The University of Tsukuba was originally Tokyo University of Education, Normal School, which was founded by the Meiji government in 1872 as the first institution of higher education in Japan. In 1973, the University moved from Tokyo to Tsukuba city and it was renamed as University of Tsukuba and started with a new educational system as a leading research university focusing on cutting-edge research and education.
The University of Tsukuba is a leading Research University in Japan. Three faculty members received the Nobel prize; Dr. Sin-Itiro Tomonaga in 1965 in physics, Dr. Dr. Leo Esaki in 1973 in physics and Dr. Hideki Shirakawa in 2000 in Chemistry. Currently, the number of students of the University of Tsukuba (including both undergraduate students and graduate students) is about 15500 and the number of faculty members is about 5300. The University of Tsukuba is located in Tsukuba city. Tsukuba city is a leading science-oriented city near Tokyo. It is within less than one hour from the downtown of Tokyo by commuting train. Currently, 30 leading research institutions including the University of Tsukuba are located in Tsukuba city. Among 300 thousand residents of Tsukuba city, 10 percent of residents are researchers and have Ph.D. Due to the nature of research leading city, Tsukuba city is friendly to international scholars and students since here are many international researchers and students in Tsukuba city.
