Developing Human Resources Who Enrich People’s Everyday Lives with Biotechnology

While our life has become richer than before thanks to progress in technology, many more aging and stress related disorders, such as cancers, brain diseases, and allergies are being diagnosed. Even seen from the perspective of the preservation of the global environment, emphasis is now beginning to be placed on such problems as developing clean energy, exterminating harmful insects without using chemicals, and ensuring food safety. It is said that the 21st century is the age of life science. We develop human resources who can solve these problems with biotechnology.

Educational Program

We provide education in the field of modern biology and its applications, namely biotechnology. The curriculum for first-year students includes not only lectures on mathematics, chemistry, physics, English, and other subjects necessary for science course students, but also Field Observation and Survey of Living Nature, Field Work in Agriculture, and other outdoor field work courses where students observe living organisms in their natural habitats. In the second year and the first half of the third year, students obtain fundamental knowledge regarding the functions and structures of plants and animals by attending lectures and taking field work courses on cell biology, genetics, biochemistry, physiology, microbiology, embryology, and the science of human performance. They are also required to take a seminar, Reading Biology in English, where they study in small groups to increase their understanding of biotechnology in English. Based on these fundamental courses, students study biotechnology through lectures on genetic engineering, cell technology, biomedicine, and protein engineering, thereby acquiring knowledge that can be utilized in society. In the second half of the third year, students engage in fundamental practicums, followed by thesis research in the fourth year. For the purposes of these practica and thesis research, students are assigned to laboratories, where they conduct research under the guidance of academic advisers. By presenting their research progress and results at their laboratory seminars, students develop their explanation and communication skills. In addition, students develop scientific and logical thinking skills through seminar discussions.
　This program covers 13 research fields, with the range of research target materials being extensive, from insects, such as silkworms and drosophila, to microbes, such as yeasts, colon bacilli, cancer cells, plants, mice and proteins. In addition, these materials are researched at a variety of levels, the molecular, cellular, individual organism, and ecological. The program has been designed to accommodate various social needs by covering an extensive range of research areas and by ensuring the guidance of appropriate faculty members.
　After the completion of the program, students can progress to the master’s and doctoral programs, where they obtain even deeper expertise and more biotechnology-related skills. This enables them to demonstrate their capabilities as researchers or engineering staff at private or public institutions.