University of Shizuoka

The University of Shizuoka (静岡県立大学, Shizuoka-ken ritsu Daigaku), is a public university in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.
The University of Shizuoka was created through the amalgamation of three former public universities in 1987 and was expanded to comprise five colleges. These are the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, the Faculty of International Relations, the School of Administration and Informatics and the School of Nursing. In addition to the undergraduate programs offered in the various departments of these colleges, the university also maintains graduate schools consisting of the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the Graduate School of Nutritional and Environmental Sciences, the Graduate School of International Relations, the Graduate School of Administration and Informatics and the Graduate School of Nursing, as well as a variety of research institutes, inter-disciplinary centers and other research centers. The university also operates a two-year junior college, which is on a separate campus from the main university.
In 2011, the Graduate School of Management and Information was reorganized into the Graduate School of Management and Information of Innovation. In 2012, the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Graduate School of Nutritional and Environmental Sciences were merged and reorganized into the Graduate School of Integrated Pharmaceutical and Nutritional Sciences, an educational organization, the Graduate Division of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Graduate Division of Nutritional and Environmental Sciences, research organizations.
The University of Shizuoka is located in the prefectural capital of Shizuoka. Kusanagi Campus is near Kusanagi Station on the JR Tōkaidō Main Line, six minutes from Shizuoka Station. It is roughly halfway between the town centers of the former cities of Shimizu and Shizuoka (which were merged to form a single city in 2003). It forms an important part of a major cultural and educational complex which also includes Shizuoka Prefectural Central Library and Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art.
The Japanese name of the university is Shizuoka-ken ritsu Daigaku (静岡県立大学), which translates literally as "Prefectural University of Shizuoka." Since the English version of the Japanese term prefecture is unfamiliar to many English speakers, the university's English name was simplified to the "University of Shizuoka." This leads to some confusion, in English at least, since another nearby national university has a very similar name in English (that institution is Shizuoka University (静岡大学, Shizuoka Daigaku)).
Shizuoka Women's School of Pharmacy (静岡女子薬学校, Shizuoka Joshi Yakugakkō) was founded by Terukichi Iwasaki in 1916. It was a pharmacy school (薬学校, yakugakkō) that was an institution of higher education in the Empire of Japan.
In those days, pharmacy schools for women were very rare in the Empire of Japan. Iwasaki believed that higher education for women was important. Iwasaki ran Iwasaki Eye Clinic in Takajōmachi, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, and Shizuoka Women's School of Pharmacy established at this clinic building. Iwasaki became the Principal and was planning to move Shizuoka Women's School of Pharmacy to a new campus in Kawarabachō, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture. But Iwasaki died suddenly in 1925.
Kōtarō Shinoda became the Principal in 1926. Shinoda revived Shizuoka Women's School of Pharmacy. Shinoda promoted the construction of the Main Building at Kawarabacho Campus. The Main Building was completed in 1930.
Shizuoka Women's School of Pharmacy was upgraded from a pharmacy school to a specialized school (専門学校, senmongakkō), and Shizuoka Women's College of Pharmacy (静岡女子薬学専門学校, Shizuoka Joshi Yakugaku Senmongakkō) was established in 1945. The specialized school was an institution of higher education in the Empire of Japan. In 1950, Shizuoka Women's College of Pharmacy was coeducational and became Shizuoka College of Pharmacy (静岡薬学専門学校, Shizuoka Yakugaku Senmongakkō).
After the World War II, specialized schools under the old school system were required to transition to universities under the new school system. Shizuoka College of Pharmacy was run by a foundation, but its finances were unstable. To solve this problem, the college was transferred to Shizuoka Prefectural Government. In 1952, Shizuoka College of Pharmacy was transformed from a private specialized school to public specialized school and became Shizuoka Prefectual College of Pharmacy (静岡県立薬学専門学校, Shizuoka-ken ritsu Yakugaku Senmongakkō).
Shizuoka Prefectual College of Pharmacy was upgraded from a specialized school to a university (大学, daigaku), and Shizuoka College of Pharmacy (静岡薬科大学, Shizuoka Yakka Daigaku) was established in 1953. On the other hand Shizuoka Women's College (静岡女子短期大学, Shizuoka Joshi Tankidaigaku) was a new junior college (短期大学, tankidaigaku) founded by Shizuoka Prefectual Government in 1951. In addition, Shizuoka Women's University (静岡女子大学, Shizuoka Joshi Daigaku) was a new university founded by Shizuoka Prefectual Government in 1967.
In 1987, Shizuoka College of Pharmacy, Shizuoka Women's University and Shizuoka Women's College were merged to form the University of Shizuoka. In 2000, Hamamatsu Campus of the University of Shizuoka became independent as Shizuoka University of Art and Culture (静岡文化芸術大学, Shizuoka Bunka Geijutsu Daigaku). On April 1, 2007, Shizuoka Prefectural University Corporation was established by Shizuoka Prefectural Government. Until March 31, 2007, the University of Shizuoka had been administered by Shizuoka Prefectural Government, but since April 1, 2007, it has been administered by Shizuoka Prefectural University Corporation. In 2012, the University of Shizuoka absorbed research functions of Shizuoka Research Institute (静岡総合研究機構, Shizuoka Sōgō Kenkyū Kikō). On December 10, 2018, Tasuku Honjo, Advisor to Shizuoka Prefectural University Corporation, received a medal and certificate for Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
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