Requirements for Completing Master's Program

* The following is the information for students who have been admitted in the 2018 academic year or after (2018 Graduate School Rules and Regulations).
Persons admitted in the 2017 academic year or before (2001 Graduate School Rules and Regulations) should inquire with the Academic Affairs Office individually.

In order to complete the master's program, students may choose from the following two options: (1) Acquiring credits for "MASTER THESIS 1" and "MASTER THESIS 2," or (2) acquiring credits for "MASTER PROJECT 1" and "MASTER PROJECT 2" (Non-Thesis Track). Satisfying the requirements described in either (1) or (2) below will lead to the completion of the master's program and the acquisition of a master's degree.

1. Acquiring credits for "MASTER THESIS 1" and "MASTER THESIS 2"
   
   
   • Complete 4 or more semesters at the Graduate School of Media and Governance excluding any period of temporary leave of absence. This does not apply to students who are recognized as having satisfied the requirements for early completion of the master's program.
   • Acquire a total of 30 credits or more (including 2 credits from "MASTER THESIS 1" and "MASTER THESIS 2").
     * Please make sure to check [Important Notes Regarding the Thirty Credits Required to Complete the Master's Program]
   • Acquire credits for "MASTER THESIS 1" (Pass the Mid-term Presentation).
   • Acquire credits for "MASTER THESIS 2" (Pass the Master's Degree Final Presentation and the evaluation of the master's thesis).


2. Acquiring credits for "MASTER PROJECT 1" and "MASTER PROJECT 2" (Non-Thesis Track)
   
   Before deciding to take this option, students should carefully discuss the matter with their Main Research Advisor and be sure to register for the Non-Thesis Track when submitting the title of the master's thesis.
   
   
   • Complete 4 or more semesters at the Graduate School of Media and Governance excluding any period of temporary leave of absence. This does not apply to students who are recognized as having satisfied the requirements for early completion of the master's program.
   • Acquire a total of 30 credits or more (including 2 credits from "MASTER PROJECT 1" and "MASTER PROJECT 2").
     * Please make sure to check [Important Notes Regarding the Thirty Credits Required to Complete the Master's Program].
   • Meet the GPA requirement.
   • Acquire credits for "MASTER PROJECT 1" (Pass the Mid-term Presentation).
   • Acquire credits for "MASTER PROJECT 2" (Pass the Master's Degree Final Presentation and the evaluation of the activities and results report of the Project Courses).

[Important Notes Regarding the Thirty Credits Required to Complete the Master's Program]

・Courses earned from the field [Optional Subjects ("Jiyu Kamoku")] may not be included in the credits required for completing the master's program.
・Up to a total of 16 credits obtained from [Project Courses] and [Master Research Courses ("MASTER SEMINAR")] may be included in the credits required for completing the master's program. For these fields, courses that exceed the limit of 16 credits cannot be registered.
・Up to a total of 10 credits obtained as transferable credits earned before entering the master's program, credits earned from other graduate programs at Keio University, or credits earned at and transferred from other universities after enrolling in the Graduate School of Media and Governance (including from universities overseas) may be included in the credits required for completing the master's program.

[Transferable Credits Earned before Entering the Master's Program]

Undergraduate students in the Faculty of Policy Management or Faculty of Environment and Information Studies as well as non-degree students (for credit) or short-term international students at the Graduate School of Media and Governance who have completed the "Program Courses (excluding courses held in parallel with the undergraduate faculties)" offered by the Graduate School of Media and Governance with grading criteria "S," "A," or "B" may apply for a transfer of their credits after entering the master's program. A maximum of 8 transferred credits may be certified as credits required for completing the master's program.
Credits earned in or before the 2016 academic year will be graded as "G (accredited)", while those earned in or after the 2017 academic year will be graded as S, A, or B. Students cannot include those credits that are counted as credits required to graduate from the undergraduate program as transferable credits earned before entering the master's program.
Students in the Program for Leading Graduate Schools (All-round type) or students in the Bachelor's-Master's Four-Year Integrated Education Program should inquire with the Academic Affairs Office about transferable credits earned before entering the master's program.

