Most classes are in the form of lectures or seminars. Completion of the first stage requires 32 credits, with electives from areas outside the candidate's specialty also being accepted. Most Divisions also accept up to 10 credits from other graduate schools with which Japan Women's University has a special agreement. In the first stage of the doctoral program, students master specialized research methodology and submit their master's thesis. By contrast, in the second stage of the program these methods are actually applied to the student's specialty.
Faculty members offer individual guidance in the preparation of the doctoral dissertation.
The Divisions, as one means of encouraging student research, hold a symposium in the fall at which students report on their unfinished master's theses. All faculty members and students participate in these conferences, generating a lively exchange of opinions and helping students complete their dissertations. Many Divisions also organize conferences at which students scheduled to submit their doctoral dissertations announce the results of their research. The curricula for each specialty in the Graduate School of the Humanities has its own unique characteristics. In the Division of Japanese, which consists of the fields of Japanese language and literature, students are taught not only by the university's own professors, but also by outside specialists where desirable, including visiting lecturers from abroad.