秋季入学式を挙行

Today we have 27 students entering the degree programs offered at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. 10 entering the doctoral programs, 16 entering the master’s programs, and 1 entering the School of Japan Studies undergraduate program. 

Welcome to Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. I will not say congratulations today. Let me save that word for later, to the day you graduate from this university with a degree.

I believe you all remember the catastrophic glacier collapse at the Nepal-Tibet border this summer. Glacier melting is considered yet another consequence of global warming. Global warming has been in our vocabulary for more than half a century. However, our efforts to slow down and terminate human-caused climate change have not borne fruit so far. We have failed to turn the gloomy prospects brighter. 

New technology alone cannot break the impasse. We also need expertise from the humanities and social sciences. We need people who can apply and spread new technologies. We need people who can design new social arrangements and new ways of living. We need people who can raise awareness of the critical situation and lead people to change their ways of living.

The demand of such experts is not limited to the public sector. Some financial institutions are exploring ways to promote investment into eco-friendly business. Some food companies are searching for ways to support and spread sustainable farming practices.

Among the 16 new MA students, 12 are majoring in Peace and Conflict Studies and 4 are majoring in Japanese language education. These two fields are practical and issue driven, not discipline driven. The research will be conducted through a dialogue with the real world, not within a confined sphere of inter-related theories and concepts. Even while engaging in academic training, always keep in mind the roles you are expected to carry out in society after graduation.

The study and research of the new students majoring in other fields may be more theory driven. Even if that is the case, please be aware of how your research may contribute to society outside the campus and outside academia. Research in humanities and social sciences always has contact points with society. You must have received ideas, materials, and support from outside academia. Our university is funded by the government in the first place.

Let me quote a message that was given to the first students at Sapporo Agricultural College (Sapporo Nō-gakkō), the predecessor of Hokkaido University, by Vice Principal, William Smith Clark. The college was established 150 years ago in 1876. Since the educational environment and the surrounding society were drastically different from what we have today, I will adapt his words to the contemporary world.

“Be ambitious! Be ambitious not for money or selfish aggrandizement, not for that evanescent thing which people call fame. Be ambitious for knowledge, for righteousness, and for the uplift of others. Be ambitious for the attainment of all that a person ought to be.”

I have one more message related to your student life. 

Most of you have come from outside Japan. Some from neighboring countries in East Asia, some from Western and Southern parts of Asia, some from Africa, some from Europe, and some from South America. You took on an admirable challenge. I believe that you are both excited and nervous. 

You do not have to worry too much. You will soon find students from your country studying on our campus. You will also find students who were born and raised in Japan but speak your language. They are all ready to help you whenever necessary.

But please keep in mind to not rely too much on a small community of students sharing the same language. You can communicate both in English and Japanese with all students on our campus.

Many of you have come to Tokyo to brush up Japanese language skills and acquire knowledge of Japan not found in textbooks. To complete this mission, you will have to step outside our campus and communicate with people outside our campus. Please make the most of the environment and the opportunities you have.

As I mentioned earlier, I want all of you to be aware of society outside our campus, outside academia. Interact with diverse people both inside and outside our campus and prepare yourself to make intellectual contributions to society after completing your academic training.

Welcome to Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. Your training period begins today. Make the most of what this university has to offer throughout your new stage of life. I wish you all the best.

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2026.9.25

President, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
HARUNA Nobuo