Strong Academic Foundation

We place a strong importance on obtaining basic literacy and academic ability. Every day we have a "Module Time" for 20 minutes to stimulate the students' brains. The program contains dictation, recitation, calculation and reading. Students undertake Year-6 mathematics and study advanced modules. To improve their English communication skills, class sizes are split into halves and thirds for this subject, and students must pass the English STEP PRE-2 grade. Also, students finish 200 books (or 30,000 pages) to achieve literacy in Japanese.

Integrated Study

We provide a variety of integrated study programs. For instance, a program in collaboration with the Prefectural Lake Biwa Museum, a program utilizing experience-based learning through planting, nurturing and harvesting rice, and performing traditional arts such as "Dengaku".

Citizenship and Ethics

Tolerance and sympathy are necessary to be a good citizen. As prospective leaders, students should study the importance of human rights. Through the subject of ethics, they learn the value of discipline, ethical behavior and social skills.

Integrated Curriculum

Our students must earn a total of 99 credits over three years, more than the usual 90 for high school students in Japan. This means they have an opportunity to progress in academic achievement to the level of higher education. Furthermore, we do not divide the students into the usual separate courses for humanities and sciences, due to our special status as affiliated with Ritsumeikan universities. Students do not need to focus on entrance examinations with our continuous education system. All our students are provided with the opportunities of the Super Science education program, and the benefits of learning English from native speakers, and take the TOEFL test.

Advanced Placement Program

Through close partnership with university colleges, our school offers many opportunities to our students to experience learning undergraduate-level subjects at high school. University professors conduct classes on campus and students visit university to take classes. Students can earn credits to graduate from both high school and university. These are the advanced placement subjects we can offer:

[College of Science and Engineering]
Mathematics, Physics, Biology, Earth Science, Information Technology,
Information Processing, Human Technology

[College of Information Science and Engineering]
Programming Technology, Programming Language, Data Structure and Algorithm

[College of Life Sciences]
Biochemistry, Analytic Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry,
Structure and Function of Human Body, Microbiology, Life Science and Ethics

[College of Business Administration]
International Management, Business Enterprise and Management, Accounting,
Bookkeeping, Marketing, Business Study Abroad

Field Study and Active Learning

Our students take advantage of various resources in collaboration with the local community. They experience volunteer work at institutions for the aged and kindergartens. They will participate in internship programs at enterprises, city offices, banks and museums. Also, we benefit from programs developed with local environmental NPOs, curators of museums, engineers and rice farmers.

Super Science High School Education

At the time the school was established, we were awarded with the designation of Super Science High School by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Our theme is to contribute to the interaction of the local and global community through science education, and through Ritsumeikan Academy's continuous education system, and through our coordination with university colleges. As a result of our educational research and development, students are expected to act as global leaders in the 21st Century. We are developing a variety of co-curricular science programs and projects.

These are some of the projects we have undertaken:

• Designing and building a bio-diesel cart.
• Assembling soccer robots.
• Building crewless solar boats.
• Research project: Building a biotope site for fireflies.
• Research project: Lake Biwa ecology and fish of foreign origin.
• Research project: Rice cultivation and the water ecology of a rice field.
• Research project: Vegetation distribution around Moriyama city.

Continuous Education

Students are able to enter colleges of Ritsumeikan University and Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) through admission upon our affiliated recommendation .These are the numbers of accredited students.

2009 alumnae and alumni：227，accredited：225

Ritsumeikan University-Biwako Kusatsu Campus

• College of Science and Engineering：39
• College of Information Science and Engineering：16
• College of Life Science：23
• College of Pharmaceutical Science：7
• College of Economics：12
• College of Business Administration：21

Ritsumeikan University-Kinugasa Campus

• College of Law：25
• College of Social Sciences：21
• College of International Relations：10
• College of Policy Science：11
• College of Letters：19
• College of Image Arts and Science：5

Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU)

• College of Asia Pacific Studies：3
• College of International Management：3