The Heller School for Social Policy and Management and the Graduate School of International Development (GSID) at Nagoya University in Nagoya, Japan recently announced the launch of their new academic exchange program. The overarching goal of the program is to provide novel research opportunities for the participating students, faculty and staff. Furthermore, the program will create joint symposia and events that both programs can participate in. With the generous funding from the Toshizo Watanabe Fund, high-achieving students from Japan are encouraged to study at Brandeis in a program of their choice with financial support. This partnership will initiate in the 2024-2025 academic year.
The guiding pillars and mission of the Heller School for Social Policy and Management are to nurture instruction and scholarship towards finding “sustainable solutions to social inequities and [a commitment] to careers that advance social justice,” according to the Heller School homepage. The program has seven graduate degree programs and nine research institutes. The degrees that Heller offers are Master of Public Policy, Social Impact MBA, Master of Science in Global Health Policy and Management, Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution and Coexistence, Master of Arts in Sustainable International Development, PhD in Social Policy, Executive MBA for Physicians as well as Dual and Joint Master’s degrees. The Heller School has been awarded as one of the best graduate programs for social policy and health policy and management by the U.S. News Reports.
The Nagoya University Graduate School for International Development cited three main objectives for their students on their website. The first goal that the program hopes to impart on students is the ability to conduct empirical research utilizing the methods of social sciences in order to arrive at novel conclusions that are informative for the international community, governments and civil society. The second goal is to train people who are committed to community development and cooperation and have a deep understanding of the realities of different social groups, both locally and globally. The third goal is to broaden an individual’s network to include global collaborations that can jointly achieve innovative solutions towards social and environmental problems.
As described on the Nagoya University website, “In order to find solutions to contemporary problems, technical approaches are often not enough. We need to understand the existing policy frameworks and apply innovative thinking based on social science perspectives. GSID thus attempts to cultivate courageous intellectuals capable of finding such solutions by promoting policy-oriented, interdisciplinary research and teaching in cooperation with a network of academic and research institutions and implementing agencies.”
In a recent article from the Heller School News page, Associate Dean of the Heller School for Social Policy and Management Ravi Lakshmikanthan shared “The mission of Nagoya GSID is well aligned with the goals and aspirations of Heller … We are excited to collaborate and look forward to the many opportunities that will arise from this partnership.”
