Kwansei Gakuin University

parue le 10/06/2024

Hors Europe En JPN History Economic and Social Sciences Arts and Humanities Law and Political Sciences

University’s presentation

Kwansei Gakuin was founded in Kobe, Japan in 1889 by the American missionary Reverend Walter Russell Lambuth. With the aim to educate young minds based on Christian principles, Kwansei Gakuin has since grown into a leading private comprehensive and integrated educational institution consisting of a university, junior college, junior and senior high school, elementary school, kindergarten and international schools. Now residing in 8 campuses, including Nishinomiya, Sanda, Takarazuka, Osaka, and Tokyo, Kwansei Gakuin values inclusiveness for students from all backgrounds.

Kwansei Gakuin University is a leading comprehensive private university and 1 of the 37 Top Global Universities in Japan. It has 14 undergraduate schools and 14 graduate schools and more than students including more than 1,000 international students: Kwansei Gakuin University is proud of its over than 250 partner institutions overseas in 50+ countries, its Global alumni network of around 250,000 and its high job placement rates before graduation (No.1 among Japan’s comprehensive private universities).

Location:

※Kansai Region

Kansai is Japan’s second largest urban region following the Tokyo metropolitan area. The region includes Hyogo prefecture, where Kwansei Gakuin University is located, as well as the prefectures of Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Shiga and Wakayama. Kansai is home to a number of ancient capitals, and rich in historic architecture and cultural assets designated as national treasures, making the region ideal for learning about Japanese culture.

※Nishinomiya

Nishinomiya city is located in the south-east of Hyogo prefecture, from Osaka Gulf Coast on the south end to the north side of Mt. Rokko on the north end. It has a population of 480,000 and is therefore a suburban city by Japanese standards. It is located midway between Osaka and Kobe and has been developed as an "educational residential district" by taking advantage of the convenient location and rich natural environment. Nishinomiya is home to the professional baseball team, Hanshin Tigers and to high school baseball players’ sacred site, Hanshin Koshien Stadium. Nishinomiya is also famous for its sake brewery district and many cake factories.

KGU School Motto

"We aim to be strong, to be masters - masters of knowledge, masters of opportunity, masters of ourselves, our desires, our ambitions . . . . but having become masters, we desire not to inflate, and enrich ourselves for our own sake, but to render some useful service to humanity in order that the world may be better for our having lived in it." (Dr. C.J.L. Bates, 1915)

Kwansei Gakuin's motto of "Mastery for Service," coined by Dr. C.J.L. Bates, the fourth Chancellor of Kwansei Gakuin and the first President of Kwansei Gakuin University, reflects the ideal for all our members to master their abundant God-given gifts to serve their neighbors, society and the world. A “master” usually means someone who directs or commands others, but at our school, it means a person who, in terms of humanity, learning, and daily life. From that base, “service” is understood in the Christian context as “service to God,” the starting point for a life dedicated to serving neighbors, society, and others - a way of life that is devoted to creating a better world by utilizing one’s inalienable gifts; that is the ideal that we members of Kwansei Gakuin continue to seek, as we sing in the school song, “Shining freedom, Mastery for Service.”