of English Communication. Students at the College can obtain a Bachelor's degree in Japanese culture, intercultural communication and English communication by acquiring the specified credits in each of the Departments. The three departments focus on different subjects but have the same objectives: "By transcending national, ethnic, and cultural boundaries, work towards the peace of humankind and cultural development, and study and teach in depth the past steps taken and the future to be forged by humankind from a global perspective, while working hand in hand with society to cultivate character and nurture sensibilities, thereby developing creative female leaders to usher in a new era," as stated in the first article of the school regulations.

The College attributes importance to the practicality of intercultural studies and offers cross-departmental programs in which students visit a foreign country to gain hands-on experience in international cultural exchange, participate in a home stay in a foreign country to learn the local language, and experience and learn traditional Japanese culture. In many of these programs, students can learn foreign languages other than English. Moreover, the College has partnership agreements with 26 universities located outside Japan, including in North America, Western Europe and Australia, Eastern Europe, including Poland, Romania, Czechia and Estonia, and Asian countries and regions, including South Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos. In addition, the College is implementing a double degree program with the University of Lethbridge in Canada, through which students can obtain a degree from both the College and the University. Further, as a unique feature of the College's curriculum, students can graduate in four years even if they participate in the College's overseas study programs during the period (excluding the double degree program).

At the College's Graduate School of International Cultural Relations, students conduct in-depth research in Arts Management, International Cooperation, Comparative Culture, and International Relations Research tracks to acquire even more advanced professional knowledge and skills.

Graduates from the College are thriving in the field of international cultural exchange and at various companies as well as in national and local governments, being highly recognized for their humanity, and in particular for their spirit of tolerance and ability to respond flexibly, and this is a source of great pride for the College.

Kuniharu Tokiyasu

President of Gakushuin Women's College