History
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) is an international higher education institution in Japan. APU was founded in April 2000 through the collaboration of three parties, namely Oita Prefecture, Beppu City, and the Ritsumeikan Trust, which is one of the oldest and most distinguished private non-profit educational institutions in Japan. APU’s values are based on a vision of freedom, peace and humanity, as well as the enhancement of international mutual understanding in the Asia Pacific region. Although APU was established less than 20 years ago, it has already gained recognition as the most international university in Japan with a strong international orientation in its aims and educational programs, along with its teaching faculty, administrative staff, and enrolled students who come from all over the world.

Location
APU is located on the outskirts of Beppu City (population of approximately 120,000) in Oita Prefecture in Kyushu, the southernmost island of the main Japanese archipelago. Beppu is one of Japan’s most popular tourist destinations, being the home of the world’s second largest outflow of hot spring water, and approximately 1.2 million tourists that visit Beppu every year. The large international student population and constant influx of visitors make Beppu one of the most lively and cosmopolitan cities in Japan.

APU as an International University
APU provides education to approximately 5,700 students, of which about 2,800 are international students from 91 different countries, thus creating a truly multi-cultural environment on its campus. Among these students, presently 194 are enrolled in the Master’s Course and 20 in the Doctoral Course of our Graduate School. All APU undergraduate programs are taught on a bilingual English-Japanese basis, while graduate programs are conducted entirely in English.

APU students by country:
http://en.apu.ac.jp/home/about/content57/

Special Features
APU strives to play an important role in the academics of the Asia Pacific region. Despite its short history, APU has already welcomed Nobel Laureates Prof. Muhammad Yunus, Prof. Amartya Sen, and Prof. Lee Yuan Tseh for keynote lectures, and has hosted major academic events in collaboration with the United Nations, ASEAN, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Asia Pacific Water Forum. APU has also invited many corporate executives of leading multinational companies to speak and interact with students on campus.

List of past visitors:
http://en.apu.ac.jp/home/about/content47/

Our graduate schools have gained acclaim by being selected for prestigious scholarship programs offered by the Asian Development Bank, ABE Initiative master's degree and internship program, and the Japanese Government. APU's innovative approach to education has also repeatedly been recognized under the Japanese Government’s “Top Global University Project,” and it was placed among the Top 25 universities for the 2018 Japan University Ranking by the Times Higher Education.

As our profile grows both in Japan and around the world, APU graduate students will have more and more opportunities to come face-to-face with some of the top decision-makers in this region, while gaining broader exposure for their own research. We value diversity and warmly welcome all those who have a desire to play an active role in fostering international cooperation and sustainable development.

Over 300 JDS Fellows have studied at APU until now, along with many other dispatched government officials from around the world. Our graduates have gone on to work at embassies in Japan, various ministries and agencies, and the ASEAN Secretariat. APU takes pride in sending out graduates that can contribute to the development of their countries after studying here.

Video clips about APU can be found on our YouTube page and at the following link:
http://en.apu.ac.jp/home/experience/

The Graduate School of Management (GSM) offers a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. Our faculty members and students come from many different parts of the world creating an ideal environment for developing international mutual understanding which is one of the APU’s founding values. The Graduate School of Management (GSM) and the College of International Management (our undergraduate counterpart
) have been accredited from AACSB International (The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) in August 2016. AACSB, an association of more than 1,500 educational institutions in 90 countries, ensures quality management education and currently less than 5 percent of business schools worldwide have earned its accreditation.

About the Program
The APU Graduate School of Management (GSM) offers a case based method education inspired by Japanese business and management with a strong foundation in established management techniques and opportunities for independent research. Classes are conducted entirely in English in a multicultural environment, giving students the chance to benefit from the experiences of experts in the field and learn the skills and sensibilities required for a successful career in international business.

