Hiroshima Bunka Gakuen University

Hiroshima Bunka Gakuen University is a private institution spread across five campuses in Hiroshima and the historic naval port of Kure, famed for the construction of the world’s largest ever warship. It was part of the creation of the educational foundation of the same name.

Started in 1964, it added a junior women’s college in 1986 and attained university status in 1995. It states the aim of "conducting deeply specialised academic teaching and research based upon the Hiroshima Bunka Gakuen founding spirit of Kyuri-Jissen (unity of theory and practice) and by producing members of society who have a highly developed sense of humanity and comprehensive decision-making abilities".

The main campus in Hiroshima, shared with the junior college, is also the base for liberal arts, child development and music, with health and welfare on the Saka campus.

Kure has a lifelong learning centre while social information science and global business is based at Gohara and the university’s largest single department, nursing, is on the Ana campus. More recent initiatives include the creation of a department of sports health and welfare in 2018.

The nursing faculty, created in 1998, also takes in graduate students. In 2016 it had 583 undergraduates – around a third of the total university population which included a significant number from rural areas in Hiroshima’s hinterlands and 172 from overseas. Its aim is to "develop nursing caregives who can meet the ever-changing needs of people and contribute to local communities and international society". Options offered include community health nursing, adult health and gerontological science.