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On Wednesday, April 1 and Thursday, April 2, 2026, the entrance ceremonies for undergraduates, graduate students, and students from the Art and Architecture School were held at the Waseda Arena on Toyama Campus. 8,949 new undergraduate students and 2,983 new graduate students were welcomed at this year’s ceremony (as of April 1, 2026).

*To watch the archived videos of the live broadcast, please scroll to the end of this article. 

Aiji Tanaka, President of Waseda University
President’s Address (excerpt)

Dear Incoming Students of Waseda University, Parents and Guardians,

On behalf of Waseda University, I am delighted to welcome all incoming students today. Congratulations on your entrance to Waseda University. I extend my heartfelt congratulations also, of course, to your parents, other family members, and friends.

Today, I would like to speak to you about three things. Firstly, I would like to talk about what kind of a university Waseda University is aiming to be. Secondly, I will talk about what I wish for you to learn at Waseda University.  Thirdly, I will talk about what kind of student life you should enjoy at Waseda.

Firstly, Waseda is aiming to become “a university that shines on the global stage.” Waseda University would be recognized by intellectuals throughout the world as the university offering the most effective educational environment to anyone who wishes to contribute to humankind or to the development of Japanese society. This should not be an impossible dream to achieve.

Over the past 25 years, the quality of research and education at Waseda has steadily improved, and we have become able to provide students with education of the highest level in Japan.

Secondly, I would like you incoming students to proceed in your studies at Waseda while cleaving to an aspiration. As the president, I am now advocating three ideals. They are “intellectual resilience,” “flexible sensitivity,” and “responsive reasoning.” 

What does “intellectual resilience” mean?  Most of the issues human beings are facing today do not have one correct solution.  Think, for example, of the COVID-19 pandemic, global warming, the growing gap between the poor and the rich, or the wars and armed conflicts that have killed and continue to kill so many people all over the world, you name it.  No one has a single “right” answer to solve any of these problems. 

I hope that at Waseda University you will develop the “intellectual resilience” to think through your own solutions to problems for which the way forward is still unclear.  However, finding a new solution does not mean simply allowing a new idea to pop up in your mind.  Such ideas will not be accepted in the real world.  It is essential to learn from the scholarship of thinkers who have come before us. 

What is scholarship?  Ever since the invention of a writing system over 5,000 years ago, human beings have recorded and compiled the essence of their experiences in the form of scholarship.  Scholarship may not provide answers to unknown new problems, but it records how human beings confronted unfamiliar problems in their own day.  By learning about these human efforts at Waseda, you will gain relevant knowledge. 

Another important ideal is to foster “flexible sensitivity.”  Under the concept of “flexible sensitivity,” we encourage our students to accept, understand, and respect people of different nationalities, ethnicities, languages, religions, creeds, genders and sexual orientations.  If you can respect and understand people with a different background from you, you will have flexible sensitivity.

The third ideal is “responsive reasoning.”  This ideal suggests the importance of listening to others and understanding their reasoning. As a consequence of this practice, you will enhance the level of thinking of both yourself and others.  You should have confidence in your own intelligence as a student at Waseda, which is a major research institution.  At the same time, you should respect the intelligence of others as well.

The reason I have been talking about “flexible sensitivity” in addition to “intellectual resilience” and “responsive reasoning,” which emphasize more academic aspects of human intelligence, is related to an ideal of Waseda University’s founding father.

In a famous speech, Okuma Shigenobu, who is the founder of Waseda University, told the students of Waseda, “Do not think only of your own interest, your family’s interest, or the interests of your country alone, but be ambitious to contribute to humankind throughout the world.”  This statement was offered to explain what “fostering good citizens” meant.  Okuma advocated this ideal as one of founding spirits of Waseda University.

In order to allow our students to understand the ideals of our founding father, starting in April 2022, I decided to give a book titled Okuma Shigenobu and Waseda University to all incoming students.  Please read this book and understand the tradition and ideals of Waseda University.

 Let me now change the topic of my speech.  I would like to speak to you about what kind of student life I wish you to spend at Waseda.

At Waseda, anyone can find her/his own place to be comfortable.  In other words, Waseda has a tradition of accepting the diversity of students.  Members of the Waseda community accept anyone from anywhere and respect each other.  In today’s parlance, this tradition embodies “diversity” and “inclusion”.

