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

Miyagi University

Basic Information of the Institution
Ownership: PublicLocation: Miyagi, Japan

Accreditation Status
Year of the Review: 2019
Accreditation Status: Accredited（Accreditation Period: April 1.2020 – March 31.2027）

Certified Evaluation and Accreditation Resultsfor Miyagi University
Overview
In accordance with its founding principle of “exploration and materialization ofhospitality and amenity,” Miyagi University (hereinafter referred to as the “University”)
makes it its mission to nurture individuals with “affluent humanity” and “advancedexpertise,” as well as “reliable practical ability” that will enable them to contribute to thedevelopment of the local community from a global perspective, and to contribute to thedevelopment of scholarship and culture and the formation of a rich and vibrant localcommunity. In line with the Second Mid-term Goal set by Miyagi Prefecture, theUniversity’s founding body, the University is currently implementing the six-year SecondMid-term Plan that started in AY2015. Aiming to conduct education that is designed
around local challenges and industrial activities, the University is engaged in shifting thefocus of education toward active learning. In AY2017, which marked its 20th anniversary,
the University adopted a school-department system which enables specialized education
to be conducted across differing fields of study. This and other measures for promoting
university reform have been implemented under the president’s initiative.
An educational feature is that following the adoption of the school-department
system, the University established the Freshman Core as a university-wide fundamental
education subject group for first- and second-year students. The University has organizedcurricula that involve specialized education for each school and department andintroduced curriculum maps and a subject numbering system on a university-wide basis,
thereby encouraging students to learn in a systematic and methodical manner. As for
improvements in educational environment, the University has established four learningcommons (Student Commons, Global Commons, Discovery Commons, Data & Media
Commons), each with a different purpose and form, and holds the Sixth Period Library
Program, which involves holding lectures, screening parties, photo exhibitions, and otherevents for encouraging students to access library material. These are commendable
initiatives that lead to the promotion of active learning. The University has strived toimprove student enrollment based on information analysis conducted by entrance exam
institutional research staff, for example, by using rubrics for marking entrance exams.
In order to ensure the quality of education and other activities, the University
formulates annual plans based on the mid-term plan, various inter-school centers engage
in activities in accordance with the plans, and then checks and reviews are conducted.
2The Assessment Committee, a university-wide organization, gathers and discusses theresults of the checks and reviews as well as any proposals for improvement, reports theresults to the Educational and Research Council, Board of Trustees, and other bodies, and,based on the results of deliberation and consideration in those meetings, provides
feedback (proposals for improvement) to each center, school, and department. In this way,
the University has developed an internal quality assurance system that can lead toimprovement. With its shift to the school-department system in AY2017, the University
established various centers in charge of affairs relating to curricula, entrance exams, andstudent support as education promotion centers, and various other centers in charge ofaffairs related to local cooperation and information systems as university-wide centers.
By making faculty members and office staff participate in these centers’ activities, theUniversity has established a management system founded on faculty-staff cooperation,
ensures the functionality of its internal quality assurance system, and implements various
measures for improvement. The University is currently accumulating the results ofvarious surveys in order to grasp learning outcomes in preparation for completion of theschool system. Going forward, we hope the University grasps and assesses graduate
school learning outcomes and strives to enhance its educational program based on theobtained results, and thereby ensures the functionality of its internal quality assurance
system, promotes measures for improvement, and expands its distinctive features.
Notable Strengths
Education and Research Organization
 With the aim of promoting active learning and learning habits, the University has
established the Freshman Core as a university-wide compulsory fundamental
education subject group for first- and second-year students, which involves subjects
such as Startup Seminar and Academic Seminar, as well as other educational activities
designed to develop the communication skills, critical thinking, and discussion
methods necessary for university study. The results of the Learning Behavior
Comparative Survey indicate that the Freshman Core has enabled students toexperience in-class discussions and feel that their interest in and understanding of thelocal community have grown. It is commendable that the University enables students
to advance to subsequent specialized subjects in a seamless manner and encourages
active students learning.

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Student Enrollment
 The Admission Center is responsible for ensuring that entrance exams are conductedin a fair and transparent manner. To this end, the Admission Center verifies entrance
exam content and methods every year; has launched a new AO admissions exam thatinvolves evaluating the learning outcomes applicants have attained in their preuniversity studies, their problem identification and solving skills, and other aspects;
adopted an article-writing assignment in the regular entrance exam for the Schools ofNursing and Project Design; started using rubrics in order to ensure fairness whenmarking entrance exams; and implemented other measures for reform. The Admission
Center’s entrance exam institutional research staff has attempted to compare the basic
academic skills of enrollees before and after the aforementioned changes were madeto the entrance exam system and to track and analyze student grades, and has
conducted checks and reviews based on objective evidence. Going forward, further
measures for reform are expected to lead to enhancement of enrollee quality. This iscommendable.
Education and Research Environment
 In order to provide various learning facilities on campus, the University has
established the following four learning commons: the Data & Media Commons,
which is for self-learning, research, and production activities involving the use ofcomputers; the Global Commons, which offers a space where users can seek advice
about studying abroad and practice languages; the Student Commons, which students
can use freely for meetings or resting; and the Discovery Commons, which features
discussion rooms, event spaces, and various other learning spaces. The provision ofthese diverse facilities and the holding of events for promoting the use of eachcommons are expected to lead to the enhancement of student comfort and thepromotion of active learning. This is commendable.
 The Academic Information Center has held the Sixth Period Library Program underinter-school (inter-faculty) themes since AY2014, in order to encourage students touse the library and access library material. By holding lectures given by former
magazine editors, diet advisors, and other guests from various fields, photoexhibitions, and movie screening parties, among other events, the Sixth Period
Library Program has supported active student learning outside of class and raisedinterest in a broad range of fields. It is commendable that these initiatives have led to4

a steady increase in access to library material and helped students study using librarymaterial.
Suggestions for Improvement
Education and Research Organization
 Although the graduate schools conduct questionnaire surveys with students, thelearning outcomes indicated in the degree award policy are not grasped or assessed
adequately. Therefore, the graduate schools should grasp and assess the learning
outcomes indicated in the degree award policy.

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