(1) Academic exchange program with the University of Kentucky
 
The Kitasato University School of Pharmacy concluded an international academic exchange agreement with the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy in 1989, and the two universities have participated in exchange programs ever since. We offer a two-week study abroad course to interested sixth-year students. Participants learn about the realities of American healthcare and the work American pharmacists perform through tours of University of Kentucky hospitals and local pharmacies as well as through experiencing the work of clinical pharmacists during team rounds and at conferences. Prior to the course, University of Kentucky clinical faculty members hold lectures and seminars in English at Kitasato University. Kitasato University has also begun conducting courses for University of Kentucky students in Japan in the spirit of mutual exchange. (In AY 2024, sixth-year students have participated in the course at the University of Kuntucky from May 20 to June 1.)
 
(2) Academic exchange program with the University of Iowa
 
The Kitasato University School of Pharmacy conducts a two-week training program at the University of Iowa for interested sixth-year students. Participants attend lectures on the American healthcare system and pharmacotherapeutics. They also “shadow” a sixth-year student in the College of Pharmacy receiving clinical training for a day at University of Iowa hospitals near the university and area pharmacies, and join medical team rounds. Filled with opportunities for learning, the program gives participants the chance to experience American medical care as it is practiced in real life. Prior to the start of the program, University of Iowa College of Pharmacy clinical faculty members come to Kitasato University to give lessons in English for fourth- and fifth-year students in the School of Pharmacy. In 2015, Kitasato University begun to accept University of Iowa College of Pharmacy students for a training program in Japan, establishing a truly mutual exchange between the two universities. (In AY 2024, sixth-year students from the University of Iowa have participated in the clinical pharmacy training at Kitasato University from June 24 to July 17.)

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(1) Academic exchange programs with two American universities
 
Our Faculty of Veterinary Medicine has concluded academic exchange agreements with two U.S. universities (Purdue University and the University of Tennessee) and dispatches fifth-year students to these universities each summer vacation. Students train under the guidance of teachers specializing in fields such as small animal internal medicine and surgery, large animal internal medicine and surgery, ophthalmology, and dermatology. In addition, one instructor from each university is usually invited to Kitasato University each year to hold lectures, courses and seminars, and students from these universities interested in studying veterinary medicine at Kitasato University come to the Towada Campus.
 
(2) Academic exchange program with Jilin University
 
Kitasato University School of Veterinary Medicine has concluded an international exchange agreement with the College of Veterinary Medicine at Jilin University in China. Students from Jilin University attend courses at Kitasato University.
 
(3) Exchange program with Mahanakorn University of Technology Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
 
Some faculty members from Mahanakorn University of Technology have enrolled in the Kitasato University Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences Division of Veterinary Medicine as international students and have received PhD degrees. In addition, fifth-year students at Mahanakorn University of Technology study at Kitasato University for one month. Since the 2016 academic year, our fifth-year students have also studied veterinary medicine at the Mahanakorn University of Technology during the summer vacation.
 
(4) Japan Agricultural Exchange Council
 
The Japan Agricultural Exchange Council offers long-term agricultural training programs in which trainees stay at farms in the United States or Europe (Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland) as well as training programs at local universities and other institutions.
 
(5) Clinical training program on wildlife in Australia
 
Our students have been approved to attend the clinical training program on wildlife conducted by the Australia-Japan Wildlife Conservation and Education Foundation (AJWCEF). During the summer program, students receive clinical training through wildlife conservation activities at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary (Currumbin Wildlife Hospital).

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(1) Elective overseas apprenticeships
 
To cultivate physicians who possess global thinking by providing opportunities for international exchange in the field of medicine, our School of Medicine offers clinical clerkships. As part of this, fifth- and sixth-year students may choose to spend up to fifteen weeks in an overseas apprenticeship.
 
The primary universities at which students may engage in apprenticeships are as follows:

• University of Hawaii (USA)
• University of Marburg (Germany)
• Eberhard Karls Universit?t Tübingen (Germany)*
• The Gabriele d’Annunzio University (Italy)
• McGill University (Canada)
• University of California, Irvine (USA)

*For university marked with " * ", student dispatch is being arranged.

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In order to deepen international mutual understanding and enhance our education and research foundation, Kitasato University School of Marine Biosciences has concluded international academic exchange agreements with the following universities/ institutions. We plan to use these exchange agreements to develop more international exchange activities, promoting exchange between students.

1. Burapha University Institute of Marine Science (Thailand, signed in AY 2016)
2. University of Science-Malaysia (Malaysia, signed in AY 2020)
3. Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biolgy (ICOB), Academia Sinica (Taiwan, signed in AY 2022)

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(1) Academic exchange program with the University of California, Los Angeles
 
The Kitasato University School of Nursing has had an academic exchange program with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) since 1989. In our faculty invitation program, UCLA faculty members give lectures on advanced nursing practice in the U.S. and seminars on research, allowing our students to learn about advanced nursing methods used in the U.S. while remaining in Japan.

