Biology (Undergraduate)
Shimoda Marine Research Center
Ocean is the source of life and has given rise to biodiversity. To understand our planet and human beings, knowledge about marine organisms are essential. The 21st century is the era of life and environmental sciences. Shimoda Marine Research Center (SMRC), the center for the research and education of marine biology in University of Tsukuba, aims to explore the basic principles of life and interactions among organisms through education and research using both basic and advanced technologies on marine organisms. Introduction Shimoda Marine Research Center (SMRC), University of Tsukuba, located on the southern tip of the Izu Peninsula, is a facility for research and education on marine biology. The marine […]
Sugadaira Field Trip Report
We went on a field study trip to the Sugadaira Montane Research Center, a research center of University of Tsukuba in Ueda, Nagano for five days during Spring break from March 7 until March 11, 2016. This course aims to provide a genuine experience of the qualities of nature and wild animals in snowy mountainous areas through animal tracking, bird watching, and collecting insects. To get to the Ueda Station, we could take either shinkansen (bullet train; around 2 hours) or express bus (4 and a half hours). We preferred to take express bus from Tokyo to Nagano Station, and continued by train from Nagano to Ueda Station. From there, […]
Admissions – College of Biology
The College of Biological Sciences invites applications from well-qualified individuals who have a passion for biology. Undergraduate applications for the English program are open from mid-November to early January. Screening takes place in two stages; a document screening first, and then an interview by teleconferencing. The quality of applicants for our program is consistently very high, and admissions to our program are competitive. We expect applicants to have a strong academic record, a demonstrable interest in biological sciences, and sufficient ability to support themselves throughout their studies. You are required to submit a personal statement (study plan), which clearly outlines your interest in biological sciences. Please outline any experience / internships you may have […]
Finance (Biology)
Planning your finances for university studies can be difficult. Your main expenses will be tuition, accommodation rent, food and living expenses, travel, and personal expenses. This page will provide information regarding financial information for students entering the English program in Biological Sciences. Tuition fees Students entering this program will have the admission fee (282,000 yen) and tuition the first semester (267,900 yen: Sept – Mar) waived. After this, students are expected to pay tuition – 535,800 yen per year. Partial and full tuition waivers are available for high performing students with financial difficulties (details here). Scholarships The University’s Tsukuba Scholarship is open to all students, and provides 60,000 yen per month […]
Research Centers
Research is the lifeblood of any academic department. The College of Biology has over 80 research active academic staff, and is supported by three research centers; the Sugadaira Montane Research Center; the Shimoda Marine Research center; and the Gene Research Center. Sugadaira Research Center The Sugadaira Research Center is one of the leading highland field study and education centers in Japan. The Sugadaira plateau in Nagano Prefecture is located 1300 meters above sea level. The center has an average annual temperature of 6.6°C, with mid-winter temperatures as low as minus 25°C. There are many rare plant species and a wide variety of animal species found at Sugadaira, many of which […]
Graduation Research
Graduation research is the cumulation of your hard work over four years. You will join a faculty member’s lab, and complete a year long research project. Some examples can be seen below Title Supervisor Effect of the holoparasite O. minor on clover host growth Louis Irving Production of chimeric HEV-VLP-M2 protein in tomato fruit and tobacco leaves as edible vaccine against influenza A virus Michiyuki Ono Localization of encapsulation promoting lectin (EPL) in the hemocytes of Mythimna separata Seiichi Furukawa Effect of mutiple nutrient pressures on differential root growth of Poa annua Louis Irving Functional analysis of gnl3 by reverse genetics and overexpression in Dictyostelium discoiduem Hidekazu Kuwayama The role […]
Course list
Our degree offers a broad education in fundamental and applied aspects of the biological sciences. On this page you can find a list of courses available in English. Foundation-level Courses Foundation level courses help students develop a broad view of biological sciences, allowing them to explore new subjects. Introduction to Systematics and Evolutionary Bio (EB11151, FallC, Tue / Wed 2) Outlines the phylogeny and evolution of living organisms, which are the basis of biology, along with textbooks. This lecture deals with the evolutionary mechanisms that created biological diversity, and the taxonomy of the entire biological world, in relation to the underlying phylogenetic tree and changes in the global environment. […]
Program structure
Students are required to complete a minimum of 124 credits to graduate. Credits are split into foundational courses, liberal arts and languages, major subjects, and elective credits. Students are required to complete a minimum number of credits in each section in order to graduate. Lectures Lectures form the basis for undergraduate courses. These allow students to develop their knowledge and understanding of the field by taking instruction from leading scientists in their fields. One credit is the equivalent of ten 75-minute lectures, with 2-hours of self-study for every hour of class time. Most lecture courses are 1 or 2 credits. Assessment is normally by a mix of in-class reports […]
Biology
The 21st century has been dubbed the “Century of Biology”. Technological advances have led to a revolution in our understanding of the relatedness of living organisms, and to the development of new research fields seeking to understand the processes underlying organismal development. Meanwhile, our society faces a broad range of challenges in terms of both food and fuel security. All these research areas and more can be studied in our undergraduate degree program in biological sciences. We offer an undergraduate degree program in Biological Sciences, aimed at students which hold a non-Japanese passport. Our 4-year program starts at a basic level, learning foundational subjects in biology, chemistry, and physics. In […]