AY 2026 Graduate Entrance Ceremony Address

April 1, 2026

Professor Kohei Itoh

President, Keio University

To all new students entering graduate school at Keio University, welcome. My warm wishes go to your family members and to all those who continue to support you.

As we begin, I would first like to read "The Mission of Keio University" as articulated by our founder, Yukichi Fukuzawa. It reads as follows.

"Keio Gijuku is more than a mere place for academic pursuit. Its mission is to be a constant source of honorable character and a paragon of intellect and morals for the entire nation; and for each member to apply this spirit to elucidate the essence of family, society, and nation. They will not only articulate this essence in words, but also demonstrate it in their actions, and by doing so make Keio a leader of society."

While I imagine there are a variety of reasons you each decided to join Keio from among all other options, I believe that this mission I introduced just now is a goal we should all share as members of this community. Each of you will, from this point on, diligently apply yourselves to your studies, and meet lifelong friends, fellow researchers, and steadfast mentors here, fueled by this mission to achieve excellence as sources of honorable character and paragons of intellect so that you may lead society, and the wider world, in the right direction. Every researcher you meet at Keio University is top of their class, so please look forward to the days ahead.

Moving on, I'd like to ask you all: are you familiar with how to make use of the three viewpoints called the "worm's-eye view," the "bird's-eye view," and the "fish's-eye view"? I first came across this way of thinking in the book Keizai wo Miru Mittsu no Me ("The Three Eyes for Viewing Economics") by Motoshige Itoh. For my speech today, I would like to share my own interpretation of these three perspectives for all of you who will be beginning your research and professional degree studies at Keio's graduate schools.

Let's start with the worm's-eye view. This is a perspective that allows you to dig deeply into your area of specialization. As scholars and specialists, you will seek to refine your expertise to the highest level and pursue any related academic fields in great depth. By tirelessly delving into the papers and presentations of other experts in your field, both from within Japan and around the world, you will further strengthen your own research and learning. That is the worm's-eye view. There may be times when you find yourself locked in a cycle of trial and error, not finding the progress you had hoped to achieve. You may even start panicking when you see someone else publishing research that you thought was your own original idea. However, you chose to pursue graduate study precisely because you love your research. Make use of your worm's eye to concentrate on the work you love. Embrace your field without hesitation, forgetting about time, forgetting even to sleep and eat. Immerse yourself completely in your studies. The worm's eye cultivates the capabilities required of a true specialist.

The second perspective is the bird's-eye view. This is the perspective that allows you to look at the whole picture from a high vantage point and to place your own research within the broader framework of academia. Keio University is currently leading an initiative titled "Fostering Doctoral Human Resources to Create the Common Sense of the Future," which is part of the Japan Science and Technology Agency's Support for Pioneering Research Initiated by the Next Generation (SPRING) program. This initiative aims to nurture doctoral students who not only demonstrate strong research capabilities, but also possess deep curiosity and understanding toward the activities of people and society. It seeks to have those students fully utilize their ability to both create new value and identify the problems that need to be solved so that they can forge the common sense of the future. In other words, through the SPRING program, Keio aims to nurture doctors equipped with the ability to properly transform the shared understandings of people evolving alongside the development of science, technology, and society. To achieve this goal, all fourteen graduate schools at Keio have connected with one another to work side-by-side to generate new integrative knowledge through value creation, new technological innovation, and the development of a new form of society. By offering interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary opportunities for learning such as through courses, seminars, and symposia, we aim to enable graduate students to engage actively at the highest international level. To support this effort, we provide financial assistance for living expenses and research costs so that doctoral students, the main focus of this initiative, can pursue their work freely and with great vigor. While this financial support initiative is limited to doctoral students, the connections among these fourteen graduate schools also provide great benefits to students in master's programs. Because Keio University encompasses the social sciences, the humanities, science and technology, and medicine and healthcare, we are able to create a platform that allows scholars to view academic disciplines from a holistic standpoint. I encourage you to make full use of your bird's-eye perspective and position your own research within the broader development of scholarship to propose meaningful and creative research topics.

Now, to develop both your worm's eye, which allows you to explore your specialization in depth, and your bird's eye, which enables you to connect your field with others from a broader perspective, one tool you should make full use of is AI. Keio University is currently working toward becoming the world's top AI-native university within the next three years. We will continue to expand the platforms that will allow graduate students to make use of our most advanced AI tools, so please look forward to seeing more future developments there. Another source of pride at Keio is the rich offerings from the Media Centers (libraries) on our campuses. Even as the cost of academic journals and books, including international electronic journals, continue to rise, Keio has maintained an exceptionally strong collection of specialized books and journals for graduate students, especially when compared with many other Japanese universities. Please do not take our Media Centers for granted, and make full use of all the resources we have to offer.

The third and last perspective that I want to tell you about is the fish's-eye view. This is the ability to perceive the flow of change, something that you cannot accomplish with AI alone. Unlike the snapshots provided by the worm's eye or the bird's eye, which are static images, this perspective allows you to see dynamic movement. It is the perspective that can shape the future. Through interactions with your friends and the faculty members you meet in your seminars, laboratories, classrooms, and academic conferences, through the encounters you have during your travels and your time at research destinations that introduce you to new ideas and activities, you will learn to perceive the broader currents of society and the changes taking place in the global environment where human life unfolds. Because a fundamental element of society is the connection between different people, and because the dynamism of those connections drives social change, you must cultivate the ability to read these flows through meaningful relationships with others. This is the perspective needed to tell stories that resonate with people's hearts. It is the perspective of a leader. Please engage with fellow researchers around the world and participate in efforts to build a better world.

In closing, I hope that during your time at Keio you will refine your advanced expertise—your worm's eye—develop a broad intellectual perspective and the ability to see the bigger picture—your bird's eye—and cultivate the capacity to read the flow of society at a global level—your fish's eye. I encourage you to make full use of AI technology and our Media Centers. By pursuing the universal curiosity that drives scholarship, it is my hope that you will transcend the concept of national borders, connect with the world, and work hand in hand with people everywhere to advance the development of society as a whole.

Congratulations to you all!