To achieve the mission of responding to social needs by practically integrating various disciplines by serving as a hub for the creation of knowledge and the development of human resources that promotes the discovery and solution of policy issues in contemporary society, the master’s program in the Graduate School of Policy Science aims to cultivate students’ research capacity and strengthen their practical skills, which are both indispensable for accurately understanding the policy issues facing contemporary society and for devising appropriate solutions thereto. The goal of this program is to produce highly qualified individuals who can address a variety of social issues through the lens of policy science research.

To achieve the mission of responding to social needs by practically integrating various disciplines by serving as a hub for the creation of knowledge and the development of human resources that promotes the discovery and solution of policy issues in contemporary society, the doctoral program in the Graduate School of Policy Science aims to cultivate students’ research capacity in relation to the policy issues facing contemporary society and devising appropriate solutions thereto. The goal of this program is to produce highly qualified researchers who can address a variety of social issues through the lens of policy science research.

With the above mentioned goals of the Master’s program, which are to foster the essential research skills necessary to correctly understand the policy issues we confront in our modern society and create solutions for them, and raise the practical capability of the students to a higher level, the Graduate School of Policy Science awards the master’s degree to those who enroll for at least two years, take the regular courses, acquire required credits, receive necessary research guidance, and attain a passing mark for the evaluation of their master’s thesis and final examination, while considering that the student has met the goal of the educational and human resource development goals.

For the conferral of the masterʼs degree, students are screened on if they have achieved the following knowledge, skills, and ability within consideration of the graduate schoolʼs educational and talent fostering goals.

1. Expertise required to discover and solve the policy issues of our modern society
2. Skills to decipher both domestic and foreign existing research and references related to policy science
3. Ability to conduct the appropriate approach for the set research theme and put together original research logically

The specific screening criteria comprise the eight points described below, and a master's degree will be awarded if these criteria are met.
Enrollment of at least one year in the Graduate School shall be sufficient for students with excellent research achievements.
In addition, students must deliver oral reports in the Policy Science Workshops in the second and fourth semesters.

Number of required credits

1. Must complete a total of at least 30 credits.
2. Must complete at least six credits (three courses) from among the following courses, including Research Project IV-A: Research Project I-A, Research Project II-A, Research Project III-A, and Research Project IV-A.

Screening criteria for theses and reports

Master's theses are generally evaluated according to the following criteria:

1. The appropriateness of the research theme: Is there clear recognition of the issue, and is the theme appropriate for the field of policy science?
2. Comprehension of the essential nature of the theme: Did the author understand the nature of the theme correctly?
3. Correlation with existing research: Was the research appropriately based on existing research?
4. The appropriateness of the information and references used: Were sufficient fact-finding studies, searches and evaluations conducted?
5. The consistency of the logic in the thesis: Was the logic developed consistently?
6. The rigorous quality and accuracy of the statements in the essay: Was the analysis conducted correctly and accurately?
7. Originality: Did the content of the research show originality?
8. Can the research be substantiated?: Was the research verified sufficiently?

The Graduate School of Policy Science awards a doctoral degree, with the aims of the Doctoral program of the Graduate School of Policy Science, which are to foster talented individuals that meet the expectation of educational and human resource development goals to those who enroll for at least three years, take the regular courses, acquire required credits,receive necessary research guidance, submit a doctoral dissertation and attain a passing mark for the evaluation of their doctoral dissertation and final examination, while considering that the student has met the goal of the educational and human resource development goals.

For the conferral of the doctoral degree, students are screened on if they have achieved the following knowledge, skills, and ability within consideration of the graduate schoolʼs educational and talent fostering goals.ducational objective and human resources development goal of the Graduate School.

1. High-expertise required to discover and solve the policy issues of our modern society
2. Skills to decipher both domestic and foreign existing research and references related to policy science and the ability to put forth new issues
3. Ability to conduct appropriate approach for the set research theme, put together original research logically, and compile the results in an academic article to be published in an academic journal or similar publications.

The specific screening criteria comprise the eight points described below, and a doctoral degree will be awarded if these criteria are met. In addition, prior to submitting their doctoral dissertation, students must deliver a report on their research outcomes in the Policy Science Workshops organized by the Graduate School.

Number of required credits

Must complete at least 12 credits from among the following courses: Research Seminar 1, Research Seminar 2, Advanced Research Seminar 1, and Advanced Research Seminar 2. The required 12 credits must include at least six credits from Advanced Research Seminar 1 and Advanced Research Seminar 2.

Screening criteria for dissertations and reports

Doctoral dissertations are generally evaluated according to the following criteria:

1. The appropriateness of the research theme: Is there clear recognition of the issue, and is the theme appropriate for the field of policy science?
2. Comprehension of the essential nature of the theme: Did the author understand the nature of the theme correctly?
3. Correlation with existing research: Does the research appropriately explain the academic significance of the research theme based on existing researches.
4. The appropriateness of the information and references used: Were sufficient fact-finding studies, searches conducted? Also has it been comprehensively or critically considered?
5. The consistency of the logic in the thesis: Is the structure of the paper systematic? Also was the logic developed consistently?
6. The rigorous quality and accuracy of the statements in the essay: Was the analysis conducted correctly and accurately?
7. Originality: Did the content of the research show originality? And did it make an academic contribution to related academic fields?
8. Can the research be substantiated?: Was the research verified sufficiently?

To achieve the human resources development goal of cultivating students’ research capacity and strengthening their practical skills, which are both indispensable for accurately understanding the policy issues facing contemporary society and for devising appropriate solutions thereto, the curriculum in the master’s program in the Graduate School of Policy Science is divided into the following categories.

Policy Science Research Courses: Policy science research demands the ability to synthesize academic knowledge, which is necessary to understand and solve real policy issues, and courses are offered by dividing the individually segmented knowledge elements that students are expected to synthesize into the following categories.

1. Public Policy Courses
2. Environment and Development Courses
3. Social Management Courses
4. Common Courses
5. Foreign Language Courses
6. Regional Co-creation Research Program

As well as the Master’s Program, students are to receive systematic guidance through the participation in joint research project, not only to improve the research skills but also to gain the skill to plan and manage the research process which is essential to be an independent policy science researcher. Students are sequentially required to report the results of such research activities in form of academic theses and present at “Policy Science Workshop” hosted by the Graduate School of Policy Science.

The Graduate School of Policy Science welcomes the students with the following qualifications for its educational and human resource development goals mentioned above.

1. Have a broad interest in social issues
2. Willing to pursue the solutions to these issues
3. Possess a flexible mindset and wide range perspective to innovate existing disciplines through a multi-faceted approach
4. Exceed in thinking logically

The Graduate School of Policy Science welcomes the students with the following qualifications for its educational and human resource development goals mentioned above.

1. Have a broad interest in social issues
2. Possess a flexible mindset and wide range perspective to innovate existing disciplines through a multi-faceted approach
3. Willing to conduct in-depth research to arrive at solutions to these issues
4. Exceed in thinking logically