Graduate School
Graduate Program Graduate School of Arts
Master of Arts Programs and Doctor of Philosophy Programs
The Graduate School offers opportunities for specialized academic research to students with outstanding abilities and the intention of becoming either scholars in special fields of study or specialists in highly professional careers.
Six Master of Arts Programs and three Doctor of Philosophy Programs are offered. Each program provides an independent and distinctive curriculum.
Master Courses
English Language and Literature
In the field of English Literature, studies focus on the literature of Britain, America, Ireland, and other English-speaking countries. The genres covered range from poetry, fiction, and drama to literary criticism, translation and theory. Study involves close readings of individual works and writers, and research in the social and intellectual trends of each period. In particular, the importance of Christian culture as an inspiration and source of literary activity is stressed.
In the field of English Linguistics, descriptive and theoretical studies are made of syntax, semantics, pragmatics, phonology, discourse analysis, English language teaching methodology and second language acquisition. Close analyses are made of data on English, and their theoretical implications are studied. The ultimate goal of this research is to discover the general properties of the human language.
Japanese Language and Literature
This program consists of three fields of study: (1) Japanese Linguistics, (2) Japanese Literature, and (3) Japanese Language Teaching. These subjects are studied not only to deepen the students’ understanding of them, but also to consider the nature of language and literature in general. To consider what is Japanese Language or Japanese Literature, and how to teach them to foreigners, it may sometimes be necessary to see the object of research in relation to the languages and literature of the world. A wide variety of courses and leading faculty make it possible for students to attain their goals.
Philosophy
The Master of Arts Program in Philosophy is subdivided into three disciplines: Philosophy/ History of Ideas, Christian Studies, and Aesthetics.
The discipline of Philosophy/ History of Ideas comprises ancient philosophy, modern epistemology and ontology, contemporary ethics and analytic philosophy.
The discipline of Christian Studies comprises Christian theology, and conflicts between Christianity and modern/ contemporary thought.
The discipline of Aesthetics comprises philosophical aesthetics, principles of the history of art and particular issues in aesthetics.
Students specialize in one of the three disciplines. In addition, they are encouraged to attend courses in the other two disciplines in order to acquire both specialized knowledge and interdisciplinary understanding.
History
The Graduate Program in History has three major areas of study: Japanese History, Oriental History, and Western History. The program provides students with a solid foundation in analytical skills to address issues surrounding modern society, as well as to investigate the historical facts.
Courses being offered in our program include those on ancient, medieval, early modern, and modern Japan, as well as those on modern China, the Middle East, Great Britain, France, Germany and the Habsburg Monarchy.
Socio-Cultural Studies
The program involves the study of modern society and culture, which are changing and fluid. Society and culture are studied both in macroscopic terms in the context of countries and areas, and in microscopic terms in the context of families and their members. The program aims to integrate two areas: (1) Studies of Social Systems (from April 2015) focusing on systems of social interaction among individuals, families, peoples, and international societies; and (2) Studies of Comparative Culture focusing on underlying cultural/ psychological elements such as thought, religion, and language. Thus the program aims to give students the ability to analyze and understand human societies through the integrated knowledge of these areas.
Human Sciences (Psychology and Education)
This program offers four special areas of study: Developmental Psychology (mechanisms of lifespan development); Clinical Psychology (mental disorders and intervention); Cognitive Psychology (cognitive mental processes); and Educational Research (studies on education practice, lifelong learning and international education). Students choose one of the four areas of study and they are also encouraged to acquire basic knowledge about philosophy, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology to supplement their studies in their chosen area.
Doctoral Courses
Humanities
This program is subdivided into three fields: (1)English Linguistics/English Literature, (2)Japanese Linguistics/Japanese Literature, and (3)Philosophy/Aesthetics.
These fields have various areas of study in common, such as language, literature, philosophy, and art. The goal of this program is not only to deepen the student’s knowledge of their chosen field but to enable their to gain new insights in the areas of human thought and culture.
Socio-Cultural Studies
The program aims to produce graduates who are equipped with abilities to analyze aspects of culture such as language, thought, religion, and values, and to understand the systems and dynamics of societies and cultures. These abilities will allow graduates to contribute to various fields of research, education, and international relations.
Human Sciences (Psychology and Education)
This program offers three special areas of study: The Basic Research in Psychology Program (to deepen the understanding of mechanisms of cognitive mental processing), the Developmental and Clinical Program (to deepen the understanding of lifespan development, mental disorders and intervention), the Educational Research (to deepen the studies on education and lifelong learing from a wider perspective).
Licenses and Certificates
Teaching Certificate Programs (Undergraduate Certificate)
| Certificate | Subject | Major |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary Teacher’s Specialized Certificate for Junior High School | English | English Language and Literature |
| Japanese Language | Japanese Language and Literature | |
| Social Studies | Philosophy, History, Socio-Cultural Studies,Human Sciences (Psychology and Education) | |
| Religion | Philosophy | |
| Ordinary Teacher’s Specialized Certificate for Senior High School | English | English Language and Literature |
| Japanese Language | Japanese Language and Literature | |
| Geography and History | History, Human Sciences (Psychology and Education) |
|
| Civics | Philosophy, Socio-Cultural Studies, Human Sciences (Psychology and Education) |
|
| Religion | Philosophy | |
| Ordinary Teacher’s Specialized Certificate for Primary School | Human Sciences (Psychology and Education) |
|
| Ordinary Teacher’s Specialized Certificate for Kindergarten | ||
Other License and Certificate-Related Programs
- Japanese Certification Board for Social Researcher
- Certification for “Certified Social Researcher”
Graduate Degrees
| Master Courses | M.A. in English Language and Literature |
|---|---|
| M.A. in Japanese Language and Literature | |
| M.A. in Philosophy | |
| M.A. in History | |
| M.A. in Socio-Cultural Studies | |
| M.A. in Human Sciences (Psychology and Education) | |
| Doctoral Courses | Ph.D. in Literature |
| Ph.D. in Socio-Cultural Studies | |
| Ph.D. in Human Sciences (Psychology and Education) | |
| Ph.D. in Psychology |