We believe that a career is "the development of an individual's overall life experience, including work over a long period of time," and view student life as part of career development and an important cornerstone of it. In other words, we provide career education that emphasizes the linkage between university studies and future working life.
1. career education at universities
Of course, this does not mean that university study is a "how-to" education for finding a job. It is based on the concept that "formal education is the foundation of career education at universities.
In the humanities and social sciences, as well as in the natural sciences, all theories and scientific knowledge are tools for grasping reality and explaining its essence more adequately. Even though the fields of study may differ, learning about systematic ways of looking at things, thinking, and creating knowledge will help you acquire the attitude and methods to think for yourself. This is the foundation for the autonomy that is essential for career development.
We tend to think of academic knowledge and reality as two separate things, but this is not the case. For example, the world of sports, which seems to be far removed from academia, has achieved remarkable results in conjunction with psychology and physiology. In addition to science and technology, university knowledge is used in a variety of real-world situations, such as social policy and sociology, economic and financial policy and economics, and corporate management and business administration. The same is true for work styles and careers. In the words of social psychologist Kurt Levin, "There is nothing more practical than good theory.
On the other hand, as a result of our emphasis on imparting systematic knowledge and scientific attitudes, we at the university have tended to neglect its application and linkage to reality. The career education sponsored by the Career Center supports this issue of university education from the side, and is developed with an awareness of the linkage between the knowledge learned at university and the real world. In other words, career education also emphasizes Practical Wisdom for Freedom.
From Job Placement Support to Career Education
The times are changing. In terms of corporate recruiting activities, some companies are now offering internship programs linked to recruitment for first- and second-year students as well. The changes are not limited to job hunting. The entire way of working is also changing. Today, the myth of working for one company for a long period of time is being shaken, and in the longevity society that will come in earnest in the future, it is no longer possible to cope with the idea that one can be secure by finding a good job at the first place of employment.
In such a situation, it is important not to have transient job-hunting know-how, but to have an attitude of continuous learning after starting work, an attitude of learning through action, and an attitude of continuing to act independently and autonomously while thinking about one's own way of life and work life.
This is not something that can be acquired overnight. Learning by putting learning into practice and learning from practice, in other words, an attitude that links practice and knowledge, can be acquired through continuous repetition of such learning. Or we can notice the connection.
Therefore, we are steering away from "point" job placement assistance that is provided only during limited periods of time, to long-term, integrated career education. In other words, we believe that long-term "linear" career education that covers the entire school year, including regular education, and integrated career education that takes into account the relationship with extracurricular activities and daily life, are necessary.
In 2005, Hosei University changed its organizational structure from the Employment Department to the Career Center, and in 2006, it began to provide early career education for first-year students (now called "Introduction to Career Design") on a cross-faculty basis. Furthermore, from this year, the program has been further enhanced through the assignment of new personnel, mainly full-time faculty members specializing in career education. In this course, students are made aware of the position of student life in their overall long life, the meaning of extracurricular activities such as part-time jobs, clubs, and volunteer work, and the relationship between these activities and the working world. In addition, the "Career Design Application" course, which is open to all students, provides students with opportunities to meet with professional guests and learn about real-life examples of what is happening in the professional world, and to prepare themselves to deal with such realities.
3. spirit of freedom and progress
Career education at Hosei University is not simply about imparting know-how from an early age so that students can find good jobs. In today's affluent society, where a variety of lifestyles are possible, and where information overload is commonplace, our goal is to provide career education that will enable students to live freely in the true sense of the word. To live freely is not to live according to someone else's predetermined path, but to create and follow one's own path of one's own volition. It means to live autonomously. It is our hope that students will learn to think about problems and work toward solutions on their own, rather than accepting manual correct answers. Underlying this wish is Hosei's "spirit of freedom," or the emphasis on autonomy.
Along with the spirit of freedom, Hosei University's educational philosophy is "enterprising spirit. This has been the mission of Hosei University since its founding: to produce individuals with the attitude of living ahead of the times, of pioneering the times, and of demonstrating leadership not only in their own lives but also in society. Our goal is not to produce students of Hosei University or employees of large corporations, but to produce people who can be described as pioneers in the world, as Hosei University has produced such wonderful human resources, and as corporations with such wonderful human resources. It is precisely because we live in a modern society where diversity is on the rise and free ways of life are tolerated that we need people who can transcend universities and organizations, people who can lead them, and people who can open up society with their own guidelines. The value of the progressive spirit, or in modern terms, the "spirit of progress," has not changed in the 140 years since Hosei University was founded.
Thus, Hosei University is developing career education with the image of a person who can continue to play an active role after graduation in mind. By focusing on formal education and implementing career education rooted in philosophy rather than know-how, Hosei University has, paradoxically, continued to achieve one of the highest employment rates among the 787 universities in Japan. This can be seen as society's support for career education based on the "spirit of freedom and progress.
Career Development Support at the Career Center
The Career Center at Hosei University does not limit its career development support to the narrow concept of job hunting support beginning in the third year, but provides detailed career development support for all students from the time they enter the university.
During the job hunting process, students are strictly judged on whether they have spent a fulfilling university life and whether they have the "human ability" to work as a member of society.
The Career Center provides full support for students to think carefully about "what is a way of life that is true to oneself" and to link this to the career path of one's choice.
Career education (regular classes)
In regular classes and seminars, students can acquire general knowledge that can be applied in society, and develop "writing skills," "information gathering, analysis, and transmission," and "situational judgment and action skills. These abilities are the "employability skills" required for professional life in any industry or company.
In addition, the school offers career development support courses such as "Introduction to Career Design" and "Career Design Application," which can be taken from first-year students, to deepen students' understanding of career design and work.
Job hunting support
In addition to daily job hunting counseling, we offer various plans and events to support job hunting activities, starting with job hunting guidance for third-year students. Our support system is designed to help students maximize the qualities and abilities they possess.
- Support Programs
- Individual Consultation
- Job hunting support through alumni network
- Internships
- Extracurricular courses
Career Education Initiatives at TUAT to Date
April 2003
Establishment of the Faculty of Lifelong Learning and Career Studies
(The first faculty in Japan to respond to the new needs of diversifying ways of living, learning, and working in today's society)
April 2005
Career Center established and comprehensive career support program launched.
2006 (2nd semester)
Career-related course "Career Design" begins (Tama Campus)
2008 (1st semester)
Career-related subject "Introduction to Career Design" begins (Ichigaya Campus)
2008 (2nd semester)
Career-related subject "Career Design" started (Koganei Campus)
2010-2011 (2 years)
Adopted in 2010 3-step system for fostering employment skills
Selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology for its "Project to Support the Development of University Students' Employment Capabilities
Outline of Initiatives
FY2012-2014 (3 years)
Adopted in FY2012 for a project to improve and enhance education systems that respond to the needs of industry
Improvement of education in response to the needs of industry at universities located in the Tokyo metropolitan area
Outline of Initiatives
April 2018
Career-related courses "Introduction to Career Design" and "Career Design Application" were launched under the supervision of the Career Center
Faculty of Lifelong Learning and Career Studies
The first faculty in Japan to offer a major in career design. The faculty considers "career" as "a person's life and way of living," including occupation, and believes that "career design" is to design such a life. The department was established against the backdrop that people's ways of working and living are constantly changing and diversifying, and that there is a need for professionals who can help others design their own careers as well as their own.