The International Relations Center (IRC) is KUT's international affairs contact department. The Center's main roles are receiving students from abroad, sending Japanese students abroad and fostering academic exchanges with foreign educational research institutions.

The Special Scholarship Program（SSP), established in 2003, occupies an important place in IRC activities. Under this program, a maximum of 60 international doctoral students at a time pursue their PhDs, working as research assistants and receiving special grants. IRC aims to provide maximum support to SSP students so that can achieve excellent results in their research and also accumulate good experiences of Kochi and Japan. IRC also conducts programs so that members of the local community have an opportunity to know about the cultures of our guest students, hence enhancing mutual understanding and friendship.