Hokkaido University

Founded in 1876 as Sapporo Agricultural College and renamed Hokkaido University in 1947, Hokkaido University is one of Japan’s leading comprehensive national universities. Today, Hokkaido University comprises 12 undergraduate schools, 21 graduate schools, and 28 research institutes and centers, and is home to approximately 18,000 students from nearly 100 countries and regions, supported by around 4,000 staff.

Guided by its enduring philosophy of “Frontier Spirit, Global Perspectives, All-round Education, and Practical Learning,” Hokkaido University has cultivated a spirit of challenge embodied in the phrase “Be Ambitious.” Since its earliest days, the university has embraced diverse knowledge and fostered a liberal arts tradition, encouraging students, researchers, and staff to take on new challenges for the future.

With its origins as an agricultural college and its deep connections to agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and field-based research, Hokkaido University has developed particular strengths in sustainability. Building on its broad academic foundation as one of Japan’s largest national universities, it contributes to solving regional and global challenges through advanced scientific research, including Nobel Prize-winning achievements in chemistry, as well as distinctive fields such as semiconductors, low-temperature and Arctic research, and Ainu and Indigenous studies.

The university’s campuses also offer an exceptional environment for learning and research. The 1.8-square-kilometer Sapporo Campus, located in the heart of Sapporo, Japan’s fifth-largest city, is widely admired for its beauty, spaciousness, and rich natural surroundings, while also providing the convenience of an urban setting. The Hakodate Campus, home to the School of Fisheries Sciences, is rooted in a historic port city and closely connected to the region’s fisheries industry. Across Hokkaido and beyond, the university operates extensive field facilities, including research forests, experimental farms, and marine stations. In total, Hokkaido University’s land area accounts for approximately one five-hundredth of Japan’s national land.

Surrounded by the dynamic natural environment of Hokkaido and open to local and global communities, Hokkaido University offers an inspiring place where students and researchers can pursue knowledge, engage with society, and contribute to a more sustainable future.