INFORMATION

About Rikkyo Second Stage College (RSSC)
Purpose of Establishment of Rikkyo Second Stage College
Rikkyo Second Stage College (RSSC) was established by Rikkyo University in April 2008 as an
educational venue for seniors age 50 or above. It is based on the cultivation of the humanities andaims at relearning, reapproaching challenges, and cross-generational joint education. Based on
Rikkyo University's founding principles embodied in liberal arts, the college makes full use of highly
regarded university-wide liberal arts subjects for undergraduate students and the pioneeringexperience developed in the graduate school for working adults to support students in designing
their own way of life as “free citizens” in the second stage of their lives. This is the concept ofcreating a new campus that strives for unique lifelong learning. Students gather here as friends tochallenge themselves to new studies, build a network between people, and create a fulfilling life byrecognizing each other's diversity and participating in a society of coexistence.
RSSC celebrated its 15th anniversary in 2023. Many past graduates have enjoyed a rich secondstage life by participating in social contribution activities with fellow alumni, as well as in study
groups and book clubs. Together with its students, the college will continue the good traditions andculture that it has built so far, endeavoring for greater ingenuity and innovation to adapt to a new
way of life, including going online.

1Special Features of the College❶ A Campus Full of Tradition and Vitality

Blessed with convenience and comfort, Rikkyo University’s
Ikebukuro Campus is located in the heart of Tokyo, yet its
atmosphere is beautiful, academic, and serene. Seniors canhave a fresh university life on this campus with young students
striding through. Exclusive Student lounge is available for RSSC
students, as are educational facilities such as one of theforemost libraries in Japan and computer classrooms, as well as
facilities including cafeterias and an indoor heated swimmingpool.
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Special Features of the College❷ An Appealing Range of Courses and Cross-Generational
Joint Education
The college offers appealing courses that seniors want to study.
Students can relearn the cultivation and basic skills that
support free citizens, and classes are offered that focus onpreviously overlooked events, as well as subject groups thatmeet the unique interests of seniors. There are also
opportunities for cross-generational joint education with theyounger generation, such as taking university-wide liberal arts
subjects with undergraduate students and participating inundergraduate classes as commentators.
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Special Features of the College❸ All Students Participate in Seminars

The college values the perspective that faculty members andstudents collaborate to create classes and seminars together.
For this reason, all students belong to a seminar and complete
a completion thesis under the guidance of the instructor incharge. These seminars emphasizing the autonomy ofparticipants provide a valuable forum for students to use lively
discussions to deepen friendships and talk about new ways ofliving that respect diversity in the community.
4Special Features of the College❹ A Variety of Field Studies

Students learn how to connect people with others and nature,and create new communities against the backdrop of real localareas. There are classes in which students actively go outdoors
to learn about the importance of nature and the preciousness ofliving things, and there are classes in which students visit sites
where actual social activities are conducted. During summer
break, joint training is conducted for all seminar members toexperience group activities beyond the limits of their ownseminar.
5Special Features of the College❺ A One-Year Term of Study, with the Possibility of Moving On to
the 2nd year Course)

The term of study for the regular course is one year. Each subject iscompleted in six months during the spring or fall semester, andintensive summer courses are also held. Upon completion of theprescribed credits through a systematic program of required courses,electives, and seminars, a certificate of completion is awarded by
the college, together with a certificate of completion provided by theMinistry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology inaccordance with Article 105 of the School Education Act. The 2ndyear course is available for students who want to continue theirstudies for another year (50 students to be admitted).
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Special Features of the College❻ Extracurricular Activities and Continuation after Completion

