Policies for Doctoral Program

Admission policy

*students entering in 2024 academic year or later

Kochi University of Technology's goal is 'Making KUT a world class university through the pursuit of unique excellence'. We seek individuals who support this goal and are motivated to learn with a strong will and passion to become Advanced Engineers and Advanced Researchers capable of succeeding in the society of the future.

KUT Graduate School of Engineering's doctoral program aims to train ambitious individuals who will take on challenges in unexplored fields not limited to the research in their program by enhancing and deepening their qualifications, equipping them with a high level of skill in identifying and resolving problems on their own, and augmenting their capabilities as researchers. The program has three courses of study, and we are seeking to enroll individuals who understand the educational principles and aims of their respective course of study while also having a strong interest, ambition, and sense of purpose toward the relevant technical areas, and who are recognized for possessing a level of academic specialization and advanced research capabilities that will enable them to complete a doctoral degree.

In selecting applicants for admission, we will comprehensively evaluate them for advanced knowledge in the specialization that they wish to study as well as their logical thinking capacity, sense of purpose, strong research capabilities, and the like, based on interviews with oral examinations and submitted documents.

Curriculum policy

*students entering in 2024 academic year or later

The curriculum in KUT's doctoral program is designed to expand on education at the master's level to foster more advanced specialized knowledge as well as research capabilities in cutting-edge areas.

In order to cultivate individuals with a broad perspective who can see things from diverse viewpoints without bias toward a particular field, the program is only offered through a single Department of Engineering in a single Graduate School of Engineering.

Students take courses and engage in research according to a curriculum organized as follows by degree.

〇Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering

Students will master advanced specialized knowledge in their major area of engineering/engineering sciences/informatics study and conduct cutting-edge research.

〇Doctor of Philosophy

Students will master advanced specialized knowledge in academic and interdisciplinary fields grounded in their major area of engineering study and conduct cutting-edge research.

Each student will work with one main supervisor and two co-supervisors who will guide the student in conducting original, creative research with the potential to make social and academic contributions. Students will also develop a strong sense of ethics as a researcher and engineer through research guidance and research ethics education via our E-learning program.

〇Curriculum organization

Courses are categorized into the Core studies course and Specialized area courses.

（１）Core studies course

Provides courses to develop article writing skills and English communication skills necessary to succeed internationally in the future.

（２）Specialized area courses

Provides courses enabling students to acquire a wide range of research-related, advanced specialized knowledge as well as understand the latest research in their respective specialization.

Facilitates independent research through a variety of seminars and exercises.

〇Evaluation of learning outcomes

We ensure fairness and rigor for degree theses by providing clear thesis acceptance and examination criteria as well as by conducting a public thesis examination by multiple examiners.

Diploma policy

*students entering in 2024 academic year or later

Our goal at the KUT Graduate School of Engineering is to train talented individuals capable of contributing to scientific and technological development, through comprehensive education and research integrating a wide range of engineering fields. On that basis, the Master's or Doctoral degree will be awarded to students who have acquired the abilities indicated below and fulfilled the degree requirements stipulated by university regulations.

Moreover, each degree will be denoted either Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering or Doctor of Philosophy, depending on the area of study.

〇Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering

  1. Mastery of advanced specialized knowledge in major area of engineering/engineering sciences/informatics study and research capabilities in cutting-edge research areas
  2. Capacity for originality and creativity with academic novelty or ability to come up with ideas intended to have a real impact and practical capacity to embody that
  3. International communications skills enabling adaptation to global society
  4. High ethical standards and strong sense of responsibility as an engineer/researcher
  5. Ability to undertake sustained research and desire to take on challenges in unexplored fields

〇Doctor of Philosophy

  1. Mastery of advanced specialized knowledge in academic and interdisciplinary fields grounded in major area of engineering study and research capabilities in cutting-edge research areas
  2. Capacity for originality and creativity with academic novelty or ability to come up with ideas intended to have a real impact and practical capacity to embody that
  3. International communications skills enabling adaptation to global society
  4. High ethical standards and strong sense of responsibility as an engineer/researcher
  5. Ability to undertake sustained research and desire to take on challenges in unexplored fields