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

Ryukoku University

Basic Information of the Institution
Ownership: Private

Location: Kyoto, Japan

Accreditation Status
Year of the Review: 2020
Accreditation Status: accredited （Accreditation Period: April.1.2021 – March.31.2028）

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Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Resultsfor Ryukoku University
Overview
Ryukoku University is a comprehensive university that originates from the Gakuryo(boarding school), an educational institution established within the precincts of Nishi
Hongwanji Temple. Its educational mission and purpose is to nurture people who can“seek truth, live in truth, and reveal truth” has been drawn up in order to achieve thefounding spirit and the objectives of the University, and efforts are being made under thisplan to enhance its educational, research, and social contribution activities. In 2018,
Ryukoku University also produced its next long-term plan, “Ryukoku Strategic Plan 400―Ryukoku Unlimited Challenge for 2039―”, referred to hereinafter as “RSP400.”
Internal quality assurance is the responsibility of the “All-University AssessmentCouncil”. It takes a leading role in conducting internal quality assurance by means of twosystems: “organizational checks and reviews,” which are conducted every year by allorganizations, including faculties and graduate schools, and “self-checks of individual
faculty members’ activities,” in which each faculty member reviews their activities in thefour areas of education, research, social contribution, and university administration. By
establishing a cycle of developing and implementing improvement plans for any issues
that are identified, it works to maintain and improve the University’s education andresearch activities. In AY 2019, a new academic management system was established, but
the “Three Policies Verification Committee”, which was newly established in conjunction
with this system, has yet to fully carry out its role. However, some of the activities of thenew academic management system can be seen in the “All-University Educational PolicyCouncil”, and it should be acknowledged that university-wide activities based on policies
and procedures for internal quality assurance have begun. It is hoped that the new
educational management system will produce positive outcomes in the future.
With regard to education, each faculty and graduate school has generally
designed their curricula appropriately in line with the degree award policy (diplomapolicy) and curriculum design and implementation policy (curriculum policy). All
faculties have established an “allocation mat” that prioritizes the class times forcompulsory subjects, as well as a curriculum map and grade number system that indicatesthe grades of subjects, allowing students to take courses in a systematic and sequential
manner. The University has also introduced the “Ryukoku IP (Inventive Program)”, which
provides financial support to distinctive educational programs and rigorously assesses the1

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results, showing impressive efforts aimed at educational reform.
In addition, systems such as Class Supporters, in which senior students workwith faculty members to provide support to first-year students both in and out of class,are excellent student support initiatives that promote mutual learning and student growththrough the PDCA cycle. Furthermore, Yunus Social Business Research Center, which
conducts a variety of activities, such as “Social Entrepreneurship Development Program”,
to address the world-wide challenges of the SDGs, and Ryukoku Solar Park Project,which provides funds to support community service and civic activities, are highly
commendable as distinctive university-specific initiatives.
However, there are several issues that should be addressed. First, at the graduatelevel, identification of the learning outcomes specified in the degree award policy islimited to the submission of a doctoral / master’s thesis and passing the thesis examination.
As such, it is difficult to conclude that the learning outcomes specified in the degree award
policy are being properly identified and assessed. In addition, the Faculty of Advanced
Science and Technology does not set curriculum design and implementation policy foreach of its degree programs, and the Doctoral Programs at the Graduate School ofEconomics and the Graduate School of Business Administration do not indicate theirbasic approach to curriculum design. Moreover, in most of the graduate schools, the ratiosof student enrollment to the student enrollment caps are low, so the University should
implement thorough graduate school quota management to improve the situation.
Going forward, we hope that the University will solve these issues by promoting
efforts with internal quality assurance and make further progress by further developing
distinctive university-specific initiatives.
Notable Strengths
Education and Research Organizations
Taking the similarities between the SDGs, an international initiative, and Buddhism
as a basis, the Yunus Social Business Research Center conducts research on the SDGs
from a Buddhist perspective and operates projects aimed at achieving them. Itsestablishment can considered to be unique among institutions of higher education asa response to contemporary social demands and the international environment. The
center’s activities are dynamic and diverse. It is commendable that it is anticipated toachieve its founding objectives of “research on the SDGs and projects to realize them”
through such initiatives as “Social Entrepreneur Development Program”, a practical

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educational program that aims to use business methods to solve social problems,
aiming for a sustainable society where “no one is left behind.”Educational Program and Learning Outcomes“The Ryukoku IP” provides financial support for selecting distinctive educational
programs aimed at educational reform, conducting rigorous evaluations of the resultsin the first and second phases. It is highly commendable that the University isencouraging and implementing excellent educational reform efforts, including“Development of a Liberal Arts Education Program to Launch Civic Learning:
Development of University-wide Active Learning Courses and Interdisciplinary
Courses that Promote Thematic Learning.”

Faculty and Faculty Organization
Student FD Salon, where students, faculty, and staff exchange views in a workshop
format in order to improve the classroom environment, is a collaborative activity bystudents, faculty, and staff, with the student self-governing body taking the lead.
Specifically, the salon has been held on topics such as “Ryukoku Serious Chat Salon:
Discuss What Makes an Ideal Class.” This is commendable because the participationof students, who are important stakeholders in the University, in FD activities can be
expected to make a wide-ranging contribution to the improvement of educationalactivities.

