Message from the President

Unlike any other university in Japan, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT) is a unique institution that focuses on education and research in the academic fields that support agriculture and engineering, the core of the industrial base. The university has a long history that extends back more than 130 years to its inception. By focusing on both agriculture and engineering, it offers the ideal components for a university considering the global-scale issues facing the world today. We are now facing the negative legacies of 20th century science and technology which are serious problems that threaten the very survival of humanity, such as environmental degradation, energy problems, global warming and related abnormal weather patterns, and food supply problems due to explosive population growth. There was once an effective material recycling process in play, back when humanity lived in balance with the environment, but that cycle and balance have since eroded. Reconstructing that recycling process requires efforts from a broad range of perspectives that extend beyond the framework of agriculture and engineering. It is important that we contribute to the sustainable development of humankind by advancing science and technology, creating new academic fields, and cultivating human resources that can move these technologies and fields forward. Recognizing its leading achievements and capabilities, TUAT believes that its mission is to fulfill this role, and will do so by adhering to the basic philosophy of engaging in "Mission-Oriented Research and Education giving Synergy in Endeavors toward a Sustainable Earth (MORE SENSE)," or in other words, striving toward "MORE SENSE." This university is carving out a pathway for 21st century science and technology.

TUAT was reorganized as a national university corporation in FY2004 and managed to draw significant focus to its graduate school. More than ever, it has developed the groundwork to provide education and research on a worldwide scale as a research-focused university. According to a nationwide study of the research capabilities of the engineering departments of national, public, and private universities conducted by the most famous Japanese economic newspaper "Nihon Keizai Shimbun" (February 16, 2004), TUAT was ranked first in terms of its ability to disseminate research findings, fifth in its ability to form industry-academia partnerships, and fifth in its overall research capabilities. Clearly, TUAT can hold its own against general universities much larger than itself. The university engages in numerous industry-government-academia partnerships that develop out of its research findings, achieves results that surpass those of larger scale universities nationwide, and is always ranked at the top of its class. By drawing focus to its graduate school, TUAT plans to devote even more efforts to the promotion of advanced research in accordance with its basic philosophy of striving toward "MORE SENSE."

Another key component of TUAT's success is its cultivation of outstanding human resources. The university is comprised of two faculties and six graduate schools, including the Graduate School of Technology Management just launched this year. Its goal is to cultivate creative and internationally savvy researchers and engineers with strong problem-solving capabilities and a solid sense of ethics. TUAT enrolls approximately 4,200 undergraduate students and 1,800 graduate students. The number of adult students has increased because of the increasing importance of lifelong learning, and it is not at all uncommon to see doctoral students in their 60s and beyond. TUAT also enrolls about 400 international students through exchange agreements with 59 universities overseas. The campus is truly open to the world and thus has a deeply international feel.

With efforts underway to achieve a sustainable society and economy in the 21st century, the importance of the role that TUAT must play, given its basic philosophy of "MORE SENSE," cannot be overstated. We will therefore continue to strive to further promote collaboration between the fields of agriculture and engineering, to further advance education and research, and to make contributions to our local and international communities.

President, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology