Kitami Institute of Technology

The Kitami Institute of Technology is a public university located in the large Japanese town of Kitami, Hokkaido.

Founded in 1960 as the Junior College of Technology, the university has steadily grown over the decades to include a wide range of departments and subject areas for undergraduate and graduate teaching and research.

According to figures collated for the 2018 Times Higher Education Japan Rankings, the university has around 2,061 students in full time enrollment, with a ratio of 14.8 students to every academic staff member. There is a small international student community which makes up around 5 per cent of the total student population.

Admissions are selective and are based on entrance examinations. Between 20 and 30 per cent of applicants are awarded places on undergraduate courses.

Undergraduate courses are typically four years long, and focus around engineering. Teaching is organised by two main undergraduate schools: earth, energy and environmental engineering; and the school of regional development and social design engineering.

A smaller number of master’s and doctoral degrees also take place at the university, with subjects also centered around engineering.

The university runs several international student exchange programmes with partner institutions in countries including Peru, Bangladesh, Korea and Finland.

The university is well placed for exploring the northern Japanese coastline – Hakuyo train station is a five minute walk from campus, and connects the town with Abashiri in the north and Sapporo in the south.

The region is uniquely placed between the coast and mountains, and student excursions are organised through the year to nearby Daisetsuzan National Park, the largest national park in Japan.