[Who should apply] Student him/herself
[How to apply] Apply via Google Form (*Please check the "For freshmen enrolled in April 2021" website for its URL.)
[Application deadline]
Students enrolling in April 2021: May 14 2021
Students enrolling in September 2021: October 28 2021

[Requirements for Early Completion of the Master's Program]

Under Article 109 of the Keio University Graduate Rules and Regulations, students who have fulfilled all requirements for degree completion other than the period of enrollment and are recognized by the Graduate School Committee as having made outstanding research achievements may be awarded a master's degree without having being enrolled for 4 or more semesters.

[Requirements]
Students meet the GPA requirement and have accomplished work equivalent to the following three examples of academic achievements:
1) Completed one original paper that has been published, is awaiting publication, or has been accepted for publication in an academic journal after referees' review, as the only, or primary, author, or
2) Published an academic book, or
3) Become a high-ranked award winner in a well-recognized competition.

[Who should apply] Main Research Advisor (chief examiner)
[How to apply] E-mail the required document to the Academic Affairs Office (g-staff@sfc.keio.ac.jp).
[Required document] Reason for Early Completion of the Master's Program Form

[Application deadline (if completing the program in the 3rd semester)]
Students enrolling in April 2021 (expecting to complete the master's program in September 2022): Wednesday, June 30, 2021
Students enrolling in September 2021 (expecting to complete the master's program in March 2023): Thursday, January 20, 2022
* Students planning to complete the program in 2 semesters (1 year) must inform the Academic Affairs Office by the following deadlines: Wednesday, April 7, 2021 (for students admitted in the Spring Semester), or Thursday, September 30, 2021 (for students admitted in the Fall Semester). If students fail to inform the office before these deadlines, they will not be able to complete the program in 2 semesters.

[Important notes]
Students must inform their master's thesis reviewer and Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination) Review Committee of their candidacy for early completion of the master's program beforehand. The Graduate School Committee will base its decision on the academic record, outcomes of the Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination), and the Main Research Advisor's assessment of each student concerning the possibility of early completion.

[GPA Requirement]

The GPA is calculated from grades earned from courses at Keio University, excluding grades earned from Project Courses, "MASTER THESIS" courses, Master Research Courses, Optional Subjects, and grades of approved transferable credits earned before entering the master's program. The GPA is calculated based on the following scale: S=4.0, A=3.0, B=2.0, C=1.0, D=0.0. The requirement is to maintain a GPA of 2.5 or above (GPA shall be calculated to 2 decimal places and rounded down to one decimal place).

AY2021 Schedule for Master's Degree Evaluation

Students who have been admitted in the 2018 academic year or after (2018 Graduate School Rules and Regulations)

Students admitted in the 2017 academic year or before (2001 Graduate School Rules and Regulations)

Information Regarding Completing the Application for the Master's Thesis Title and Structure of Research Guidance

• Students must consult with their Main Research Advisor about the title of their master's thesis and structure of research guidance in the semester prior to taking "MASTER THESIS 1" and complete an application.
• The Main Research Advisor must be a Graduate School Committee member in charge of a "MASTER SEMINAR". Students should ask the Main Research Advisor to recommend two Co-Research Advisors and receive their consent to assume the role. Students must submit the application after obtaining approval from the Main Research Advisor. (These three persons evaluate the master's thesis). The Co-Research Advisors must be Graduate School Committee members or faculty members in charge of a "Project Course" as a leader or a member. However, one of the Co-Research Advisors may be someone who does not fall into these categories (External Co-Research Advisor).
• After the application is made, the Academic Affairs Office will confirm with the Main Research Advisor whether or not he/she approves the application. Please be aware that the application will not be accepted in case the Main Research Advisor does not grant approval.
• If the structure of research guidance (Main Research Advisor or Co-Research Advisors) is to change after submitting the title of the master's thesis, please contact the Academic Affairs Office (g-staff@sfc.keio.ac.jp). In principle, the guidance structure may not be changed after the Mid-term Presentation.
• If the master's thesis will be written in Japanese, be sure to include its English title as well.
• The method of submitting the master's thesis title will be announced on the keio.jp portal.

