The Waseda Ocean Initiative, which was selected as a top model of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Top Global University Project, received an A rating in the 2024 post-evaluation.

Top Global University Project

The Top Global University Project (TGU Project) aimed to improve the international competitiveness of Japan’s higher education by providing targeted support in combination with system reform to top universities conducting world-class education and research along with global universities that lead the way in internationalization, and by promoting thorough internationalization through collaboration with outstanding universities overseas as well as university reform.
Thirteen institutions were selected as top model universities (universities with the potential to be ranked in the top 100 in the world university rankings) and 24 institutions were selected as globalization-driving universities (universities that will lead the globalization of Japan’s society), and they undertook the project for a 10-year period from 2014 to 2023.
Our university is one of two private universities to be designated as a top model university.

“Waseda Ocean Initiative”

With the aim of accelerating the achievement of the goals of the university’s mid- to long-term plan “Waseda Vision 150” leading up to its 150th anniversary, Waseda University formulated the “Waseda Ocean Initiative,” which aimed to open the University to the world and dramatically improve the quality and quantity of education and research amid a dynamic international flow of minds. This initiative was adopted as part of the TGU Project.
This initiative has promoted the internationalization of our university with the following three pillars as its goals:

1. Develop education and research programs to solve global challenges and innovate the future

We worked to disseminate knowledge about education and research systems and governance reform throughout the university through measures by model units, and to build a human resource development system that utilizes an education and research network with universities around the world.

2. Globalize education and research programs

We worked on the construction of an educational system with an international interface with the world’s leading universities, as well as measures and reforms to attract diverse and excellent students from around the world.

3. Fundamentally reform the faculty recruitment system and university governance

We worked to create a system for widely recruiting faculty members from around the world who meet global standards, as well as to carry out fundamental reforms to governance to align authority and responsibilities within the organization, and to establish a financial structure that would enable us to continue investing in education and research even after the project ends.

Results of 10 Years of Efforts

The results of our University’s 10 years of efforts are presented in detail on the archive site.