Rikkyo Second Stage College also offers extracurricularlearning opportunities (lectures, hands-on events, etc.). Thereare also opportunities for students to be actively involved incommittee activities (graduation thesis presentations, online
activities, public relations, etc.). While participating in these
extracurricular activities, RSSC students form a network thatwill continue in a lively way after completion as the alumni
association and as study group activities of the Social
Contribution Activity Support Center.
7Curriculum Outline
The curriculum is organized from the perspective of “freecitizens” who think for themselves to form the core of a varietyof methods of social participation. It is composed of threeelective course clusters—the “Aging Society Education CourseCluster,” the “Community Design and Business Course Cluster,”and the “Second Stage Design Course Cluster”—as well as therequired subjects “The Academic World A” and aseminar/completion thesis.
In addition, under certain conditions, students can takeuniversity-wide liberal arts subjects offered to all
undergraduate students of Rikkyo University.
8Curriculum Outline
Each subject has a fixed number of credits, and to complete theregular course, students are required to enroll for one year andcomplete six credits in two required subjects (“The AcademicWorld A” and a seminar/graduation thesis in an omnibus
lecture), as well as at least 12 credits in six electives, totaling atleast 18 credits.
In order to avoid overburdening students with their studies, themaximum number of courses that can be taken in therespective spring (including intensive summer courses) and fallsemesters, including required courses, is ten (20 credits).
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Curriculum Outline
In the 2nd year course that students can enter after completing
the regular course, they can complete two compulsory subjects(“The Academic World B” and a seminar/graduation thesis) forten credits and two electives for four or more credits, for a totalof at least 14 credits.
Some courses will also be held online with the aim ofcultivating “free citizens” who can handle a society withaccelerating online communication.

10Curriculum ＆ Courses
For electives, students can freely choose from the following threesubject groups.

Group 1
Aging Society Education Course Cluster
In the second stage of life, it is essential to be exposed to the liberalarts Rikkyo University traditionally emphasizes. It frees people frompreconceived notions and values and allows them to look atthemselves, society, and the world from a different perspective frombefore. By learning from the intellectual heritage of all periods andplaces and acquiring the cultivation to enrich future time as a “freecitizen”, students form a self-suitable for life’s second stage.
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Curriculum ＆ Courses
Group 2Community Design and Business Course Cluster
Utilizing the various human resources and networks cultivatedby Rikkyo University, this cluster offers practical lectures on
NPO/NGO activities, social and community businesses, andvolunteer activities, which are considered to be responsible for
new commonalities in the 21st century. The senior generation is
supported in creating meaning in life and embarking on social
contributions in cooperation with the Social Contribution
Activity Support Center attached to Rikkyo Second Stage
College.
12Curriculum ＆ Courses
Group 3
Second Stage Design Course Cluster
The second stage is nothing less than a second life, and a life
plan that looks ahead to the future will help support seniors
living vibrantly. In order to open new possibilities for a healthy,rich, and intellectually curious second stage, this cluster offers
tips on how to think about life and put those ideas into practice,including regarding the position and role of seniors in an aging
society, the symbiosis between seniors and society, and viewsof life and death.
13Conceptual Diagram of the Curriculum Structure

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Curriculum ＆ Courses
The following two subjects are required.
Omnibus Lecture “The Academic World A”
Mainly faculty members in charge of seminars take turns talking
about their specializations in relation to the significance of theiractivities. There are sure to be tips on how to design a second stageof life bolstered by intelligence and education. Special guest lectures
are also included. The lectures are also occasions for thoughtprovoking intellectual exchange for planning the completion thesis,
and they provide a valuable opportunity for all fellow students toexperience the same subject together, beyond the boundaries ofeach seminar.
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Curriculum ＆ Courses
Seminar/Completion Thesis
The activities of the seminar are a collaborative effort to unleash theintellectual potential of each student, including their life experiences
until now. Students belong to one of the seminars and aim tocomplete their completion theses. In doing so, they conduct researchon topics of their own interest with an eye to life in the second-stage,
presenting their findings and discussing them in a way that canconvince people with different opinions. In March, at the end of theacademic year, a joint completion thesis presentation is held by all
the seminars combined.
*Students cannot choose the instructors in charge of the seminars.
16Curriculum ＆ Courses
The lecture period is divided into three semesters: the springsemester, intensive summer courses, and the fall semester.