(2) Academic exchange program with the McMaster University
 
The Kitasato University School of Nursing has started academic exchanges with the McMaster University in Canada since 2019. During the overseas program at McMaster University, which is famous as the university having started Problem Based Learning (PBL), students can experience PBL and attend lectures on the healthcare system and nursing practice in Canada. This two-week program is credited as "Overseas Study Program for Advanced Nursing (国際看護論演習）" .
 
(3) Academic exchange program with the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences
 
The Kitasato University School of Nursing has had academic exchanges with the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences since 2006, and both universities have dispatched and accepted faculty members and students. Since AY2016, we have been conducting a two-week up to one-month faculty training program for faculty members of the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences to support the improvement of nursing education in Mongolia. The participants in the training have given special lectures on Mongolia's medical and nursing systems to our undergraduate students.
 
(4) Academic Exchange program with the Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences
 
The academic exchange with the Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences, started in 2017, includes the dispatch and acceptance of students. During the two-week overseas program, students can visit medical facilities and local healthcare and welfare facilities, as well as experience Norwegian lifestyles through a homestay. The overseas program in Norway, a high welfare country, is expected to become even more enhanced in the future.


See the following for details:
School of Nursing website
International nursing exchange

(1) International exchange program with Harvard University
 
Hoping to develop researchers with an international perspective, the Kitasato University School of Science engages in international exchanges with Harvard University, dispatching students to Harvard and receiving students from the university in turn every other year. Students in this exchange program attend lectures, visit laboratories, engage in discussions with other students and researchers, give speeches in English, and tour various facilities. After the suspension for the past few years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we sent students to Harvard University in AY 2023. Although AY 2024 is the year that students from Harvard University will visit us, it is undecided at this time.
 
(2) International exchange program with Kingston University
 
The Kitasato University School of Science has conducted a short-term study abroad program at the Kingston University in the UK since 2016. This is an unique program designed for us, enabling our students to experience three weeks focused on "Science". By training students' four skills "speaking, listening, reading and writing" through lectures by English specialists and attending fieldwork such as Forensic Science Practice and Royal Institution Lectures, the program aims to enhance students' English skills for science, promote cross-cultural understanding, and improve their communication skills. In addition, students can get firsthand experience the overseas campus life since the program is held during the regular semester in the host country. Currently, this program is suspended due to the prolonged impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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(1) International academic exchange program with Thomas Jefferson University
 
With the goal of producing capable individuals who possess an international perspective and extensive expertise and can flourish in international society, the Kitasato University School of Allied Health Sciences and Thomas Jefferson University provide hospital and facility tours, lectures for the other university’s students, and undergraduate and research presentations. The Radiological Technology Course of the Department of Medical Engineering and Technology, the Physical Therapy Course and Occupational Therapy Course of the Department of Rehabilitation have conducted student exchanges annually, alternating between hosting and sending students each year, with credits recognized as elective courses.
We established Cross-cultural Interdisciplinary Case Study conducted in English during the 2015 academic year, and students from both universities formed mixed teams. These initiatives were expanded in 2016 to include students from Kitasato University’s School of Medicine, School of Pharmacy and School of Nursing, as well as Charles University (Czech Republic) and FH Campus Wien (Austria). In 2017, Gabriele D’Annunzio University of Chieti-Pescara (Italy), the University of Iowa (United States), UCLA (United States), and the University of Medical Technology, Yangon (Myanmar) also joined, expanding the activities conducted by mixed teams to include students from Japan, Europe, the Americas and Asia. Since 2018, with more participating universities, our Cross-cultural Interdisciplinary Case Study has been conducted as a university-wide program.

(2) International academic exchange program with University of Medical Technology, Yangon

The Kitasato University School of Allied Health Sciences concluded an academic exchange agreement with the University of Medical Technology, Yangon in 2017. The objectives of this agreement are twofold. The first is to develop students and graduates who have studied the state of medicine in developing Asian countries with challenging medical environments and can contribute to the medical field in these countries. The second objective is to help develop medical education and research in Myanmar through providing concrete technical guidance, improving the collaborative educational program, and providing medical education to students from Yangon.

(3) International academic exchange program with FH Campus Wien

The Kitasato University School of Allied Health Sciences began an international exchange program with FH Campus Wien in AY 2016. The goal is to conduct exchanges in Europe, the birthplace of the healthcare concept, which maintains a high level of influence around the globe. This will enable students to understand the origins of healthcare and share the sense of related values that work globally. Based on these initiatives, we promote globalization. We have begun concrete student exchanges—including accepting students from FH Campus Wien—for the purposes of practical training at our school and the university hospital, and have concluded an academic exchange agreement in 2018. In addition, since the same year, we have established opportunities for students to learn about occupational therapy around the world through cooperation (online exchange) with overseas universities, including FH Campus Wien as part of the required courses in our Occupational Therapy Course of the Department of Rehabilitation. Since AY 2022, FH Campus Wien has hosted an international exchange program annually and our students from the Occupational Therapy Course, the Department of  Rehabilitation participated in it for our further exchange. This program is recognized as an elective course with credit.

