Sophia University’s Research Promotion System

Initiatives for Improving the Research Promotion System

Initiatives for Improving the Research Promotion System Sophia University hosts 9 faculties and 10 graduate schools on one campus. In April 2005, Sophia University established the Sophia Research Organization (SRO) to promote interdisciplinary and organized research activities that make full use of the unique characteristics of the University. At the same time, the Center for Research Promotion & Support (then known as the Research Support Center) was established to promote the University’s research activities comprehensively and to promote cooperation between industry, government, and academia.

In 2005, an Intellectual Property Rights Committee was established to facilitate industry-government-academia collaboration and to review inventions and intellectual property rights at the University. Furthermore, to adequately protect and utilize intellectual property rights, we have concluded an advisory contract with a patent attorney and added a Coordinator for liaison with the industry sector to our staff. In addition, a “Sophia University Research Outcome Report” has been made publicly available since FY2012 as an introduction to the latest research results at the university. The results are quickly and effectively disseminated to society at large. In addition, the International Collaboration URA was added in FY2021 and is engaged in research activities on a global scale. The Sophia Science & Technology Liaison Office (SLO), which matches researchers from the Faculty of Science and Technology with industry and government agencies, has been established within the Sophia Sci-tech, an affiliated organization, and has been actively developing its activities.

In the future, we will further develop industry-government-academia collaboration to support technology transfer, licensing, etc., establish an incubator to promote commercialization of the University’s research seeds and entrepreneurship, and also create new social value and foster outstanding next-generation researchers.

Research Support System

Sophia University is committed to the active creation and dissemination of research results both within and outside the University. In addition, Sophia University is also committed to fostering imaginative and young researchers and supporting the activities of female researchers to nurture human resources who will conduct original and fair research. To achieve these goals, we have established the following support systems.

Major Support Systems

Special Grant for Academic Research

The purpose of this research grant program is to enhance the University’s presence as a research university by allocating research funds in a focused manner to research that is advanced, unique, and international in character, as well as interdisciplinary and systematic research that takes advantage of the University’s unique characteristics as a comprehensive university.

Incentive Fund for Dissemination

This is an incentive grant to cover the costs of disseminating the research results by individuals, in order to enhance the presence of the University’s research activities as well as those of individual researchers by disseminating the results of their research both domestically and internationally. The expenses for the publication of research results, publication of articles in journals, and presentations at academic conferences are covered by this program.

Research Support Programs

These are programs to nurture young researchers by supporting graduate school students from various dimensions, such as:

  1. Support Program for Attendance and Presentations at Academic Meetings
  2. Support Program for the Publication of Research Outcomes in Foreign Languages
  3. Support Program for Applicants of JSPS Research Fellowships for Young Scientists
Research Assistant System

Life events such as childbirth, childcare, and nursing care directly lead to interruptions in research and difficulties in securing research time, which often have a negative impact on the accumulation of research results. As one of the measures to improve this situation, Sophia University has established a system to assign “research assistants” to researchers who meet the requirements so that they can continue their career development and participate in fair competition without having to give up their research due to childbirth, childcare, or nursing care. The Research Supporters are provided with opportunities to interact with familiar role models and receive OJT (On-the-Job Training) as well as educational programs.

Sophia Symposium

This program is designed to support the planning of international symposiums to promote interdisciplinary and international education and research activities at Sophia University. Symposiums are hosted by Sophia University or an educational or research department of Sophia University and could be co-hosted with an organization or group outside of the University. The symposium must be open to the public and must include speakers from two or more countries, including Japan (to prevent the spread of Covid-19, online symposiums are also welcome).

Research Institute

Sophia Research Organization

The Sophia Research Organization was established in April 2005 to promote organized research activities strategically and comprehensively at Sophia University, conduct distinctive academic research systematically and effectively, foster human resources, and disseminate research results both within and outside the University.

The Research Organization consists of two research divisions (Research Institutes Division and Project Research Division). Under each research division, there are research units (research groups), which are the main bodies of research activities. 15 research units with a total of about 450 researchers (including emeritus and other external personnel) belong to the Research Organization and the results of organized research activities (joint research) are used not only to return the results of individual researchers’ research to the University, but also to contribute to the improvement of Sophia University’s overall level of research and education as well as to society as a whole.

Research Promotion & Support Organization

Research Promotion & Support

The purpose of this program is to support the research activities of Sophia University’s faculty and young researchers including graduate students, and to publicize and return the results of their research to society at large, while aiming to strengthen Sophia University’s research capabilities and promote organized research, and respect the internationality and diversity of research as well as the importance of budding research. The Center also supports research activities to improve the system for promoting cooperation between industry, government, and academia.

SLO

The Sophia Science & Technology Liaison Office (SLO) in the Faculty of Science and Technology is an organization established in November 2001, within the Sophia University Science and Technology Promotion Council (Sophia Sci-Tech). The SLO was established to further stimulate education and research activities in the Faculty of Science and Technology and Graduate School of Science and Technology, as well as for the all-around enhancement of contributions to society.

The SLO does not simply transfer research results to society; rather, it serves as a vehicle to link the needs of society with research within the University through an organizational structure that allows the swift bringing together of the intellectual resources of the faculty.

Laws and Regulations Concerning Research Activities and Use of Research Funds

Sophia University

For Others, With Others