The industry–academia collaboration and career education courses “Career Management Special Seminar” and “Company Consortium” are meant to encourage Doctoral Degree Program students to begin thinking early about the image of a doctor demanded by society. In both industry–academia collaboration and career education courses, students aiming to enter the industrial world can learn about actual cases of corporate technological development. In addition to their academic interests, students aspiring to be part of academia can also learn about the existence of societal problems for which solutions are urgently needed.

In the latter half of the Career Management Special Seminar, the lesson evolves into a workshop format

The “Career Management Special Seminar” takes place during the first semester in the Doctorate Course’s first year. By grouping five students into a unit prior to the “Company Consortium,” we aim at fostering the ability to determine the nature of issues and solve problems by synthesizing knowledge from different fields. The lesson’s first half is a lecture. Once students have acquired enough basic knowledge—from general books in a field specified in advance—for a debate, during the second half, the lesson evolves into an active-learning workshop format.

View of the final presentation session in the Company Consortium held in February of 2016. Program managers from cooperating corporations also participate, and they evaluate your ability to determine the nature of issues and propose solutions.

The “Company Consortium” takes place during the second semester in the Doctorate Course’s first year. In a project-based learning format with a small number of people, students can mutually discuss views from specialized fields regarding the industrial world’s problems and issues. The goal is for the group as a whole to learn through experience the process of creating a proposal to create new values. In addition to each member’s specialized knowledge, students determine the nature of issues and propose solutions by making full use of online information and information obtained by connecting with relevant people or organizations. In addition to the program’s head instructor, program managers from cooperating corporations who are currently active in the industrial world also participate in the mid-term review meeting and the final presentation session. All of them evaluate students’ ability to establish issues and propose solutions.

We cannot say that the knowledge and experience acquired in the industry–academia collaboration and career education courses will immediately prove helpful. However, this learning will come to fruition as students amass years of experience as working adults and their scope of responsibilities broadens and combines with personal alumni networks fostered through this program.

Report: Atsushi Nanasawa (Program Faculty)