(4) International academic exchange program with National Cheng Kung University

Our academic exchanges with the National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan started in 2016. In 2019, We have concluded an academic exchage agreement and dispatched students mutually for more practical learning. Since 2019, Cross-cultural Interdisciplinary Case Study has included students majoring clinical psychology and occupational therapy from the National Cheng Kung University for further exchanges.
Through exchange with Taiwan, which has an aging society with a declining birthrate similar to Japan, we expect to deepen our understanding of sustainable healthcare in the future.

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(1) Short-term language study program
 
The Kitasato University College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has run a short-term study abroad language program since 2014. This is a three-week program for first-year undergraduate students conducted from February to March each year. It aims to strengthen their conversational and linguistic skills in English in preparation for the specialized English studies from the second year onwards, while also deepening their international comprehension through cross-cultural experiences. It was held at the University of Hawaii in AY 2023, and in past years, it was conducted in the United States and Australia as well.
For the 2024 academic year, it is scheduled to be conducted at the University of Sydney in Australia. This program covers conversation and communication, vocabulary, and grammar, and also includes training in research assignments and English presentations. During after-school hours and weekends, there are attractive opportunities to enjoy sightseeing and nature, while also interacting with people from other countries through dormitory stays or homestays.

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Projects for promoting internationalization
 
(1) Projects for promoting internationalization (support for collaborative research, etc.)
 
The Graduate School of Medical Sciences provides support for (1) educational and research exchange activities based on academic exchange agreements with scholarly institutions overseas, (2) educational and research exchange activities designed to create new academic exchange agreements with scholarly institutions overseas, and (3) other educational and research exchange activities that promote internationalization and improve the standard of education and research.
 
(2) Support for students studying abroad and studying from abroad
 
The Kitasato University Graduate School of Medical Sciences provides support for its local students and international study abroad students (researchers and trainees) in two areas: (1) research exchange activities based on academic exchange agreements with scholarly institutions overseas, and (2) research exchange activities designed to create new academic exchange agreements with scholarly institutions overseas.

The primary universities with which exchange activities are conducted are as follows:
1. Hasanuddin University (Indonesia)
2. The Gabriele d'Annunzio University Faculty of Medicine (Italy)
3. Eberhard Karls Universit?t Tübingen Faculty of Medicine(Germany)
4. UCLA Molecular Biology Institute(USA)
5. University of California, San Francisco (USA)
6. Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana (Ghana)
7. National Cheng Kung University College of Medicine (Taiwan)
8. Chang Gung University College of Medicine (Taiwan)
9. University of Abomey-Calavi (Benin)

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(1)Academic Exchange Agreement with Mahidol University (Thailand)

A mutual exchange of academic information is underway for collaborative research, dispatch of magisterial staff and students for the purpose of education, training and research, hosting events such as seminars and symposiums, printed publication, research paper, etc.

(2)Academic Exchange Agreement with Kasetsart University (Thailand)

A mutual exchange of academic information takes place for collaborative research, dispatch of magisterial staff, researchers and students, hosting events such as seminars and symposiums.

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Kitasato University Hospital has an academic exchange agreement with Jilin University (Changchun, Jilin Province, China) and welcomes several trainees each year. The hospital also has academic exchange agreements with the Fudan University Huashan Hospital (Shanghai, China) and Mahidol University Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital in Thailand.
The nursing department also has a nursing exchange with the Mayo Clinic in the U.S.

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Former Kitasato University Oriental Medicine Resarch Center* is one of two World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centres for Traditional Medicine in Japan, and the first in the country to receive this WHO designation. The Center welcomes researchers and administrative officials involved in traditional medicine from overseas, and they engage in clinical education and research regarding Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture and moxibustion.
*This Center was reorganized and incorporated into Kitasato Institute Hospital in 2023.

(1)Collaboration network for research with the WHO Collaborating Center for Traditional Medicine in Japan and Korea

Former Kitasato University Oriental Medicine Research Center and University of Toyama Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences Department of Japanese Oriental Medicine, both WHO Collaborating Centers for Traditional Medicine in Japan, and Seoul National University, Kyung Hee University, and Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine, the three WHO Collaborating Centers for Traditional Medicine in Korea, have signed a research collaboration agreement and hold international symposiums on a rotational basis.

(2)Global Research Network for Traditional Medicine (GRNTM)

The Korea Institute Oriental Medicine (KIOM) in Korea, the National Research Institute of Chinese Medicine (NRICM) in Taiwan, and the former Kitasato University  Oriental Medicine Research Center have formed the GRNTM. It aims to develop research in traditional medicine through information exchange, interpersonal exchanges, and joint symposiums etc.

(3)Research Collaboration Agreement with the Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital (Korea)

While we have formed a research collaboration network with the Kyung Hee University East-West Medical Research Institute as the Japan-Korea WHO Collaborating Centers for Traditional Medicine, this agreement is mainly led by the Korean Medicine Hospital of Kyung Hee University, and we exchange information on research with a particular emphasis on clinical research.

(4)Academic Exchange Agreement with Dong-eui University College of Korean Medicine (Korea)

The agreement includes the following exchanges;  exchange of faculty members, researchers and students; joint research, lectures and symposiums;  and exchange of academic information and materials.

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