| 1874 |
|
Kumamoto Teachers College established |
| 1885 |
|
Kumamoto Pharmaceutical College established |
| 1887 |
|
The Fifth High School established |
| 1896 |
|
Kumamoto Medical College established |
| 1906 |
|
Kumamoto Technical College established |
There were five institutions of higher education in Kumamoto during the Meiji Era which eventually united to form Kumamoto University. Among these institutions was The Fifth High School, which was a center for higher learning in western Japan, and provided students with preparatory education to enter the Japanese Imperial Universities. A number of foreign teachers joined the school to offer western culture and knowledge to the students.
These young men, aged from their teens to late twenties, resided in a dormitory, and built a tradition of student community as well as lasting friendships.
1949 Kumamoto University established
Kumamoto University was established under the National School Establishment Law that reformed the preceding Japanese educational system. The new university incorporated the older institutions described above.
As its establishment, The Fifth High School comprised six departments, with an enrollment of approximately 1,100 students.
Discussion of the school’s curriculum began soon after the founding of the school. After the Graduate School of Medicine was established in 1955, other graduate schools were subsequently established within the university.
The establishment of research and education institutions within the university was started early on. In the 1950s, both the Kumamoto University Hospital and the University Library were completed. In addition, a number of research centers that conduct the highest level of scholarly research have been consecutively established over the past 20 years.
2004 Kumamoto University enters the 21st Century
The acceptance of government-sponsored international exchange students started around 1960, but records indicate that several international exchange students studied in the Faculty of Medicine as early as the 1950s. Since 1960s, though, the number of international students has been steadily increasing. There were approximately 50 international students at the university in 1984, and that number increased to over 300 twenty years later in 2004.
Since Kumamoto University becoming a National University Corporation in 2004, the university has been ushering in an era of change. Nevertheless, the university will still continue to strive for further advancements in education, research, and medical care based on the knowledge and experience it has gained since it was first established, in order to contribute to society in the 21st century.
History of the University Hospital
The history of Kumamoto University Hospital goes back to the opening of the Hosokawa Clan Hospital in 1870. After being reorganized and relocated several times, the hospital was moved to its current location in 1901.
In 1949, after the Kumamoto Medical College was absorbed into Kumamoto University, the name of the hospital was changed to Kumamoto University Hospital. It started with a system of eleven medical departments.
In the past several decades, in order to respond the segmentation and advancement of medical services, the hospital established central consultation facilities as well as new medical departments with the aim of doing such things as increasing efficiency, among other improvements.
Currently, the Kumamoto University Hospital has developed into a general hospital with high-tech medical equipment and a comprehensive medical system. However, it is still continuing to make advancements in its aim to become a university hospital that can provide proper medical care in the 21st century.
Introduction
