Curriculum

The Graduate School of System Design and Management (Keio SDM) offers a unique curriculum unavailable at other graduate schools based on systems engineering with a focus on hands-on problem solving and educational excellence. Specifically, our two-year master course trains students to acquire a wide perspective by providing courses in such areas as technological knowledge, human skills, and international communication.
To meet the aims of the Global 30 program, Keio SDM provides a wide range　of subjects in English so that students can earn a degree without　Japanese language ability. Core subjects are offered both in Japanese and　English. Most subjects in English do not overlap with　subjects in Japanese. Students will therefore be able to make the most of　opportunities that SDM provides if they can understand both Japanese and　English.

Master's

Core subjects (Required subjects)

Students register for four subjects that help them to master the basics of the design and management of large, complex systems: "Introduction to System Design and Management", "System Architecting and Integration", "System Verification and Validation", and "Project Management".

Major subjects (Technology/Social skills) (Recommended/Elective subjects)

Keio SDM offers a wide range of subjects in both technical and social skills areas according to the student's desires and interests (approximately 30 subjects in Japanese and 13 subjects in English). For individual subjects see Classes.
Keio SDM strongly recommends that students take "Communications" to improve their ability to communicate and "System Design Management (SDM) Special Lectures" to acquire an overview of practical knowledge in system design.

Internship provides opportunities for students to connect their research with work, to increase their vocational awareness, and to determine if they have an aptitude in a particular career. Students may take an internship in a company or a research institution etc during summer vacation. Keio SDM will grant a credit according to the internship period after receiving an internship report from students. Please contact Keio SDM for details.

Project Subject: "Design Project" (required subject)

This is a full-year subject that is taught in coordination with universities overseas (class runs from May to November). International lecturers visit Keio SDM for a total of 10 days during the year in five sessions of two full days for lectures, group discussions, and group presentations. In between lectures, groups are busy working on their selected topics. Themes are broad, such as "designing sustainable communities" and "designing safe, symbiotic systems." Each group designs technical or social systems. This class provides an opportunity to put into practice the foundations of Keio SDM that were learned in core subjects, and, in the process, exercise their new teamwork skills, leadership skills, and communication skills.

For details, see the Design Project page.

Special Research Subject: "Research on System Design and Management" (Master's Thesis Advisory) (required subject)

Unlike the ordinary science and technology graduate program, research in the Keio SDM Master's course is oriented toward design project research. It is strongly recommended that individual research follows the same pattern as in the "Design Project" project work; the actual project research should be performed in groups. Groups may take many different forms; they can be groups of students, mixed groups of faculty and students or joint research groups with companies or other universities. However, the writing of the master's thesis must be done alone by the student. The "Research on System Design and Management" subject corresponds to the master's thesis. In this subject, students write up their portion of the group's design project research for presentation to and review by the Master's Thesis Examination Committee. It is possible to be advised by multiple members of the faculty.

Optional/Self-Directed Subjects

Students may take classes offered by other Graduate Schools, departments, and institutes at Keio University when recognized by their advisor to be worthwhile for their research. These classes are treated as Optional/self-directed subjects (credits not included toward graduation).

Doctoral

Doctoral course research

Degrees are awarded to students who conduct original research, write a doctoral dissertation, and pass a final examination. The minimal requirement for the granting of a doctoral degree is the acceptance of several peer-reviewed papers. (Contact the Keio SDM faculty for details.)

Class registration

"Research on System Design and Management" (2 credits) is available for the doctoral course. This subject represents credits for doctoral dissertation guidance.
It is also strongly recommended that students complete master's level core subjects and the "Design Project" project work so that they have a solid background in system design and management studies.