Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Results forProfessional Graduate Business School

Meiji University Graduate School of Professional Accountancy
Professional Accountancy Program

Basic Information of the Institution
Ownership: Private

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Accreditation Status
Year of the Review: 2014
Accreditation Status: accredited（Accreditation Period: April.01.2015 – March.31.2020）

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Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Resultsfor the Professional Accountancy Program,the Graduate School of Professional Accountancy, Meiji University
The purpose of the Professional Accountancy Program (hereafter, the Program) in theGraduate School of Professional Accountancy is to train “highly specialized accounting
professionals equipped with the qualities and skills needed for a public accountant;accounting practitioners in the private or public sector; and a tax specialists.” To
achieve this purpose the Program has set four educational objectives: “trainingpersonnel with high professional values rooted in professional ethics and an ability tomake logical decisions;” “training personnel equipped with highly specialized
knowledge and skills, and an ability to adapt to information technology;” “training
personnel who can adapt to international business;” and “training personnel who canrespond to the social mission of accounting professionals.” In short, the program
encourages students to build a high awareness of professional values and ethics,
acquire specialized knowledge needed to fulfill the social mission of accounting,auditing, and tax specialists, and master the state-of-the-art skills needed to function
as a professional in the modern age of globalization and computerization. It grants thedegree of Master of Accountancy (a professional degree) to those who complete therequired curriculum.
The purpose of the Program mentioned above is clearly written in theUniversity rules and available to the public through the web page and the guidebookof the Program. The purpose has been made known to the faculty and staff throughfaculty meetings of the graduate school, various committee meetings including theFaculty Development Committee, and faculty liaison conferences, and is also
disseminated to students through new student guidance, orientation meetings, andsocial gatherings of with an alumni association: the Meiji University Public
Accountant Group.
The policy on degree award is evident in the Program’s goal to “target talent”
and “reach concrete objectives,” and is clearly written in the graduate school
handbook, course syllabi, and on the web page so that the contents are well known not
only among current students but also among applicants. As the “targeted talent”
assumes a the role of public accountant, licensed tax accountant, accounting
practitioner in the private or public sector, or a specialist in accounting, auditing, ortax services in management and finance, the Program equips students with thefollowing qualities and skills: first, “the ability to make logical decisions based onhighly professional ethics,” second, “highly specialized knowledge and skills and anability to adapt to information technology,” third, the ability to “adapt to internationalbusiness,” and fourth, the ability to “respond to the social mission” of accounting
professions.
In regards to the policy on degree award, it is commendable that the program ismaking distinctive efforts to provide useful information and support concerning future
careers by designating a full-time faculty as the “career coordinator,” promoting
career-related events, and offering career consultations to students.
The curriculum design policy is defined as the following: “To implement asystematic and incremental education in which students learn to recognize practicalproblems regarding accounting, auditing, tax services, or management and finance, andanalyze problems and develop abilities to solve them in order that students may betrained highly specialized professionals in accounting equipped with the ability to makedecisions based on professional ethics, logical thinking, and highly specialized
knowledge and skills.” According to this policy, the subjects are divided into commonand seven specific field related groups: financial accounting, international accounting,administrative accounting, auditing, corporate law, tax law, and management and3finance. In addition, each subject for 7 groups is classified into the basic, advanced, andapplied practical subjects, so that students may study their subject systematically andincrementally. In all seven groups, case studies are utilized so that the learning is basedon actual concrete cases taking place in today’s economic climate. This notableeducational practice facilitates the effective learning of students.
It is commendable that the program is making distinctive efforts to boost
educational outcomes by holding calculation practice classes utilizing a flexible“ubiquitous system” that adjusts to a student’s study time, and by appointing those
who have earned doctoral degrees, taught at the university level, earned theircertification as public accountants, or passed the certified public accountant
examination as educational support instructors in order to better respond to questions
from students and provide consultations.
However, there are a number of issues to consider in order to further advanceeducation and research activities in the Professional Accountancy Program.
In regards to the curriculum, the subjects intended to cultivate high professionalethics (Auditing Professional Ethics, and Management Ethics) are categorized as
selective requirements, but given their importance the Program is expected to consider
making these required subjects.
Second, subjects in the international accounting group are evaluated that mostof them should more properly belong to the administrative accounting group or theauditing group. Class assignments in the international accounting group are expected
to be reconsidered.
Third, concrete measures (such as consideration of scheduling) should be taken
for those classes with very few students, and if the class continues to attract only few
students for several semesters, it should be discontinued or merged with other classes.
Fourth, with the establishment of a thesis-writing course, the writing of themaster’s thesis is required for the students taking this course to complete the program,and thus, the significance of the thesis has changed dramatically from the previous
curriculum. However, the explanation of this change has not sufficiently
communicated to students or to the public. Therefore, the Program should clarify thesignificance of the master’s thesis in the curriculum.
Fifth, in regards to class scheduling, some of the subjects in the same groupoverlap or are scheduled at the same time. Scheduling should take into accountstudents’ conveniences.
Sixth, in regard to the description of subject contents in the syllabus, contents
vary in their specificities according to each professor. The faculty should standardize
the syllabi and make the contents of each subject available to students prior to taking
the subject.
In regards to the faculty, for certain classes a number of full-time professors
are required to work beyond their designated hours. This should be improved. Also,the system to evaluate the contents of research results has not been developed. Amethod of evaluation is expected to be developed immediately.
In regards to student admission, a system to continuously review admission
matters, including the admission policy, targeted applicants, and the selection criteria
and methods, has not been sufficiently established. This should be improved.
Finally, the issue of securing incoming students requires immediate attention.
In the Program, the ratios of enrolled incoming students to the incoming students
admission cap were 0.54 in 2012, 0.41 in 2013, and 0.34 in 2014, and the ratio ofenrolled students to the student enrollment cap was 0.52 in 2013. As a result, thenumber of admitted students was far below the expected enrollment cap. Although we
recognized the Program’s various efforts to improve enrollment quotas, such asincreasing opportunities to sit for entrance examinations and introducing a pluralcourse system to respond to the diverse career needs of applicants, we must
recommend immediate improvements to securing a quota of incoming students.

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It is expected that the Program ardently tackles not only the issues we have raised, butalso issues that become evident through self-study. We expect the Program will makeconstant efforts to improve and reform in order to develop as a professional graduate
school in the field of accountancy in response to the expectations of society.