Student Support

As a support measure to encourage students’ independent learning, each faculty has
established a system (class supporters, seminar supporters, tutors, mentors, etc.) in
which senior students support first-year students both in and out of class. Drawing
on their own experiences, the senior students offer advice and support to help students
acquire academic skills such as writing reports and summaries, as well as things likethe attitude to learning required of university students. There is also a system in place
to improve the methods and content of the support. For example, the class supporter
system involves checking of the class journals submitted by supporter students atmeetings of multiple class instructors, and providing them with training sessions
accordingly. First year students are highly satisfied with this kind of support fromseniors, and the supporters themselves conduct their activities independently, which
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includes planning and organizing events for the first-years while communicating andcoordinating with other students. This system of support by senior student supporters
is recognized as an effective way to develop the ability of first-year students to learn
independently, and can be commended as an excellent initiative to promote mutual
learning and growth between students, including the senior students.
Education and Research EnvironmentSupport for internally funded project research is provided through Priority Research
Promotion Program, which aims to create, promote, and enhance advanced,interdisciplinary, and original research at the University. Its results include theselection of “Diachronic and Synchronic Research of Japanese Buddhist: Challenges
and Prospects of Inclusive, Multicultural Society” and two other projects by MEXTSupported Program for the Strategic Research Foundation at Private Universities,
and the selection of the “Project for Creative Criminology in a New Era: TheTransdisciplinary Integration and Systematization of Knowledge Concerning Crimes
and Criminals” as a Private University Research Branding Project. The program ishighly commendable as it functions as a system to foster distinctive research thatmakes use of the University’s strengths.

Social Cooperation and Contribution
At Volunteer NPO Center Meeting, student staff, coordinators, and administrative
staff gather together for discussions led by the center director. As such, the center is
jointly managed by three parties: faculty, staff, and students. In addition, Volunteer
NPO Center Committee, made up of faculty and staff members, also has students
participating as observers. This and other administrative efforts are being made sothat students can use these activities to empower themselves. It can be concluded thatthese activities are being put to effective use under the “Social Cooperation andSocial Contribution Policy” of “developing talent for social change.”

Under the Ryukoku Solar Park Project, profits from mega-solar power plants
installed on land owned by local governments are used to support community service
and civic activities in the areas where the plants are installed. The project is based on
the results of research on the local application of renewable energy conducted at the“Research Centre for the Local Public Human Resources and Policy Development”,

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which is one of the projects of the “Research Center for Interdisciplinary Studies inReligion, Science and Humanities”. In accordance with the spirit of the University’sfounding, discussions were held on whether or not to implement the project, and its
uniqueness as a social cooperation or contribution activity such as the establishmentof a system was considered commendable.
Suggestions for Improvement
Educational Program and Learning Outcomes The Doctoral Programs at the Graduate School of Economics and the Graduate
School of Business Administration do not indicate their basic approach to curriculum
design and implementation policy. This should be improved.
 The Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology does not set curriculum design andimplementation policy for each of its degree programs. Improvements are required
so that these policies can be established and made public.
At the graduate level, identification of the learning outcomes specified in the degree
award policy is limited to the submission of a doctoral / master’s thesis and passing
the thesis examination. As such, it cannot be said that the learning outcomes specified
in the degree award policy are being identified and assessed in a multi-faceted andappropriate manner, so improvements are required.

Student Enrollment
 The number of transfer students in each faculty is far below the maximum number,especially in the Faculty of Letters, the Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology,
and the Faculty of Agriculture. The number in the University as a whole is also below
capacity, a situation that has become normalized and requires improvement.
 The ratio of student enrollment to the student enrollment cap is 0.38 for the Master’s
Program at the Graduate School of Law, 0.08 for the Master’s Program at theGraduate School of Economics, 0.17 for the Master’s Program at the Graduate
School of Business Administration, 0.11 for the Doctoral Program at the Graduate
School of Business Administration, 0.40 for the Master’s Program at the Graduate

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School of Sociology, 0.19 for the Doctoral Program at the Graduate School ofScience and Technology, 0.45 for the Master’s Program at the Graduate School ofAgriculture, and 0.36 for the Master’s Program at the Graduate School of Practical
Shin Buddhist Studies. These figures are low, and improvements are required in orderto ensure proper management of student quotas.
Faculty and Faculty Organization
The “Definition of FD at Ryukoku University” defines FD as activities relating toeducational improvement. In actuality, although there have been some initiatives
such as the “Support System for Scientific Research Grants”, with the exception of
the Faculty of Policy Science and the Graduate School of Science and Technology,
there have been no FD activities aimed at boosting research or promoting activities
such as social contribution.

The Graduate School of Letters, Graduate School of Economics, and Graduate
School of Agriculture have not implemented graduate school-specific faculty
development (FD) activities relating to educational improvement. Improvements areneeded to ensure that these are appropriately carried out for all Master’s and Doctoral
Programs or in the respective graduate schools.

Education and Research Environment
 Although all faculty members are required to attend and complete Research Ethics
Education Program, some faculty members have not done so. This is a situation that
requires improvement.

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