Major in Philosophy and Ethics, Ethics Field

The Ethics field has a long history alongside the Philosophy field. There are only a few graduate schools in Japan that establish Ethics as a specialized field separate from Philosophy. Among them, this field boasts one of the largest staffs and serves as one of the hubs for ethics research in Japan.

The staff in the Ethics field covers modern and contemporary German, French, British, and American thought. Since its inception, the field has maintained a balanced distribution of staff while focusing on these areas. Furthermore, while contemporary ethics is broadly divided into normative ethics, meta-ethics, and applied ethics, this field conducts research and education in meta-ethics and applied ethics as well as normative ethics. Additionally, research and education have been conducted for many years in areas closely related to ethics, such as philosophy of religion and social philosophy. Specific areas of expertise among the staff include Kantian ethics, contemporary French thought, modern British ethical thought, medical ethics, and meta-ethics.

The Ethics field places particular emphasis on small-group education. Typically, about six graduate students are enrolled in the Master's program and about four in the Ph.D. program, pursuing specialized research according to their respective interests. In the Master's program, the goal is to cultivate the foundations of a researcher and write an excellent Master's thesis. In the Ph.D. program, the goal is to enhance one's abilities as a researcher through oral presentations at academic societies and workshops, as well as through paper writing, and to compile research results into a doctoral dissertation. While many graduates pursue careers as researchers, many others utilize the specialized knowledge gained in graduate school to play active roles in society.