Course Structure and Content
The GSM’s MBA program consists of required courses, specialization courses and electives. Students must take 44 credits or more in order to graduate. One of the features of the GSM is that students can take introductory, intermediate and Japanese language courses as electives based on their proficiency. Many GSM graduates have gained employment in Japan after learning Japanese in addition to their graduate studies. A management seminar course is also offered as one of the specialization courses to assist students in gaining a deeper understanding of their field by writing a master’s thesis, report, or a case study.

Areas of Specialization
The GSM’s MBA program is divided into four areas of specialization. Three discipline-based specializations are offered, namely Marketing and Management, Accounting and Finance, and Innovation and Operations Management. In the Japanese Management specialization, students learn Japanese business and management using a multi-disciplinary approach.

Master of Business Administration (MBA)
The MBA program integrates management knowledge from all over the world and focuses on the Asia Pacific region. With its commitment to producing successful leaders for one of the most culturally diverse regions in the world, the program is conducted entirely in English. The MBA curriculum is internationally competitive and provides a comprehensive business education by focusing on functional areas of business such as Accounting, Marketing, Finance, Management, and Operations. The program requires students to complete a range of foundational business subjects and provides opportunities to specialize in various areas of business. One of the distinctive aspects of the program is a specialization in Japanese management.

Students currently working for governments in their home countries will find the MBA curriculum quite useful and applicable to their work. In direct contrast to the workings of the public sector in many countries, our curriculum places an emphasis on missions and goals rather than rules and procedures, on results rather than inputs, and on recipients of services rather than managers. The curriculum also introduces radically different ways of managing public services to the program participants.
Students completing APU’s MBA program will acquire a range of skills, competencies, and knowledge as demonstrated in the following program learning objectives.

• 1a. Formulate practical solutions for an ethical dilemma using an ethics model or framework.
• 1b. Evaluate ethical implications of contemporary business issues.
• 2a. Demonstrate understanding of advanced business concepts in a specialized field.
• 2b. Apply advanced analytical tools (qualitative and/or quantitative) to examine business problems.
• 2c. Integrate functional knowledge for developing business solutions.
• 2d. Demonstrate an advanced level of writing and presentation skills.
• 3a. Identify the opportunities and challenges of innovation in a business setting.
• 3b. Design innovative business and/or research projects.
• 4a. Reconcile academic theories with practices in international business.
• 4b. Evaluate the managerial impact of global issues.

<Outline of the special program>

• (i) Our Graduate School has a well-developed network of local and international contacts which will be used to invite corporate and finance leaders to hold special lectures and workshops that provide opportunities to the students to interact with specialists in their business and economic fields. Emphasis will be given to the practical transfer of knowledge in four areas:
  • a) To encourage a deep understanding of the laws, rules and regulations that have become an international norm and which any successful country or company must adhere to; these can be found in the preparation they will receive in accounting, finance, IT, marketing, management etc.
  • b) To master the scientific method of research as a basis for all types of decision-making; this is accomplished through the work they will do on their thesis as well as the use of data analytics and statistics in all of their research.
  • c) The availability of capital forms the third area and is studied by the students all throughout their program via the application of theories acquired in their finance, economics, and development courses.
  • d) Transportation and communication has, over the last century, been the most evident driver of development in areas ranging from manufacturing to tourism and this fourth dimension is promoted through the intensive use of a variety of software and hardware as well as through trips to visit manufacturing companies, tourism and hospitality firms, and service providers which would not exist without access to this basic infrastructure.
• (ii) Organize intra-university conference and seminar where faculty members, individual students, or groups can participate to articulate their research findings on economic, business and social issues.
• (iii) Provide of English writing support to JDS fellows throughout their studies at APU to help them develop and complete their Master’s research and master’s thesis.
• (iv) Books and other items relating to individual students’ research topics will be purchased and used to provide individual tutoring.
• (v) Hold special orientations for JDS Fellows where they meet graduate school faculty members and interact with current JDS Fellows. These orientations provide students with the opportunity to build their networks and match up with a suitable supervisor.
• (vi) The establishment of other programs based on student requests may be considered.

