Hokkaido University is a large research university located in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. It was founded in 1876 as the Sapporo Agricultural College by William Smith Clark, a graduate of Amherst College who became the first American president of an institute of higher learning in Japan. The university now consists of 12 faculties with more than 21,000 students enrolled. The main campus is located in central Sapporo and covers 1.45 square kilometers.
Hokkaido University is one of the top research universities in Japan. It has produced many Nobel laureates and winners of the Fields Medal, the highest award in mathematics. In 2015-2016, it was ranked 4th among Japanese universities for number of papers published in Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Social Science Citation Index (SSCI). Hokkaido University also ranks highly in other measures such as patents filed and received, and research funding from organizations such as the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), and private companies.
The university’s strengths are not limited to natural sciences and engineering but encompass a wide range of fields including medicine, agriculture, humanities, and social sciences. Hokkaido University is especially well known for its research on cold regions science and technology which makes use of its unique location at the northernmost part of Japan where winters are long and snowy. Other notable areas of research include cell biology & regenerative medicine; environmental science & engineering; information science & engineering; materials science & engineering; nanotechnology; physics; chemistry; earth & planetary science; marine science;firescience & disaster prevention science; food science & technology; forestry & wood products processing; human factors engineering & design psychology; industrial chemistry & biotechnology;; law;; linguistics;; literature;; management studies;; marketing;; Nursing care studies ;; pharmaceutical sciences ;; philosophy ; policy studies ; sociology ; sports science .
Apart from academic strength ,the university boasts beautiful scenery ,with cherry blossoms bloomingin springtime ,and autumn leaves lighting upthe campus in redand yellow .Sapporo city itselfis also pleasant to livein ,witha lively student cultureand many activities on offer throughoutthe year .There are many reasons why Hokkaido Universityis an excellent choicefor those seekinga world-class education .