Mid-term Presentation

The Mid-term Presentation is to be completed by students taking "MASTER THESIS 1" or "MASTER PROJECT 1" and assesses students' progress on their way to the Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination). Students make a presentation to and receive advice from both faculty members engaged in the same research field as the students and those active in and differing fields.
The Mid-term Presentation is planned to be held in the form of an online presentation. Details such as how the presentation is to be conducted will be announced on the keio.jp portal.
Please check the results of the Mid-term presentation (pass/fail of "MASTER THESIS 1" or "MASTER PROJECT 1") on "Viewing grade reports online" after the first day the academic transcript becomes available.

Information Regarding the Preparation and Submission of the Master's Thesis

• When preparing the master's thesis, please refer to the following materials:
  
  
  • "Instructions on How to Prepare the Master's Thesis." (* will be soon posted)
  • Master's Thesis Title Page Format
  • Master's Thesis Abstract (English) Format
• Students who have design drawings, artwork, or computer programming software as supplementary materials must consult with the Academic Affairs Office before submitting them. Some artwork, such as models, are not accepted. Students must consult with their Main Research Advisor if they are submitting anything that cannot be converted into PDF files, such as photographs.
• Those taking the Non-Thesis Track must submit an activities and results report of the Project Courses.
• The title and contents of the master's thesis may be revised up to the date the "Master's Thesis (for Review)" is submitted. Please submit the "Master's Thesis (for Master's Degree Final Presentation)" and amend it to reflect the matters pointed out during the Master's Degree Final Presentation. However, please note that no revisions of any kind, including lexical corrections, will be allowed after submitting the "Master's Thesis (for Review)." (This is not the case if revisions are made to the thesis according to the comments raised for the purpose of storing it at the Media Center.)
• Deadlines for submitting the "Master's Thesis (for Master's Degree Final Presentation)" and "Master's Thesis (for Review)" are to be strictly observed. Submissions after the deadlines will not be permitted under any circumstances. The "Master's Thesis (for Master's Degree Final Presentation)" must be submitted in order to hold the Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination). The submission method will be announced on the keio.jp portal.
• Information regarding how to submit the "Permission for the Reproduction and Public Release of Master's Thesis" will be provided together with the information on master's thesis submission or Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination).
• When binding the "Master's Thesis (for Review)," the university will make the following revisions without contacting the author. Please note that there may be missing page numbers and other modificiations that may affect other pages when pages are deleted or modified.
  
  
  • Revision to be made when there is a mistake in the degree acquisition year, degree completion option (Thesis Track vs. Non-Thesis Track), or name of university or graduate school
  • Revision to be made when there is an obvious spelling mistake in the Japanese or English title (including the title written in the abstract)
  • Deletion of a page number if there is one on the title page
  • Removal of a blank page if there is one

Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination)

The Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination) assesses the academic achievement of master's students. Students make an oral presentation based on their master's thesis (or the research results for students who chose the Non-Thesis Track). (The Main Research Advisor cannot act as an examiner during the Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination) delivered by his/her students. Students are evaluated by 5 or more examiners, including their Co-Research Advisors.) Students must pass the Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination) in order to successfully complete the master's program.
The Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination) is planned to be held in the form of an online presentation in the 2021 academic year. Details such as how the presentation is to be conducted will be announced on the keio.jp portal.

Announcement of the Completion of the Master's Program

Students are comprehensively evaluated based on the total number of acquired credits, evaluation of the master's thesis, and result of the Master's Degree Final Presentation (Final Examination).
Please check the "Result Column" on "Viewing grade reports online."