About Hachinohe Kosen

1. About the National Institute of Technology, Hachinohe College (Hachinohe Kosen)

History summary

Our college was established in 1963 as a higher education institution to foster engineers during the education revision for the promotion of designated industries and the furtherment of science and technology education in Japan. We started with 3 departments (Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Industrial Chemistry), before adding the Civil Engineering Department in 1968, thereby becoming a four department system.

In 1991, the Industrial Chemistry Department became the Material Engineering Department, then in 1995, the Civil Engineering Department became the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. Later, in 2005, the Electrical Engineering Department became the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department. In 2002, our college opened the Advanced Course to provide a higher specialized education for an additional 2 years after the Regular Course. In 2015, our college was reorganized and the four associate departments were merged into one department (Industrial Systems Engineering Department), comprising four courses (Mechanical System Design Engineering Course, Electrical & Computer Engineering Course, Material & Biological Engineering Course and Civil Engineering & Architectural Design Course). At the same time, the three advanced departments were merged into one Advanced Course (Industrial System Engineering Advanced Department) also comprising four courses (Advanced Mechanical System Design Engineering Course, Advanced Electrical & Computer Engineering Course, Advanced Material & Biological Engineering Course and Advanced Civil Engineering & Architectural Design Course).

The Waste and Energy Usage Education Research Center was completed in 1982 as an educational and research facility dedicated to local and regional issues. Its name was changed to Technologies Education Research Center in 1991, and again in 2003 to Regional Techno Center, and it continues to contribute actively to the local area as a model for industry, academia, and political collaboration by way of educational and research initiatives.

Following the establishment of the Industrial Technology Promotion Organization in 1993, these activities receive support, ranging from administrative support to sponsorship, from local companies, chambers of commerce, and industry.

Since its foundation, our college has suffered two major earthquakes; the Tokachi-Oki earthquake in 1968 and the Sanriku-Haruka Oki earthquake in 1994. The current college building was designed with the concept of a "mountain chain education" in mind. This design enables students to study, not only their own field, but also to deepen their understanding of engineering fundamentals and the basics of other fields. After the 1994 Sanriku-Haruka Oki earthquake, our facilities were extensively renovated or rebuilt, starting in 1996, and completed with the end of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department building repair work. The college was honored to receive the Ministry of Education Educational Facilities Supervisor Award in 2000 and the "Hachinohe 14th City Landscape Award" in 2002. The Advanced Course building was subsequently added in 2004.

Hachinohe Kosen and education

At Hachinohe Kosen we aim to provide an education that fosters not only knowledge, but also places importance on understanding humanity, while staying true to our college precepts: Honesty, Advancement, and Collaboration. To this end, students study in mixed-classes in the first grade of the Regular Course with no segregation between courses.

Likewise, as part of an education that stresses the importance of understanding humanity, we believe that extracurricular activities are an essential part of college life. Students are encouraged to take part in activities such as Robot Contest and Programming Contest, as well as physical and cultural activities. The clubs and circles at Hachinohe Kosen are popular and very dynamic. Additionally, we put a great deal of effort in dormitory life guidance, especially in lower grades, with an all-boarder system for the first and second-grade students.

The dormitory system has had a positive effect on forming the identities of our students and is a suitable environment for providing moral education helping nurture desirable character traits in our students as future members of society. Dormitory students gain an extra two and a half hours' study time each day and the lower grade students receive guidance from the dormitory leader and room leader students.

We also provide support for our students through various systems, such as the homeroom teacher system, the Mentor/Mentee system, where lower grade students can receive help from their seniors with their studies, and the Counselling Room, where any concerns or psychological issues students might have can be addressed.

100% employment rate since our foundation and a high percentage of students pursuing higher studies.

Our college can be characterized by its "mountain chainlike" education and we consider learning through practical, hands-on activities an important pillar of an education which fosters skills based on engineering theory. Consequently, we place strong emphasis on practical learning and experiments, and since our foundation we have valued an education that fosters creativity.

