| Soka University | |
| Native Name: | 創価大学 |
| Image Upright: | 1.5 |
| Motto: | Discover Your Potential |
| Established: | 1971 |
| Type: | Private |
| President: | Masashi Suzuki |
| Students: | 7,230 (1 May 2021) |
| Country: | Japan |
| Campus: | Suburban |
| Colors: | Blue White |
| Mascot: | Roaring Lion |
| Address: | 1-236 Tangi-cho, Hachiōji-shi, Tokyo 192-8577, Japan |
, abbreviated typically as or, is a Soka Gakkai-affiliated private university in Hachiōji, Tokyo, Japan. In 2014, the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) designated Soka University as one of the 20 universities in Japan that "are leading the globalization of Japanese society".[1]
Soka University opened on April 2, 1971, with its graduate school opening in April 1975.[2] Since the school's founding, more than 50,000 students have graduated from Soka University.[3]
Soka University of America is a related school founded in 2001, located in Aliso Viejo, California, which offers both graduate and undergraduate degrees.[4]
Soka University's educational philosophy was established by Tsunesaburō Makiguchi, the first president of the Soka Gakkai (then called the Soka Kyoiku Gakkai, or Value-creating Education Society), who had worked as the principal of an elementary school in Japan. Makiguchi published the book "The System of Value-Creating Pedagogy" based on his belief that the purpose of education is the students' happiness, and emphasized humanistic education. This educational philosophy was shared by his successor, Jōsei Toda, who had served as a primary school teacher. Toda's successor, Daisaku Ikeda, describes his goal as carrying out the dreams of Makiguchi and Toda.[5]
"Soka" is a Japanese term meaning "value creation". In 1971, when Daisaku Ikeda founded Soka University, the school established the following founding principles:
Since 2010, the university has also adopted the official motto .
As of 2015, Soka University had awarded 365 honorary doctorates and honorary professorships, primarily to international figures in academia and culture.[7] In April 1993, Mikhail Gorbachev traveled to Tokyo together with his wife Raisa to receive an honorary doctorate from Soka University in recognition of his efforts for world peace. A cherry tree was planted at the university in their honor during their visit.[8] Rosa Parks visited Soka University in 1994 to deliver a lecture, and was bestowed an honorary doctorate at that time for her contributions to civil rights.[9] [10] When Nelson Mandela visited Soka University in 1995, he was awarded an honorary doctorate for his lifelong work to promote human rights.[11] In 1996, the university awarded an honorary doctorate to Fidel Castro in recognition of his efforts to establish exemplary health care and education systems for his nation's people.[12] In 2008, an honorary doctorate was awarded to a professor at Moscow State University, Mihail Sokolov, a medical robotics scientist.
| Soka Women's College | |
| Native Name: | 創価女子短期大学 |
| Established: | 1985 |
| Type: | Private women's junior college |
| City: | Hachiōji, Tokyo |
| Country: | Japan |
Soka University shares its campus in Hachiōji, Tokyo, with, an affiliated private junior college that was founded on April 2, 1985.[13]