Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Results forProfessional Graduate Business School

Institute of Business and Accounting,Professional Graduate School
Kwansei Gakuin University

Basic Information of the Institution
Ownership: Private

Location: Hyogo, Japan

Accreditation Status
Year of the Review: 2019
Accreditation Status: Accredited（Accreditation Period: April 1.2020 – March 31.2025）

Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Resultsfor Institute of Business and Accounting,
Professional Graduate School, Kwansei Gakuin University
With the educational purpose of a professional graduate school to “teach and study
academic theories and application, train human resources that possess socially specificand advanced professional skills and outstanding abilities, cultivate personalities
according to Christian principles, and contribute to the advancement of culture,” theBusiness School, Institute of Business and Accounting, Professional Graduate School,
Kwansei Gakuin University, has its own unique purpose to foster “globally competentbusiness persons with high professional ethics in line with the university’s foundingprinciples.” The Business School consists of two courses: the Corporate Management
Strategy Course (Japanese program; offered mainly on weekday evenings andweekends), which is mainly intended for working students and aims to train those whoare keen to develop a theoretical understanding of various business problems andbecome business professionals, and the International Management Course (Englishprogram; offered mainly in the daytime on weekdays), which aims to train globallycompetent business persons. Both courses accept those with good English skills,
capabilities, and enthusiasm and offer consistent education with a focus on globalizationand professional ethics.
The curriculum consists of two courses, as noted above. Specifically, theCorporate Management Strategy Course has six programs, and the InternationalManagement Course has four programs, each offering a wide range of subjects. Amongthe programs above, the Municipal, Medical, and University Management Program of
the Corporate Management Strategy Course offers a curriculum on the publicmanagement and governance of administrative and non-profit organizations such as
municipalities, medical institutions, etc., which is a distinctive endeavor. The Business
School aims to foster high professional ethical standards with a unique feature ofmaking Corporate Ethics and Business Ethics compulsory for both courses and offering
specialized education subjects such as Corporate Ethics Case Studies. The AuditingStudent System, which is only available to graduates of the Business School, is a
program that enables students to engage in lifelong learning, and thereby represents acommendable effort to support networking between current students and graduates.
In addition to the above, the Institute of Business and Accounting is engaged invarious distinctive endeavors, including: (1) consistent implementation of ambitious
initiatives, such as the introduction of an working student program and a double2

master’s system focusing on globalization, in accordance with its long-term vision,
long-term strategy, and mid-term strategy; (2) the fact that the office is also playing therole of secretariat of the IBA Research Forum; and (3) implementation of a short-term
exchange program through the Summer Graduate Business Program based on anagreement with the University of Victoria in Canada.
However, the issues below should be addressed.
First, regarding the educational program, methods and outcomes, it is statedthat class hours should be seven weeks (14 periods) and an eighth week dedicated to
make-up classes/term examinations for each quarter. It should be ensured that theregular class hours equivalent to 90 minutes × 15 weeks is provided. Regarding theutilization of educational outcome assessment, there is a need to grasp the outcomes ofpost-completion activities and education through the curriculum cooperation council,
alumni association, and other organizations that graduates participate in as external
members, share that information within those organizations, and consider measures toutilize the information for improving the educational program and methods, inaccordance with the purpose of the Business School.
Next, regarding faculty members and faculty, the internal organization involvedin the appointment process is complex, and there is a concern that it will become
unclear where the responsibility lies. In order to create a high-quality faculty, the roles
and mutual relationships of the relevant committees should be clarified. Further, inorder to provide support to full-time faculty members engaged in improving educationaland research activities and ensure appropriate accountability to students and otherstakeholders, a systematic and organizational system for evaluating individual full-time
faculty members should be developed, and a system should be created that further
motivates full-time faculty members who have made positive achievements in theevaluation, in cooperation with the corporation as well as the university executives incharge of formulating self-study systems and implementing them in individual
departments.
The present certified evaluation and accreditation has clarified the features andissues of the Business School. Therefore, we hope the Business School refers to theseresults and continues to implement self-study and work on reform and improvement,
and thereby further enhances its features and develops and improves its educational andresearch activities even more.

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