Hokkaido University

Overview

Hokkaido University (Hokudai), is a public university in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. It was founded in 1876 as Sapporo Agricultural College. In 1907, it became the Agricultural College of Tohoku Imperial University and was chartered in 1918. It was the fifth of nine Imperial Universities in Japan, all of which were set up to be the country’s world-class universities.

The university has a student population of around 18,000. Global ranking bodies rated it as among the top 100 universities in the world. Its most highly-sought courses include engineering, medicine, science, and agriculture.

Hokkaido University follows a system where almost all major fields of study are composed of a school (offering bachelor’s programs), a graduate school, and a research faculty. For instance, it has a School of Agriculture, a Graduate School of Agriculture, and a Research Faculty of Agriculture. The same goes for other fields of study, such as fisheries sciences, engineering, humanities and human science, education, and science.

The School of Engineering, which has the highest number in enrollment, offers undergraduate programs such as Bachelor in Socio-Environmental Engineering and Bachelor in Mechanical and Intelligence Systems Engineering. Likewise, the Graduate School of Engineering offers Master of Science programs like M.Sc. in Sustainable Resources Engineering and M.Sc. in Quantum Science and Engineering. Moreover, its Faculty in Engineering offers doctorate programs, including D.Eng. in Engineering Education Development and D.Eng. in Applied Chemistry.

In addition, the School of Agriculture offers several undergraduate programs, including Bachelor in Applied Molecular Biology and Bachelor in Soil Science. The Graduate School of Agriculture, likewise, offers Master of Science programs, such as M.Sc. in Agricultural Plant Science and M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics. Moreover, the Research Faculty of Agriculture offers doctorate degrees, including D.Agr. in Agronomy and D.Agr. in Crop Science.

Some of its research centers and institutes include the Center for Human-Nature, Artificial Intelligence, and Neuroscience, Global Institution for Collaborative Research and Education (GI-CoRE), and Institute for Chemical Reaction Design and Discovery (ICReDD).

The ICReDD, for instance, is a research unit where multidisciplinary researchers closely collaborate to attempt to have complete control over chemical reactions. Some of its current key research topics include machine learning and the development of new organic reactions.

In addition, GI-CoRE is a multidisciplinary hub of research and education that includes research units such as the Global Station for Quantum Medical Science and Engineering and Global Station for Food, Land, and Water Resources.

Notable alumni include Nobel laureate (Chemistry) Akira Suzuki, John Maddox Prize winner (Cancer) Riko Muranaka, former NASA astronaut Mamoru Mohri, MIT professor Hiroshi Ishii,
and human rights activist Teruaki Masumoto.