Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University

What Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University does

Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University is a private university located in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture, Japan, operated by the Gifu Shotoku Gakuen school corporation, which was founded in 1962 and opened the university in 1972. The institution serves approximately 844 students expected to graduate in 2025 across five faculties — Education, Humanities, Nursing, Economics & Information, and Foreign Languages — and two graduate schools. It is grounded in Buddhist educational principles attributed to Prince Shotoku and operates affiliated K-12 institutions that form a feeder pipeline for university recruitment.

The university's core offerings center on undergraduate education, with distinctive programs in teacher training, nursing, and a new Faculty of Humanities launched in April 2025 that frames its curriculum around value creation in the AI era. A DX Promotion Center established in April 2022 coordinates a Mathematics, Data Science and AI Education Program across faculties. The university holds university standards compliance certification (大学基準協会適合) granted in 2023 and employs between 501 and 1,000 staff.

Revenue is generated primarily through tuition and entrance fees from enrolled students, with no public financial disclosure available. The institution is undergoing structural portfolio rebalancing, including the scheduled closure of its Junior College by March 2026, the suspension of new recruitment for the Faculty of Foreign Languages from April 2025, and planned capacity increases in the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Economics & Information from 2026.

Name

Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University

Legal name

学校法人聖徳学園 (Gakko Hojin Shotoku Gakuen)

Website

https://shotoku.ac.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1962

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University is a private Japanese university in Gifu Prefecture operating five faculties and two graduate schools, serving roughly 844 graduating students with programs in education, nursing, humanities, economics, and foreign languages.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Gifu-shi

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Enrollment Fees: The university generates revenue through tuition fees, enrollment fees, and other academic charges from its students across undergraduate and graduate programs.
2. Entrance Examination Fees: Revenue generated from application and examination fees for prospective students.

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University is a private Japanese university providing undergraduate and graduate education across five faculties (Education, Humanities, Nursing, Economics & Information, and Foreign Languages) and two graduate schools (International Cultural Studies, Economics & Information). The institution also operates affiliated K-12 schools (elementary, middle, kindergarten, high school) and a junior college, with a founding Buddhist educational philosophy emphasizing harmony, tolerance, and altruism.

