Comprehensive Research Organization (Project Research Institutes), a program inaugurated in April 2000 is our attempt to address these concerns through a fresh approach to academic study. Drawing on the methodologies of diverse fields, the institutes allow researchers to keep up with the needs of society at unprecedented speed - and, in so doing, to engage in scholarship that contributes to the welfare and progress of the world. The Institutes also aim to strengthen Waseda University's research activities and to contribute to the development of new education and research fields.

Waseda University maintains a longstanding tradition of inviting specialists to research interdisciplinary issues in small, highly motivated study groups. The Comprehensive Research Organization (Project Research Institutes) take this tradition to a higher level, breathing new life into cross-disciplinary research by integrating projects into tightly-knit research units. The enhanced variety and flexibility engendered by this approach has encouraged research in cooperation with external organizations, both domestic and foreign, and opened doors to generous funding from companies and the government. Moreover, fixed-length, goal-oriented programs of several years, enable a “scrap and start over” approach, the key to maintaining creativity in scholarship at the forefront of knowledge.

The Comprehensive Research Organization (Project Research Institutes) assist scholars and research groups in achieving their missions within the boundaries of a mutually beneficial relationship with society.