If you wish to accomplish something or are facing difficulty, you can consult with your teacher (professor), administrative staff, or fellow students.  You will surely find a way to overcome any problem and achieve your objective.  We believe that Waseda provides an environment that can respond to all kinds of aspirations of our students.  A student at Waseda can be devoted to academic research, athletic activities, circle activities, or volunteer activities, according to her/his desire.  Please try anything you wish. But, DO NOT forget also to study hard to master scholarship.

Before I close my speech, I would like to encourage you to make many good memories while you are here.  One thing that can easily leave you with a good memory is Waseda sports.  In particular, please go and cheer for the Waseda baseball team playing against Keio University at Jingu Stadium in late May and late October every year.  You will enjoy yourselves and experience the enthusiasm and love for Waseda on the part of upperclassmen and our alumni.

 You can also watch and cheer for the Waseda Rugby team playing against Keio University on November 23 every year.  Additionally, you can enjoy the University Rugby Tournament match in January as well as the Hakone Ekiden long-distance relay race on January 2nd and 3rd every year.  Please enjoy sports events and participate in the Waseda Student Festival, known as Waseda-Sai, as well.

I also hope you learn how to sing our school song “Miyako no Seihoku” while you are at Waseda.  It will strengthen your ties with Waseda alumni in your future life.

Study as hard as possible and enjoy yourself.  It is my earnest hope that you will spend a fruitful student life.  In four years, we will see you off when you are even more brilliantly shining at Waseda than you are now.

Congratulations once again on your entrance to Waseda!

Link to the President’s full speech

First Session

School of Political Science and Economics; School of Law; School of Education; Graduate School of Political Science; Graduate School of Economics; Graduate School of Law; Graduate School of Education

Congratulatory Address by Chie Toriumi

Link to Chie Toriumi’s full speech (TBA)

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Second Session

School of Culture, Media and Society; School of Humanities and Social Sciences; School of Sport Sciences; School of International Liberal Studies; Art and Architecture School; Graduate School of Letters, Arts and Sciences; Graduate School of Sport Sciences; Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies; Graduate School of Japanese Applied Linguistics; Graduate School of International Culture and Communication Studies

Congratulatory Address by Noriko Chibayashi

Link to Noriko Chibayashi’s full speech (TBA)

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Third Session

School of Commerce; School of Social Sciences; School of Human Sciences (including the Online Degree Program); Graduate School of Commerce; Graduate School of Social Sciences; Graduate School of Human Sciences; Graduate School of Accountancy; Graduate School of Business and Finance

Congratulatory Address by Hiroki Totoki

Link to Hiroki Totoki’s  full speech (TBA)

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Fourth Session

School of Fundamental Science and Engineering; School of Creative Science and Engineering; School of Advanced Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Fundamental Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Creative Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Advanced Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Environment and Energy Engineering

Congratulatory Address by Akio Negishi

Link to Akio Negishi’s full speech(TBA)

*All of the above speeches are translations based on the original Japanese transcripts.

Gallery

Waseda Live

*The full video of the live broadcast of the ceremonies can be watched from the URLs below. 

April 1, 2026 (Wed) ：First Session

School of Political Science and Economics; School of Law; School of Education
Graduate School of Political Science; Graduate School of Economics; Graduate School of Law; Graduate School of Education

April 1, 2026 (Wed) ：Second Session

School of Culture, Media and Society; School of Humanities and Social Sciences; School of Sport Sciences; School of International Liberal Studies; Art and Architecture School; Graduate School of Letters, Arts and Sciences; Graduate School of Sport Sciences; Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies; Graduate School of Japanese Applied Linguistics; Graduate School of International Culture and Communication Studies

April 2, 2026 (Thurs) Third Session

School of Commerce; School of Social Sciences; School of Human Sciences (including the Online Degree Program) Graduate School of Commerce; Graduate School of Social Sciences; Graduate School of Human Sciences; Graduate School of Accountancy; Graduate School of Business and Finance

April 2, 2026 (Thurs) Fourth Session

School of Fundamental Science and Engineering; School of Creative Science and Engineering; School of Advanced Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Fundamental Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Creative Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Advanced Science and Engineering; Graduate School of Environment and Energy Engineering