A Message from the Dean of Admissions Center

Founded in 1882, Waseda University has welcomed many international students through its doors since it accepted its first international student, who was from Korea, two years later. A few years later in 1905, Waseda established school for Chinese students (closed in 1910). These two events were the catalyst for our inviting youths from throughout Asia to study at our university. Today, we have approximately 3,000 international students enrolled in Waseda University.
In 2007, the 125th anniversary of its founding, Waseda University set a goal for accepting 8,000 international students from all over the world. This is in keeping with the university’s motto of "Transforming Japan's Waseda into the world's WASEDA." This motto reflects our aim of seeking to attract outstanding students, from both here in Japan and overseas, to our world-class educational and research institution. By promoting diversity through student exchanges in various academic fields, we hope to provide a meeting place for students from different language and cultural backgrounds, thereby helping Waseda to become an even more distinctive and attractive university. One of the main actions that the university has undertaken to help achieve this goal was the establishment of the International Admissions Office (IAO) in June 2009. As a specialized admissions office for international students under the Admissions Center, the IAO conducts recruitment activities around the world to promote the unparalleled quality of Waseda University, and also develops and implements admission systems designed to meet the varied needs of international students. Moreover, the IAO cooperates with the Center of International Education in providing support for international students at Waseda University with regard to various student-related matters, such as those concerning academic programs, scholarships, and student accommodation.
We sincerely hope that this IAO website provides those seeking to study abroad in Japan with a clear idea of the type of education and research conducted at Waseda University. We also hope that it provides a means for them to pursue their higher education here at Waseda University.