Department of Political Science Curriculum

The Department of Political Science has produced many Diet (parliament) members, local assembly members, diplomats, central and local government officials, and officials at international organizations. It has also cultivated a huge number of talented individuals who are active in the private sector and at NGOs, among many other fields. Using their creative and logical thinking powers and specialized knowledge acquired at our faculty, a great many alumni are making significant contributions in an increasingly globalized and rapidly changing society. We offer a curriculum comprising five disciplinary subfields to nurture highly professional individuals who are either generalists with high levels of specialist expertise or specialists who also possess comprehensive knowledge and abilities in many spheres.

Students learn the basics of political science in their first and second years. Once they have found an area of interest, they study their chosen specialization in their third and fourth years, enhancing their ability to think critically and independently through in-depth reading and discussion with professors and other students.

Cross-Listed Courses

Cross-listed courses are a unique aspect of the Faculty of Law curriculum, with students taking a systematic rather than comprehensive approach to liberal arts courses. Through seminars on the humanities and natural sciences, students can further develop and deepen their understanding, and they can also earn a sub-major after completing specific academic requirements in an area after four years of study.

Languages Subjects include:
English / German / French / Chinese / Korean / Spanish / Russian / Arabic
Students can choose the language and course level that best suits their goals and ambitions.

Regular Course
Regular courses are held twice a week, letting students learn the basics of a new language.
Intensive Course
Intensive courses are held four times a week with in-depth study over an extended period. Classes are small and taught by native speakers.

Social Sciences Department of Law
Law / Sociology / Geography / Economics / Political Science / History of Modern Thought / and more
Department of Political Science
Law / Sociology / Constitutional Law / Civil Law / Principles of Economics / Economic Policy / Public Finance / and more
Humanities Linguistic Science / Area Studies on Culture / Literature / History / History of Science / Fundamentals of Logic / Ethics / Science of Religion / Philosophy / Music / Chinese Classics / Fine Arts / Advanced Study of Humanities / Humanities seminars / General Humanities / and more
Natural Sciences Physics / Chemistry / Biology / Basic Mathematics / Psychology / Basic Statistics / Advanced Study of Natural Science / Natural Sciences seminars / and more
Mathematics, Statistics, Information Processing Mathematics / Statistics / Information Processing / Advanced Information Processing / Statistical Information Processing / and more
Languages
Subjects include:
English / German / French / Chinese / Korean / Spanish / Russian / Arabic
Students can choose the language and course level that best suits their goals and ambitions.

Regular Course
Regular courses are held twice a week, letting students learn the basics of a new language.
Intensive Course
Intensive courses are held four times a week with in-depth study over an extended period. Classes are small and taught by native speakers.

Social Sciences
Department of Law
Law / Sociology / Geography / Economics / Political Science / History of Modern Thought / and more
Department of Political Science
Law / Sociology / Constitutional Law / Civil Law / Principles of Economics / Economic Policy / Public Finance / and more
Humanities
Linguistic Science / Area Studies on Culture / Literature / History / History of Science / Fundamentals of Logic / Ethics / Science of Religion / Philosophy / Music / Chinese Classics / Fine Arts / Advanced Study of Humanities / Humanities seminars / General Humanities / and more
Natural Sciences
Physics / Chemistry / Biology / Basic Mathematics / Psychology / Basic Statistics / Advanced Study of Natural Science / Natural Sciences seminars / and more
Mathematics, Statistics, Information Processing
Mathematics / Statistics / Information Processing / Advanced Information Processing / Statistical Information Processing / and more

Seminars

In their third and fourth years, students study in small, specialized seminars under the guidance and support of a single professor. This program is an extension of the classes taken by first and second-year students, allowing them to deepen their research in a more specialized area. Although these seminars are not required, they are taught by full-time members of the Faculty of Law, with small groups of students studying specialist areas in greater depth.

Political Thought TSUTSUMIBAYASHI Ken Seminar / TANOE Masanaru Seminar / OKUBO Takeharu Seminar
Politics and Society OYAMA Kosuke Seminar / ASO Yoshibumi Seminar / KASAI Yoshinori Seminar / KOHNO Takeshi Seminar / SAWAI Atsushi Seminar / SHIOBARA Yoshikazu Seminar / TAKENOSHITA Hirohisa Seminar / KARASUDANI Masayuki Seminar / OBAYASHI Keigo Seminar / TSUKIYAMA Hiroki Seminar
Politics of Japan TAMAI Kiyoshi Seminar / OGAWARA Masamichi Seminar / MATSUURA Junsuke Seminar / NAGANO Akira Seminar
Area Studies and Comparative Politics TAKAHASHI Nobuo Seminar / IDUOKA Naoya Seminar / OKAYAMA Hiroshi Seminar / KASUYA Yuko Seminar / KOJIMA Kazuko Seminar / OGUSHI Atsushi Seminar / SUGIKI Akiko Seminar / NISHIKIDA Aiko Seminar
International Politics YAMAMOTO Nobuto Seminar / HOSOYA Yuichi Seminar / MIYAOKA Isao Seminar / NISHINO Junya Seminar / MORI Satoru Seminar / INOUE Masaya Seminar

Sub-Majors

The Faculty of Law offers courses in the areas of foreign languages, humanities, natural sciences, and beyond so that students may acquire a broad range of knowledge and a thorough liberal arts education. However, it goes without saying that factual knowledge and a solid liberal arts grounding can only be developed into a comprehensive worldview if they are studied with a systematic approach. For example, studying Area Studies on Culture I through IV will allow students to build up their knowledge systematically. In addition, there are humanities and natural sciences seminars for third- and fourth-year students in which they can apply the knowledge acquired in the first two years.
After completing specific academic requirements, students qualify for a sub-major and receive an official certificate from the Faculty of Law.