Greetings from the Dean

Welcome to the College of International Relations, Ritsumeikan University

With a quarter of the 21st century behind us, communication, transportation, and mobility have significantly advanced. Goods, people, and information are now crossing national borders on a vast scale. Companies and self-employed individuals in the marketplace produce various goods, utilizing raw materials and fuel supplied from multiple regions.

However, despite (or perhaps because of) the unprecedented depth of ties and interdependence between countries and regions, the modern world faces many challenges. Destructive wars in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip, which have claimed many soldiers and civilians, jeopardize international peace. While the global economy continues to grow, driven by emerging economies such as China and India, the disparity between rich and poor within and between countries remains vast, and some countries still suffer from failures in governance. The increase in international migration is diversifying the ethnic composition of each country, but at the same time, it is also a factor that causes friction and xenophobia. Furthermore, global climate change, a by-product of rapid economic growth, is forcing humanity to change how it uses energy drastically.

All of these are “global” issues that involve many countries, and they are also “international” issues requiring intensive cooperation between national governments, businesses, citizens, international organizations, and international NGOs. To analyze these issues, understand their background and causes, and explore ways to improve or solve them, it is necessary to conduct research that transcends existing academic disciplines such as political science, law, economics, sociology, and history. International relations is a relatively new academic field arising from these traditional disciplines. It focuses on the interrelationships between the various elements that compose the modern world. As each country and region has its unique language, religion, and culture, the investigation of international relations also encompasses aspects of area studies.

The College of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University aims to provide a systematic education in international relations and to develop global-minded individuals who will be active both in Japan and overseas after graduation. The curriculum of our college is composed of three pillars: (1) specialized subjects that study various fields of international relations, (2) area studies to gain a deep understanding of various regions of the world, and (3) practical English language skills and multilingual education, including the official languages of the United Nations. The faculty staff consists of outstanding professors capable of providing these three elements at a high level. Through the synergy of theory, region, and language, students who enter the faculty will acquire a wide range of knowledge, as well as the ability to think, analyze, and make proposals, in the process of learning from their entrance to the writing of their graduation thesis.

Since its establishment in 1988, the year before the fall of the Berlin Wall, the College of International Relations has developed as a pioneer in the field of international relations in Japan. It has also been active in exchanges with universities overseas, and the acceptance and dispatch of many international students is one of our traditions. In 2011, alongside the existing International Relations major (IR major) taught in Japanese, the College established a new Global Studies major (GS major) taught in English. In 2018, the Department of International Relations established the Joint Degree Program (JD Program), allowing students to study at the School of International Services at American University and the College of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University and obtain a joint degree. Currently, the School of International Relations has Japanese students and international students from about 30 countries and regions around the world enrolled, and they are studying hard while interacting with each other in the beautiful ancient capital of Kyoto. The number of graduates from our college has exceeded 9,000 in the 37 years after its establishment. Many graduates are active in various industries, including private companies, public servants, international organizations, research and educational institutions, and domestic and international NPOs in Japan and worldwide, fully utilizing the knowledge and skills they acquired during their studies at our college. We will continue to focus on cultivating citizens with a global perspective through research and education in international relations. We hope you will take an interest in the College of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University through this website and take the first step towards studying international relations with us and taking off into the world.