University Accreditation Results(Results for Certified Evaluation and Accreditation for University)

Shujitsu University

Basic Information of the Institution
Ownership: Private

Location: Okayama, Japan

Accreditation Status
Year of the Review: 2022
Accreditation Status: accredited（Accreditation Period: April 1, 2023 – March 31, 2030）

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Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Resultsfor Shujitsu University
Overview
Shujitsu University, founded on the educational philosophy of “Kyoka-Shujitsu(pursuing not external beauty and vanity but internal self-worth),” states its purposein the Shujitsu University School Code as “the University, in accordance with thespirit of the Constitution of Japan and the Basic Act on Education, conducts academic
teaching and research activities as a university stipulated by the Basic Act on
Education, and aims to cultivate talented human resources who contribute to thedevelopment of culture and the welfare of society based on its founding spirit.” Themedium-term plan of Shujitsu Gakuen (incorporated educational institution thatoperates the University), Shujitsu Vision 120, outlines the four themes of “humanresource development,” “social contribution,” “international exchanges,” and“stronger foundation.” Specifically, the plan strives to nurture individuals who canresolutely overcome social challenges from the perspectives of education, research,and student support under the theme of human resource development, and return the
educational and research outcomes to society as social contribution. With these aims
in mind, the University formulated a medium-term plan in 2020 to set the goals ofvisualizing student learning outcomes, advancing its educational and research
activities through program reform and improvement, and cooperating with the local
community in promoting joint research and projects for regional contribution andsocial cooperation.
Regarding internal quality assurance, the University established a newsystem in AY2020 with the Self-Study and Improvement Committee headed by thepresident tasked with promoting internal quality assurance. The inspections andevaluations focus on the University’s educational programs based on the assessment
policy as well as the medium-term plan. Still in its early years, the University isexpected to effectively operate the system by periodically inspecting, assessing, andimproving its functions in a sustainable way from the perspective of internal quality
assurance.
As for the University’s education, both undergraduate and graduate
schools appropriately design their curricula based on the diploma and curriculum
policies, with various approaches adopted to have students visualize the connection
between the diploma policies and the lecture subjects using curriculum maps and1

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course charts. In addition, a rubric has been introduced university-wide to evaluate
graduation theses and dissertations in the faculties and graduate schools, and thefaculty members in each faculty, department, and graduate school create evaluation
sheets to measure student learning outcomes. The University ensures the objectivity
and transparency of its evaluations by specifying the rubric as grading methods andcriteria in the syllabuses.
The University has undertaken an outstanding initiative in returning its
research outcomes to society to promote regional contribution and social cooperation
as one of the key items in the medium-term plan. The University published “ACollection of Seeds,” a journal featuring faculty research, with the aim of using its
research resources to address social challenges in industry-academia-government
collaboration. The publication is distributed to local neighborhood associations,chambers of commerce and industry, and other relevant communities in Okayama
Prefecture, and a second publication is scheduled in the near future. It is highly
commendable that the University’s continuous and systematic efforts are expected tofurther increase regional cooperation, social contribution, and research activities as
its research outcomes are widely disseminated in Japan and abroad.
There are several issues the University needs to address, however. The
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, has a low average ratioof freshman enrollment to the freshman enrollment cap over the past five years anda low ratio of student enrollment to the student enrollment cap. These ratios must beimproved with the school’s student quotas thoroughly managed. The Graduate
School of Humanities and the Graduate School of Education have not specified thebasic concepts of curriculum implementation in their curriculum policies. This issue
should be addressed.
The University is in the process of reviewing the procedures of its internal
quality assurance system that recently began operation. In the years ahead, theUniversity is expected to regularly verify the appropriateness of the system to ensure
more effective operation, thereby further promoting a wide range of activities basedon its founding spirit.
Notable Strengths
Social Cooperation and Contribution
Center for Industrial-Academic-Governmental and Regional Collaboration has2

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compiled the University’s research outcomes, publishing A Collection of Seeds
in 2021 as part of its efforts to promote the industry-academia-government
cooperation in overcoming social challenges based on its faculty members’
research. The University distributes the publication to local neighborhood
associations, chambers of commerce and industry, and other relevantcommunities in Okayama Prefecture, while responding to community needs
through technical consultation and production development assistance, thereby
returning its research outcomes to society. The University is working on a second
publication in 2022, and plans to make university-wide efforts to promote
regional contribution and social cooperation based on its medium-term goals andplan. It is commendable that the systematic implementation of these activities ishighly expected to not only advance the University’s cooperation andcontribution activities, but also promote its research activities and spread positive
outcomes more widely.
Suggestions for Improvement
Educational Program and Learning OutcomesThe Graduate School of Humanities and the Graduate School of Education havenot specified their basic concepts of curriculum implementation in thecurriculum policies. This issue should be addressed.

Student Enrollment
The ratios of student enrollment to the student enrollment cap are low at 0.25 in
the Master’s program at the Graduate School of Humanities and 0.31 in theMaster’s program at the Graduate School of Education. These ratios should beimproved with the graduate schools’ student quotas thoroughly managed.

RecommendationStudent Enrollment
The Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, has a low
average ratio of 0.75 in freshman enrollment to the freshman enrollment cap over3

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the past five years and a low ratio of 0.77 in student enrollment to the student
enrollment cap. These ratios must be improved with the school’s student quotas
thoroughly managed.

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