Keio International Program (KIP)       Undergraduate

Keio International Program （KIP） is suitable for undergraduate students who wish to focus on studying about Japan and East/South East Asia in English. The International Center offers an array of English-taught courses on East/Southeast Asia across a variety of fields for KIP students to take. KIP students with advanced Japanese proficiency may also take undergraduate courses taught in Japanese, offered by the Keio University Faculties open to exchange students. In addition, they may choose to take up to four (4) Japanese language courses.  (Since priority is given to Japanese Language Program students, KIP students may not be able to take those courses which are already full.)

Please note that the main purpose of KIP is for students to attend International Center Courses taught in English, and/or attend regular undergraduate courses taught in Japanese, rather than emphasizing the study of Japanese language. Graduate students may also apply for KIP, but they cannot register for Keio University Graduate School courses. Please note that the International Center only offers a very small number of graduate-level courses.

Program Requirement:

A student must register for a minimum of seven(7) courses per semester made up of any combination of courses from the categories listed below. Registering for a minimum of seven courses is a mandatory requirement to maintain College Student visa status.

The curriculum of the International Center Courses has been redesigned so that the courses focus on Japan and East/South East Asia as a central theme. They are mainly for international students from overseas and are conducted in English. As Japanese students can also take these courses, they can provide students with opportunities for international exchange through study.

There are about 70 courses in various fields such as Language & Literature, Arts, Culture & Cross-cultural Understanding, Science, Religion & Thought, History, Media & Communications, Social Issues, Politics, Diplomacy & International Exchange, Business & Economy, and Law.

There are also Independent Study courses, in which students may arrange to receive individual supervision for their research from an academic advisor, and Keio Economics Professional Career Programme (PCP) courses offered by the Faculty of Economics.

Course Descriptions & Time Table:

*Descriptions of 2012 courses are available at the following URL.

  http://www.ic.keio.ac.jp/en/iccourse/list.html

*Course descriptions for the 2013 academic year will be posted at the above URL at the end of March 2013.

 Additionally, a PDF file listing only the names of courses planned to be held in the 2013 academic year is available here .

The purpose of this course is to enable students to conduct research on a topic of their choice under the guidance and supervision of an academic staff member of Keio University. This guidance and supervision will typically involve one-on-one sessions. Students will be required to submit a substantial piece of written work that reports the results of their research. Students should note that there is no guarantee that they can actually enroll in the Independent Study course as the International Center reserves the right to screen all applications, and students must find themselves a member of academic staff at Keio who is willing to supervise their research.

The Professional Career Programme (PCP) is established within the Faculty of Economics. Courses in this program are also available to exchange students as part of the International Center Courses, and there are prerequisites and requirements regarding English proficiency. This programme aims to assist third- and fourth- year students who wish to enter postgraduate career programs either within Japan or abroad, including Law Schools, schools in public administration, business schools, and schools in international development. PCP students will participate in small-group classes, taught principally in English. PCP courses emphasize practical education in economics that will be of direct use for students’ future careers. In order to take PCP courses, you must submit required documents beforehand and undergo an interview.

KIP students with advanced Japanese proficiency may also take undergraduate courses taught in Japanese, offered by the Keio University Faculties open to exchange students. In order to be permitted to take undergraduate courses taught in Japanese, students must take a Japanese Language Program placement test conducted by the Center for Japanese Studies at the beginning of each semester and be placed in Level 8 or above within a range from Level 1 to 12. (Level 8 means a student is able to audit university lectures, read text/reference books and write papers and take examinations in Japanese with advanced sentence structures, and has both an advanced vocabulary (8,000 words), and advanced knowledge of kanji (1,500 characters).) There are cases in which students are unable to take Faculty courses when they are unable to place in Level 8 or higher. Please thoroughly consider the possibility of not being able to attend Faculty courses when forming your study plan in order to make credit transfer as smooth as possible.

   -Undergraduate Faculties open to exchange students-

  Most of the undergraduate courses are offered in Japanese. 

* There may be some registration restrictions and/or course prerequisites. Foreign language courses in all faculties and School of Medicine courses are not open to exchange students.

* Course descriptions & timetables for the faculties (available only in Japanese):
http://www.gakuji.keio.ac.jp/academic/rishu/index.html

（Course registration guide and course syllabus of 2013 offered by undergraduate faculties will be updated after April 1, 2013）

KIP students may take up to four (4) Japanese language courses per semester as part-time students, offered by the Center for Japanese Studies, to improve their speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. They may register for courses from two categories: “Subjects with a Specific Focus” and “Japanese Studies on Society and Culture”. (Since priority is given to Japanese Language Program students, part-time students may not be able to take courses which are already full.) Please note that the courses in “Core Subjects” are NOT open to part-time students.

There is no minimum level of Japanese proficiency required for students who wish to take Japanese language courses offered by the Center for Japanese Studies. However, all part-time students are required to take the JLP placement test conducted by the Center for Japanese Studies at the beginning of each semester to be placed in an appropriate study level. Please be aware that you cannot determine your level by yourself. Level placement will be determined based on the standards of the Keio University Japanese Language Program. These standards may differ from those of your home country, and there is a possibility that you will not be placed at your desired level. Please thoroughly consider this possibility when forming your study plan and plan for transferring credits.

While most of the courses are offered at Mita Campus, students who have been placed in Levels H1 to H4 (Beginners Level) will mainly take courses taught at Hiyoshi Campus.

Please be aware that class attendance, participation, and coursework are considered very important, especially in the Japanese language courses offered by the Center for Japanese Studies. Part-time students should plan their study schedule carefully before registering for courses to avoid any schedule conflicts.

For the course lists for “Subjects with a Specific Focus” and “Japanese Studies on Society and Culture” given in the 2012 academic year, click here (JLP courses list is on Page 5).  Some courses may not be offered in the year you attend Keio.

General Information of JLP

http://www.ic.keio.ac.jp/nncenter/en/index.html?url=110.html

＊＊　Sample Weekly Schedule of a KIP student ＊＊

This student’s Japanese study level in the JLP placement test is Level H1.

 (  ) = number of credits

*    International Center Courses

** “Subjects with a Specific Focus” courses offered by the Center for Japanese Studies