Faculty of Letters Overview

Through thought, history, social and cultural events, language and literature,

Rissho University 's Faculty of Letters will celebrate its 100th anniversary in April 2024. Based on the constancy (unchanging) and trends (changing) of academic studies over the past 100 years, there are the current departments and majors, each with its own characteristics.
In Faculty of Letters, we take the time to think about what it means to be human through thought, history, social and cultural phenomena, language, literature, etc. Through this learning, our educational goal is to develop individuals who are equipped with the ability to support, understand, and create culture, and to send out into the world talented people who can contribute to society as experts in various fields related to culture.
Faculty of Letters consists of four departments: Philosophy, History, Sociology, and Literature, and the Literature Department is further divided into the Japanese Language and Literature Major Course and the English and American Literature Major Course. Each department and major course is designed to provide an education that aims not only to teach specialized knowledge, but also to provide a wide range of culture and to develop flexible thinking and application skills.

Characteristics of education

Faculty of Letters has the educational goal of nurturing the following qualities and abilities in students in the fields of humanities and social studies.

1. Knowledge and understanding of the specialized fields of each department and major course, and the ability to broadly consider humans and society based on that knowledge, and discover and solve problems on your own.
2. Language and communication skills and the ability to deeply understand different cultures in order to play an active role in a wide range of fields in international society.
3. Developing a wide range of knowledge and education that is not limited by specialization, and logical and critical thinking skills
4. Ability to utilize the practical knowledge and skills necessary to obtain various qualifications and teaching certificates.

In order to realize these educational goals, we organize and implement the curriculum in accordance with the following policies.

1. An educational practice that aims not only to acquire specialized knowledge, but also to acquire a wide range of knowledge and develop the ability to think flexibly and apply skills.
2. In general education, which serves as the foundation for specialized education, we have established language education that exposes students to different cultures, university-wide common subjects that cultivate a broad perspective and culture, and basic subjects unique to Faculty of Letters that teach writing skills and common sense and morals for working adults.
3. Regarding specialized education, so that you can learn the academic system in stages, you will receive basic seminars and overview subjects in the first and second years, specialized seminars, special lectures, and practical subjects in the second and third years, and graduation in the fourth year. Arrangement of dissertation subjects
4. Adoption of a system that allows students to take courses from other departments within the faculty so that they can acquire a wide range of knowledge.

In putting this learning into practice, we first focus on first-year education to help students smoothly adapt to the new university environment. These include basic seminars where students and teachers interact through active learning across departments, and basic English education in which native speaker teachers also participate. In addition, we offer opportunities to develop students' flexible thinking and problem-solving abilities, such as fieldwork where students go outside the university to learn experientially and experientially, and classes that allow them to take cross-disciplinary courses in departments other than their own. Various efforts are being made.

Take the initiative to research, think, and communicate.
Supports independent learning

Faculty of Letters places particular emphasis on education for students entering university. University studies are not just passive learning, symbolized by memorization, but also require an independent attitude of proactively researching, thinking, and communicating. In order to improve students' communication skills, they are required to be able to actively express their opinions in words in both directions, between students and teachers, and between students themselves. In order to support a smooth transition of students' learning attitudes from high school to university and to help them realize a meaningful student life, we conduct classes that incorporate active learning.

• “Basic seminar” centered on discussion

  In the first year, a Basic Seminar is held, which is based on active learning and where students and faculty members come into contact with each other across departments and specialized education in Faculty of Letters. It focuses on developing each student's ability to disseminate information and communicate.

• "Basic English" to learn practical English

  For all first-year students, teachers from the language education curriculum provide "Basic English" classes, which are practical English lessons that will be useful even after entering the workforce. There are also basketball events where you can learn English while having fun. It not only helps students improve their English proficiency, but also gives them a chance to understand the cultures of the countries and regions where English is used, and improves students' communication skills.

• lectures and exercises

  Universities have large classes called lectures that impart new knowledge to students that was not available until high school. On the other hand, there are also seminars where students independently set problems and think about solutions through dialogue and discussion in small groups. In these environments, you will have the opportunity to develop the ability to think deeply about things, investigate things, and communicate.

• Abundant qualification courses

  Faculty of Letters offers courses to acquire various qualifications that will help you to pursue a fruitful career after graduation, such as a teaching license, museum curator, librarian, librarian teacher, social education officer, etc. Depending on the department, you can also acquire qualifications such as calligraphy instructor or social researcher.

Faculty of Faculty of Letters

• Department of Philosophy

  Learn about philosophy from all over the world, past and present, from four different fields: Western philosophy, Japanese and Eastern philosophy, ethics, and applying philosophy to your own problems.
  Even as times change, the questions humans face remain the same. You will seek answers to these questions with faculty members who cover a wide range of philosophical fields from ancient times to the present. This experience will give you the clues you need to overcome any obstacles you may encounter.

• Department of History

  Learn survey and research techniques in four areas: Japanese History, Oriental History, Western History, and Archaeology.
  Students can take a wide range of classes in the four fields of "Japanese History," "Oriental History," "Western History," and "Archaeology," and can acquire basic knowledge in each field.
  *When you advance to your second year, you will choose a major from one of the four options and join one of the seminars. Even if you are unsure of what you want to specialize in when you enroll, you can study a wide range of subjects in the first year, think about it, and decide.

• Department of Sociology

  Learn the skills to analyze society from multiple perspectives [Media and Journalism / City, Region and Crime / Environment and Family / Religion and Social Psychology]
  Although knowledge of "History, Geography, and Civics" is an advantage when taking university entrance exams, "Sociology" is basically the first subject you will encounter after entering university. What kind of subject is sociology? Is sociology what you want to study? I would like to answer such questions.

• Faculty of Letters
  • Japanese Language and Literature Course
    Learn the basics of Japanese linguistics and Japanese literature [Japanese language/prose and poetry/Chinese classical literature/history of performing arts/Ryukyuan literature and traditional literature]
    In the Department of Literature's Japanese Language and Literature major course, you can take a wide variety of lectures based on five pillars: Japanese "language," "poetry," "stories," "literature of the Japanese archipelago," and "East Asian culture," which has a deep connection to Japan.
    
  • English and American Literature Course
    Learn about literature, culture, linguistics, and communication in English-speaking countries [English structure and meaning/British literature/American literature/English-speaking culture and social background]
    At Rissho University, students can study English Linguistics, which specializes in the study of English language sounds, forms, structures, meanings, usage, and history, as well as English and American Literature and Cultural Studies, which cultivates a broad perspective and intercultural understanding.

Faculty of Letters Career Paths

three policies

Faculty of Letters has the following objectives in terms of human resource development and other educational and research activities: to cultivate individuals with the "ability to support, understand, and create culture" and to send out into the world talented people who can contribute to society as experts in various fields related to "culture." The Faculty also provides the necessary education for these goals.

In order to achieve this, we have established and published the following integrated set of "Educational Objectives," "Policy for Graduation Certification and Degree Awarding (Diploma Policy)," "Policy for Composing and Implementing the Educational Course (Curriculum Policy)," and "Policy for Accepting Students (Admission Policy)," as follows:

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