Message from the Department Chair

Representative of the Department: Professor Chino Yabunaga

With society changing drastically due to globalization and DX, such as ICT and AI, sustainable community development requires human resources who go into a certain region, find issues together with the local people, think and present solutions from a broad perspective and implement community-based activities.

With the aim of fostering such human resources, the Regional Development Studies Course, Department of Regional Development Studies, has been providing education based on a hands-on approach and small-group seminars since its establishment in 1997.

There are a variety of things that need to be considered when it comes to community development, such as the space of a city or town, the infrastructure that supports life, the systems and finances needed to make a region a place where people can continue to live, and people's behavior and awareness. In order to allow students to learn and pursue regional development, which encompasses such broad fields, the Regional Development Studies Course, Department of Regional Development Studies, offers a wide range of practical studies in small-group seminars starting from the first year, field studies at various regions in Japan and overseas, and a variety of internships in addition to a wide range of specialized courses taught by faculty members with diverse backgrounds. The Course requires all students to spend a certain period of time abroad while earning credits during their studies, and through this experience, we aim to improve their communication skills in English and other languages ​​as well as their ability to understand different cultures. For students who want to enhance their specialized knowledge and skills, the Course also offers two minors: the English SPecial Minor (ESP) and the Regional Design Special Program.

With a wide variety of specialized subjects and training programs, learning in specialized seminars, interacting with international students, and living abroad, learning in the Regional Development Studies Course, Department of Regional Development Studies is sure to be stimulating for everyone.

I hope that you will achieve significant growth by actively taking advantage of various learning opportunities.