Since our foundation, our graduates have entered industry with a mastery of practical technology and we are proud to have been able to maintain a 100% employment rate.

Furthermore, the number of students wishing to pursue further studies has increased since the opening of our Advanced Course and around 40% of our students currently pursue their studies either in our Advanced Course or by transferring to university. And since 2005, we have been able to demonstrate the high quality of our college education to society as a result of receiving accreditation from the Japan Accreditation Board for Engineering Education (JABEE).

Our college continually strives to foster creative engineers who are able to independently discover, consider, and solve problems, with a global vision. We do this by providing an education that seeks to balance tradition while responding to the ever-changing needs of society and industry.

2. Our college educational philosophy and mission, our objectives, and the kind of engineer we aim to produce:

(1) Our educational philosophy

The educational philosophy of our college is that engineers should be educated to master highly specialized technology and science based on a genuine understanding of humanity, to obey the rules while being fully aware of personal liberty and responsibility, and to contribute positively to human welfare and the progress of society.

(2) Our mission

The mission of our college is to promote the education of engineers proficient in manufacturing and system making, while also valuing autonomous human resources fostering and staying true to our college precepts: Honesty, Advancement, and Collaboration. We seek to contribute not only to northern Tohoku but to the development of all Japan through the continued improvement of our education and research activities as an engineering higher education institution working closely with localities.

(3) Our objectives

Our college has the following objectives for each department and course based on our educational philosophy and our mission.

(4) Ideal engineers we aim to foster

Our college aims to foster creative engineers with extensive manufacturing practice, a mastery of the fundamental aspects in their field of expertise based on experiments, measurement technology, mathematical method and information processing technology, and with a multi-angled, wide vision.

The model engineer we aim for in the Associate Degree Course is someone with both technology and skills. Someone involved in all practical steps, from planning to designing and manufacturing. Someone able to identify a problem independently and explore it until its solution.

In the Advanced Course, we aim to foster engineers that possess both skills and high technology based on theory, are not limited to practical steps, from planning to designing and manufacturing, but can also achieve creative technology development and practical creative work, are not limited to problem solving, but can also identify problems and provide solutions.

3. Fundamental policies and objectives of our educational and research activities

(1) Our fundamental policy in our educational and research activities

Our college aims to provide and develop an education as required by society at each stage of our Associate Degree Course and Advanced Course through our wedge-shape common education and specialized education.

In the common education part, we aim to complete the second half of medium level education and to pursue higher education and through effective guidance we cultivate the will and the ability to learn continuously a vast knowledge, as well as learning the fundamental knowledge necessary in society.

In the specialized education, we aim to foster practical engineers possessing fundamental knowledge of their field of expertise based on experiments, measurement technology, mathematical method and information processing technology, and possessing a multi-angled, wide vision.

Furthermore, in order to promote the development of educational and research activities as an engineering higher education institution in close contact with localities, we have objectives to provide the following educational services to students other that those belonging to our college.

1. 1.To provide opportunities for students other than those belonging to our college to attend open lectures and to set guidelines for the acceptance of researchers and auditing students.
2. 2.To work towards providing educational services in the local area. For example, by holding training for local junior high school science teachers and by giving classes at elementary and junior high schools.
3. 3.To work in increasing contact with the local community by publishing academic research findings and by offering opportunities for local citizens to experience the fun of manufacturing.
4. 4. To provide opportunities for students from outside our college to learn at our college by opening facilities such as the library and the gymnasium.
5. 5.To contribute to the local community by having members on various public committees in the local area.
6. 6. To pursue research as an engineering higher education institution in close contact with local communities able to contribute to local industry.
7. 7. To reflect the results of industry-academia-government collaborative research in our specialized education.

(2) The Aims of Learning and Education

In order to achieve our goals and to foster ideal engineers, we work to attain the following learning objectives in our educational activities, centered around the classes.

HOME