Concept and objectives of the course

The social welfare system is a system that humankind has developed so that every single person, regardless of their circumstances, including the elderly, less-abled people and working parents, can live a secure life with peace of mind. This course looks at welfare for the elderly, children and less-abled people, and has the fundamental goals of having “every citizen’s quality of life provided by the community” and “a community’s welfare developed through its citizens’ own efforts”. The course deals with welfare from cross-disciplinary perspectives and gives students systematic and practical instruction, equipping them with the skills required by professionals who specialize in welfare.

After graduation, our students go on to have the following careers:

In this course we aim to produce graduates who will fully take on the role of a professional in the welfare sector (certified social workers), but who will also go beyond their original roles to use their management skills. Management involves surveying and analyzing the region, drawing up policies and planning business projects.
We believe that this course will prepare students to work successfully as welfare specialists or regional development experts a wide variety of welfare-related organizations, such as business organizations, non-profit organizations, local government, research institutes and so on.

Characteristics of the curriculum

In Year 1 students learn human rights and welfare management theory as a foundation subject of the specialty. The main specialized subjects taught in Year 2 cover theories of social insurance, social policies and social welfare (subjects: Social Insurance, Social Policy, Welfare for the Elderly, Welfare State), and practical classes (Exercises in Social Welfare Assistance Techniques). Based on those topics, specialized exercise sessions and practice-based subjects are offered in Year 3. These prepare students for the dissertation research they will be engaged in throughout Year 4, under the guidance of their tutor.

Career prospects

Students who graduate from this course are expected to embark on a career as a local government official, a member of a medical or welfare institution, and so on. There are also paths that can be taken to proceed to postgraduate studies.