The lecture period is divided into three semesters: the springsemester, intensive summer courses, and the fall semester. Theseminar and completion thesis are conducted throughout the spring
and fall semesters, with classes designated at the time of enrollment.
Intensive summer courses are electives held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
on three consecutive days between August and mid-September.
From late August to early September, special joint event isconducted for all seminars. Special lectures, nature observation
sessions, and other events provide opportunities to buildrelationships and networks beyond the boundaries of each seminar.
In addition, various hands-on learning events are held after theperiod of classes for the fall semester.
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General Curriculum
Under certain conditions, students of Rikkyo Second Stage
College are allowed to take lecture courses from among theuniversity-wide liberal arts subjects for undergraduate studentsof Rikkyo University. There are many diverse subjects available,
and studying with young students from a different generation isan opportunity for cross-generational joint education tounderstand the generation responsible for the future.

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Intergenerational Learning
Rikkyo Second Stage University itself, where a wide range of people
from 50 to 80 years old study together, is a place for crossgenerational joint education. As for cross-generational joint
education with undergraduate students, in addition to taking courses
in university-wide liberal arts subjects, there are also opportunities
to listen to presentations by students in the College of Intercultural
Communication and to make comments from a cross-generational
perspective, as well as to participate in roleplays as supervisors,colleagues, and business partners so that study-abroad students inthe Graduate School of Business can learn to converse in practicalbusiness Japanese. Students understand the ideas and actions ofdifferent generations, familiarize themselves with that energy, andplay a part in international exchange.
19Activities of Students
Students are also active in extracurricular activities

Extracurricular activities also give students an opportunity toenlighten and get acquainted with one another. Students
independently run groups such as a meeting for seminarleaders, a newsletter-editing committee, and an online activitycommittee. At the same time, they organize various social
events and work on their own initiative. In addition, duringspring break, there are several hands-on events managed byfaculty members, including tours of facilities around Rikkyo
University, nature observations, and special lectures related toclasses.
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Activities of Students
The Social Contribution Activity Support Center and Its Registered
Study Groups

The Social Contribution Activity Support Center was established forstudents and alumni to promote social interaction and usefulcontributions to society based on relearning, reapproaching
challenges, and cross-generational joint education. Here, groups
organized as forums for research, seminars, and practice areregistered; run independently by members of each registered study
group; and their activities supported by the faculty members andconsultants in charge of the center. There were 12 registered study
groups in the 2023 academic year, with a total of about 400
participants.
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Activities of Alumni
Graduates of Rikkyo Second Stage College (RSSC) join various activities
as free citizens. There are myriad activities, such as for continuing bookclubs and study groups with fellow students, moving from the regularcourse to a specialized course at RSSC, using the auditing-student system,
entering graduate school, trying to find a new job or start a business,volunteering in the local community, or participating in NPO activities. In
particular, there is a growing interest in making active social contributions.
Alumni also organize reunions. In addition to general events andgatherings of students from the same class year, members have lively
interactions with each other through all kinds of study groups and circles,
reporting their doings on the Alumni Association's website. Learning atRSSC is not temporary. Graduates maintain the various bonds they had
when they were enrolled and build new networks with each other. One
great distinction is that they personally create and utilize opportunities forstudy and social activities.
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Toward a Society Online
Since the 2020 academic year, Rikkyo Second Stage College (RSSC)
has included online classes in some subjects. Students can now
take RSSC classes, ask questions of instructors, discuss with otherstudents, and more from their home computers. The college has also
set up an online lounge for students to gather and talk freely on theinternet outside of class.
While COVID-19 placed significant constraints on people's behavior
in the real world, it accelerated online communication, as evidenced
by the progress of telework. This kind of online communication has
become commonplace and inseparable from our lives in the postpandemic world. The technology that enables online communication
has become a powerful way to connect people across physicalspaces. However, it is not all positive. We are witnessing the tragedyof online abuse that hunts people down and even takes their lives.
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Toward a Society Online
Insensible use of technology can be harmful to human society.
RSSC views online communication skills and cultivation as part of a
new era of liberal arts and will work with students to think about
how this should be done while putting online communication intopractice. The knowledge and experience gained through this learning
will be a valuable asset as students design their own way of life as“free citizens”.
Students must have a computer or other internet-enabled device
available in order to take online classes or use the online lounge.
Some people who are considering studying at RSSC may be
unfamiliar with computers, but RSSC wants to provide support thatleaves no one behind.
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