<Credit Requirements for Completion>

<Subjects Offered in the Graduate School of Management>

The following is a list of the faculty members qualified to supervise JDS Fellows. Fellows will choose their seminar supervisor based on their research interests before the beginning of their 2nd semester at APU. During their first semester at APU, students take required subjects which allow them to receive specific and detailed guidance from faculty members.
As of June, 2020

Abbreviations:
JM: Japanese Management
AF: Accounting and Finance
MM: Marketing and Management
IOM: Innovation and Operations Management

Accommodation
All graduate students are entitled to a room in one of APU’s student housing facilities, AP House 4, which will help them adapt to their new life in Japan and to concentrate on their studies. All rooms are equipped with basic facilities, including internet access. AP House 4 is located off-campus in downtown Beppu, from which it takes about thirty minutes to reach campus by bus. If students wish to live in different off-campus housing it is possible to find other affordable options, as Beppu is considerably less expensive than other Japanese cities for private apartments and shared student housing. Students can also get assistance in locating and renting accommodations from Creotech, a university-affiliated company.

Campus Facilities
APU’s classrooms are equipped with the latest audiovisual and computer technology, enabling our students to take part in conferences and seminars occurring in other parts of the world in real time. The library, part of the Ritsumeikan Network, allows students to utilize over 2.3 million books and provides access to a wide range of academic journals and other useful publications through online databases. Within the Faculty Office Building, graduate students have their own lounge, study spaces, lockers, and computer rooms. Furthermore, with access to the Faculty Office Building, students can easily consult with their supervisors during office hours. Other on-campus facilities include a cafeteria and cafe catering to a wide range of dietary requirements, a general store and a bookshop. In terms of athletics, APU has a gym, a weight training room, tennis and basketball courts, a soccer field, track, and other facilities.

Support Services
At APU, students have access to a full range of support services on campus. These include a Health Clinic and counseling service for all students and staff without any charge, a Student Office that facilitates extra-curricular activities and offers advice on lifestyle issues such as accommodation, a Research Office that provides support for research activities, and an Academic Office which supports students in terms of their curriculum, course registration, master’s thesis submission, and other academic needs.

Language Environment
Since APU is a bilingual campus, all administrative offices such as the Academic Office and Student Office operate in both English and Japanese.

From University:

The APU MBA program offers an internationally competitive curriculum taught entirely in English at a Japanese university. The program makes use of a wide range of case studies of world class Japanese and non-Japanese corporations and many of these cases are developed at APU. The program requires completion of several fundamental business subjects and provides the opportunity to specialize in functional areas of business such as Management, Marketing, Accounting, Finance, and Production. In addition, we offer a specialization in Japanese management. The philosophical and conceptual base of the Japanese management style can be found in the stakeholder model of governing corporations where companies operate like communities. Japanese corporations, by and large, have refrained from focusing on short term gains and yet they are innovative, create world class products, and successfully satisfy the demands of their various stakeholders. Asia is increasingly becoming the economic powerhouse of the world and many corporations in Asia are providing fierce competition for these Japanese corporations. There are thus lessons to be learnt from the experiences of Japanese corporations.

In APU’s MBA classes you will meet students from nearly all continents of the world who will assist you in developing international mutual understanding and provide you with the competency to deal with intercultural differences. We invite you to take advantage of this unique multicultural environment in Japan and to explore the challenges corporations in Japan and in other Asian countries are currently facing.

Myanmar was part of a government controlled economy for a very long time and opened its economy only very recently. The nation is doing its best to improve conditions for its citizens by encouraging local entrepreneurship and by inviting foreign investment. Japan is one of the first Asian nations to fully industrialize through its own efforts and it is ready to share its experiences with other Asian nations. One of the major contributors to Japan’s success is the management practices of its corporations. You will have the opportunity to learn these practices in addition to general business practices that are specific to various functional areas of business. If you are currently working for a government, you will find that our MBA curriculum is very useful and will provide you with the opportunity to consider alternative ways of managing public services in your home country on your return.