Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology

What is OIST?

The Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) is an interdisciplinary graduate school offering a 5-year PhD program in Science. It was founded by the Japanese government to contribute to science and technology worldwide, attract leading researchers from Japan and around the world to conduct high-quality research, advance the development of a world-class research hub, and nucleate a knowledge cluster that will catalyze technology transfer and industrial innovation in Okinawa.

What makes OIST unique?

• Governance structure unique to Japan and modeled on international best practices
• Cross-disciplinary approach to education and research
• International and diverse faculty, administration, and student community, with English as the common language
• High-trust funding for education and research
• Faculty independence and freedom of research
• Commitment to economic development of Okinawa

Governance

The university’s unique governance structure is designed to allow OIST to innovate in governance as well as in science and technology. Go to Leadership and Governance for details about the university’s leaders and the structure of the organization.

Cross-disciplinary

There are no departments, and courses are not restricted to a single discipline. To describe research topics within OIST, faculty-defined research specialties are used.

International and diverse English-language community

Over half of the faculty and students are recruited from outside Japan, and education and research are conducted entirely in English. All employees and students are required to be able to use English, but many take voluntary Japanese classes offered for free by the university. OIST is actively working to increase the diversity of the faculty, students, and staff.