Health Promotion: The Joy of Sports and Exercise

Becoming an International Center for Health and Sport Sciences

Health Promotion: The Joy of Sports and Exercise Unit plans to develop education, research, and practice in the most advanced health and sports sciences and promote accepting exceptional international students as well as dispatching Waseda students abroad. We are also actively strengthening international collaboration and inviting faculty members from abroad. Our long-term goal is to become an international hub for education and research in the field of health and sport sciences, attracting the finest human resources from around the world using sports.

ACCOMPLISH­MENTS

1 Launching the English-based Doctoral and Master’s Degree Programs

The Faculty of Sport Sciences launched an English-based Doctoral Degree program in September 2016, and then established an English-based Master's degree program in September 2018. The research areas are "Sports Culture", "Sports Business", "Sports Medicine", "Physical Exercise Science" and "Coaching Science" for the doctoral program, and "Health and Exercise Science" and "Sport Management" for the master’s program. The Faculty provides students with opportunities to study abroad or make presentations at international conferences while they are at university, and aims to develop human resources who can succeed worldwide as practitioners and experts in the field of sport science through advanced specialized education. The number of graduate students by the end of AY 2022 was 5 in the doctoral program and 19 in the master's program.

2 Launching the English Minor for Undergraduate Students

The Undergraduate School of Sport Sciences launched a new minor in English, named “Plus English,” for its students in April 2022. This minor aims to encourage students to take courses taught in English from the early undergraduate level. Students can take academic English classes (especially focused on reading and writing skills) and subjects related to sport science in English. This program aims to improve students' English academic skills and to provide preparatory learning and experience for those who wish to work in sports-related industries that use English. It is also for students who wish to continue their studies and research in English-based master's and doctoral degree programs.

3 Concluding the Cotutelle Agreements and Departmental Agreements

Over the past 10 years, the Faculty of Sport Sciences has concluded Cotutelle Agreements with two universities: the Hungarian University of Sports Science (Hungary) and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (the Netherlands), as well as departmental agreements with 18 universities, including the University of Birmingham (UK) and the KU Leuven (Belgium). In addition, the exchange program with the German Sport University Cologne, which was limited to graduate students, was expanded to include undergraduate students in 2022. The number of both incoming and outgoing students has increased, and student exchanges with overseas partner universities has been continuously carried out. So far, we have accepted 10 students from the German Sport University Cologne, 6 from the Shanghai University of Sport, 4 from KU Leuven and 1 from National Taiwan University, and have dispatched 9 students to the German Sport University Cologne and 1 to KU Leuven.

4 Creating Online Courses and Publishing Worldwide

The Faculty of Sport Sciences has produced two online courses and published them on edX, a platform for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). The two courses, "Sports Injury Prevention" on injury prevention for competitive athletes and "Sport Safety: A Guide to Preventing Sudden Death in Sport" on reducing the risk of sudden death during sports activities, have been offered to more than 3,000 participants from the United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and other countries. Each course deals with a specific case study and the measures and precautions to be taken. The courses are intended not only for athletes, but also for trainers or those who support them, as well as for general learners who have become interested in sports through international events.

5 Inviting World Class Faculty in the Field of Sports Science

A total of 7 Joint Appointment (JA) faculty from Loughborough University (UK) and Hungarian University of Sports Science (Hungary), which are ranked among the top universities in the field of sports, and a total of 20 visiting scholars from around the world, including the German Sport University Cologne (Germany) and Griffith University (Australia), gave intensive lectures, mini-workshops, and supervised students’ research. The students who received supervision went on to study abroad and receive further supervision from JA faculty members and visiting faculty there, providing international educational opportunities.

GLOBAL RELATIONSHIPS

OUR LAST SYMPOSIUM

In academic year 2023, the final year of MEXT support period, we held a series of symposia to highlight the successful outcomes to date in the unit. The following is a report of the symposium.

MOVING FORWARD

Contributing to solving issues in the international community through global collaborations

We have been establishing collaborations with international partner universities and have joined the Global Sport University Network (GSUN) as a council member to in the field of health and sports science. Through these activities, we aim to contribute to addressing global issues such as aging, SDGs, and diversity. We will provide students with opportunities for international education and give them opportunities for growth and future careers through joint research and joint presentations.

Strengthening international communications and increasing international recognition

Aiming to increase the international recognition, we will actively and effectively promote the educational outcomes of our English-based degree programs and the findings from our global collaborations to domestic and international publics. We will also encourage the writing of papers in English with an eye to improving our academic reputation and aim to increase the H-Index and the number of citations. We will advance interdisciplinary research through collaboration not only with our research institute (Waseda Institute for Sport Sciences), but also with other academies and universities in Japan.