Product overview

Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University is a comprehensive educational institution offering undergraduate programs across five faculties (Education, Humanities, Nursing, Economics & Information, and Foreign Languages—though Foreign Languages recruitment suspended in 2025), two graduate schools (International Cultural Studies, and Economics & Information), and a closing Junior College. The university operates a network of affiliated K-12 institutions including an elementary school, middle school, and kindergarten. Research and support centers include the DX Promotion Center (数字トランスフォーメーション推進センター) for AI/data science education and regional DX initiatives, the Teacher Education Center for credential support, the Buddhist Culture Research Institute, the Economics & Information Research Institute, and the Information Education Research Center. The institution follows Buddhist principles ('以和為貴', '平等', '寛容', '利他') as its founding spirit, with campuses in Hashima and Gifu cities in Gifu Prefecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Faculty of Education (教育学部) Teacher training program with 10 specialized tracks (専修) covering elementary education, secondary education, and nurturing education, designed to cultivate educators with both teacher competence and human skills through programs like the Crystal Plan.
• Faculty of Humanities (人文学部) Established April 2025, this faculty studies humans and culture to cultivate specialists capable of value creation in the AI era, with 3 majors focusing on digital skills and multicultural coexistence.
• Faculty of Nursing (看護学部) Nursing program cultivating healthcare professionals with empathy, offering qualifications for national nursing exams, public health nurse, and school health teacher certifications.
• Faculty of Economics and Information (経済情報学部) Integrates economics, business, and information studies to develop talent capable of creating unpredictable futures, with industry-government-academia collaborative education.
• Faculty of Foreign Languages (外国語学部) Foreign language program (recruitment suspended April 2025) focused on English-centered communication with international career and English teaching tracks.
• Graduate School of International Cultural Studies (大学院 国際文化研究科) Graduate program for international education and cultural studies, cultivating professionals and researchers for international exchange and cultural understanding.
• Graduate School of Economics and Information (大学院 経済情報研究科) Graduate program developing professionals who can address economic society challenges through knowledge of globalizing information society and economics/information science.
• Junior College (短期大学部) Two-year program (recruitment suspended April 2025, closing March 2026) focused on early childhood education, training childcare professionals with fundamental human skills, thinking, expression, and judgment abilities.
• Digital Transformation Promotion Center (DX推進センター) Promotes DX human resources development, regional contribution through school, welfare, and business DX, and conducts AI/data science projects including the Mathematics, Data Science and AI Education Program.
• Teacher Education Center (教職教育センター) Supports students pursuing teaching credentials through teacher employment exam preparation, practical training coordination, and educational research.
• Affiliated Elementary School (附属小学校) Private elementary school established 1972 as the first in Gifu Prefecture, nurturing balanced development of morality, physical fitness, and intellect based on Buddhist principles.
• Affiliated Middle School (附属中学校) Middle school implementing Japan's first 'Subject Center Method' (教科センター方式) where students move between specialized subject-zone classrooms.
• Affiliated Kindergarten (附属幼稚園) Play-based, child-centered childcare practice kindergarten under Buddhist principles, emphasizing respect for others and collaborative growth.
• Certificate Completion Program (履修証明プログラム) Extension course program for working professionals and educators seeking credentials, certifications, and continuing education.
• International Exchange Programs International student exchange and academic cooperation programs with partner universities in UK (UCL), Canada, China, Korea, New Zealand, USA, and Taiwan, including summer programs with scholarship support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Consistently high teacher employment rates among top in Japan
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UCL (University College London)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 August 2024Summer program partnership allowing students to participate in UCL summer programs with scholarship support.
• Lakehead University (Canada)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneral agreement signed in 1990 for student exchange and academic cooperation.
• Central University for Nationalities (China)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneral agreement signed in 1996 for international exchange programs.
• Dongguk University (Korea)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneral agreement signed in 1999 for academic exchange.
• Dunedin College of Education (New Zealand)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneral agreement signed in 2000 for educational exchange.
• Marshall University (USA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneral agreement signed in 2000 for academic cooperation.
• Dalian University of Foreign Languages (China)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneral agreement signed in 2001 for language and cultural exchange.
• 法鼓文理学院 (Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts, Taiwan)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic exchange partnership with Taiwanese Buddhist educational institution, with documented exchange activities in 2023.
• Multiple Education Boards (教育委員会)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation agreements with multiple prefectural and municipal education boards for teacher training and placement programs.
• Local Governments and Companies (産官学連携)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry-government-academia collaboration for regional development, problem-solving projects with local businesses and municipalities.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Asahi University: Private Japanese university in Gifu Prefecture with dental and education programs; directly competes for the same regional student base in the same geography.
• Meijo University: Private Japanese university based in Nagoya with comparable comprehensive offerings and similar student population size; directly competes for the same Aichi/Gifu regional student pool.
• Tokai Gakuen University: Private university in the Chubu region with similar comprehensive program structure; comparable in scale and mission to serve regional Japanese students.
• Nagoya Gakuin University: Private university in the Aichi region offering similar faculties including economics, foreign languages, and humanities; competes for the same regional student demographic.
• Nagoya University of Commerce & Business (NUCB): Private Japanese university in the Chubu region offering business and economics programs with international focus; comparable in size and target student demographic to Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University.
• Kyoto Sangyo University: Mid-sized private university in the Kansai region with similar comprehensive faculty offerings including economics, humanities, and foreign languages; comparable scale and structure.
• Aichi University: Private university in Aichi Prefecture with broader international and humanities offerings; similar target market and comparable institutional structure.

Broad incumbents

• Ritsumeikan University: Larger established private Japanese university with international partnerships and comprehensive programs; serves as a benchmark for what Gifu Shotoku could scale toward.
• Kyoto Notre Dame University: Faith-affiliated (Catholic) private Japanese university offering similar liberal arts and humanities programs; relevant comparison as another faith-based higher education institution in Japan.

Regional players

• Gifu University: National/public university in the same Gifu Prefecture serving overlapping student demographics; not a direct competitor on price but draws from the same regional applicant pool.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/shotokuu
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/P0SHOTOKU
• Instagraminstagram.com/gifushotokuuniv_official
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gifu-shotoku-gakuen-university

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gifu Shotoku Gakuen University