School of Engineering, University of Tokyo


The School of Engineering at the University of Tokyo comprises the Faculty of Engineering and the Graduate School of Engineering. The former oversees undergraduate education, while the latter is responsible for postgraduate studies. In practice, they share faculty, facilities, and other research and educational resources, and operate as a single entity.
The School of Engineering traces its origins back to the Imperial College of Engineering, which was founded in 1873 to train engineers by recruiting a large number of British scholars and engineers as its faculty. At the time, Japan had just ended its two-century-long self-imposed seclusion, while Western Europe was in the midst of the Industrial Revolution. Thus, there was an urgent need to import advanced engineering knowledge. In March 1886, the college merged with the Department of Industrial Arts of the [Graduate School of Graduate School of Science and Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo|Science and Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo|School of Science] at the University of Tokyo, forming the College of Engineering. The School has been considered the pioneer of modern engineering education and research in Japan.

Organisation

Faculty of Engineering (undergraduate)

The Faculty of Engineering has 16 departments.

Department of Civil Engineering

Department of Architecture

The Department of Architecture traces its origins to the Imperial College of Engineering's the Department of Zoka. In 1877, the British architect Josiah Conder was invited to teach, which established a formal architecture curriculum. After the 1893 introduction of the chair system, three chairs were set up:
  • General Architectural Structures
  • Architectural Design
  • Historical Ornament and Architectural History
In 1898, the name changed from Zoka to the Department of Kenchiku, as it is known today. A chair covering steel and concrete structures was introduced in 1915, followed in 1920 by a chair for the history of East Asian architecture. After the Second World War, a new welding course was introduced, and a chair in architectural materials emerged, making a total of eight chairs. When the Department of Urban Engineering was launched in 1962, several urban planning chairs moved to that new department. In 1968, architectural materials became an official chair, followed by additional chairs in architectural planning in 1970. Today, the department consists of four main divisions : Architectural Engineering, Architectural Planning, Architectural Structures, and Architectural Environmental Engineering.

Department of Urban Engineering

The Department of Urban Engineering was founded in 1962 by merging five chairs of urban planning and three chairs of sanitary engineering.

Department of Mechanical Engineering (Mechanical A) and Department of Mechano-Informatics (Mechanical B)

The Department of Mechanical Engineering was established in 1886, at the same time as the founding of the College of Engineering. In 1960, the Department of Industrial Mechanical Engineering was formed, followed in 1961 by the Department of Naval Architectural Engineering. The latter was reorganised in 1991 as the Department of Mechano-Informatics. In 2009, the Department of Industrial Mechanical Engineering was discontinued, resulting in the current two-department system often referred to as 'the Mechanical Group':
  • Mechanical A
  • Mechanical B

Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics

  • Aerospace Systems Course
  • Aerospace Propulsion Course

Department of Precision Engineering

The Department of Precision Engineering originated in 1887 as the Department of Ordnance. It was renamed the Department of Precision Machining in 1946 and the Department of Precision Engineering in 1947. In 1963, the name changed again to the Department of Precision Mechanical Engineering. It was discontinued in 2000 when it merged with other departments to form the Department of Systems Innovation, then reinstated in 2006 under its current name. Similar to the Department of Systems Innovation, it features project-based modules in its curriculum.

Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (Electronics and Information B)

These two departments are collectively referred to as the 'Electronics and Information Group'. When the College of Engineering was founded in 1886, the Department of Electrical Engineering was also formed. The Department of Electronic Engineering was added in 1958. In April 2008, with the reorganisation of relevant graduate schools, these two undergraduate programmes were merged into the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. The Department of Electronic and Information Engineering was then created in 1991 as a separate entity.

Department of Mathematical Engineering and Information Physics

  • Mathematical Informatics Course
  • Systems Information Engineering Course
These two departments are often referred to together as the.

Department of Materials Engineering

  • Biomaterials Course
  • Environmental and Fundamental Materials Course
  • Information and Nano-Materials Course

Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology

These three departments are jointly described as the 'three Chemistry and Life Science Departments'. Students are allocated to each department separately, though some lectures and experiments are conducted jointly.

Department of Systems Innovation

  • Environment and Energy Systems Course
  • Systems Design & Management Course
  • Perspective, Science-based design and Accountable Implementation Course
The Department of Systems Innovation was established in 2000 through the merger of four departments: Precision Mechanical Engineering, Shipbuilding and Ocean Engineering, Quantum Engineering and Systems Science, and Geosystem Engineering. Teaching is provided by staff from those former departments, but the department’s curriculum is not a simple merger of the four fields; it takes an integrated approach across engineering.

Rankings and reputation

The school is widely regarded as having the best educational and research standards in the country across most of the fields it covers. According to the THE World University Rankings by Subject 2024, the fields fully or partially covered by the School at the University of Tokyo were ranked as follows:
SubjectGlobalNationalOther faculties within the university responsible for the subject
Engineering291
Computer science331Science, [College of College of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo|Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo|Arts and Sciences]
Life sciences301Science, Agriculture, Medicine, Arts and Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences
Physical sciences241Sicence, Arts and Sciences

The QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 provide a more detailed subject breakdown:
SubjectGlobalNationalOther faculties within the university responsible for the subject
Engineering and Technology181
Engineering – Chemical151
Engineering – Civil and Structural211
Computer Science and Information Systems381Science, Arts and Sciences
Engineering – Electrical and Electronic331
Engineering – Petroleum101
Engineering – Mechanical211
Architecture and Built Environment151
Materials Sciences201Science
Earth and Marine Sciences111Science, Agriculture