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1. A Delegation from O.P. Jindal Global University Visits HU

On June 25, 2026, Professor (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar, Founding Vice Chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU), and his delegation paid a courtesy visit to the Kasumi Campus of Hiroshima University (HU) and met with President Mitsuo Ochi. The participants exchanged views on strengthening academic collaboration between the two universities, particularly in the areas of student exchange and other cooperative initiatives.

Following the meeting, a joint session entitled “The Impact of International Law and Global Governance in the Era of Emerging Technologies” was held in a conference room on the Kasumi Campus. Moderated by Associate Professor Dahlia Simangan of The IDEC Institute, the session was attended by approximately 20 HU students and featured lively discussions among the participants.

HU currently maintains 35 university-level international exchange agreements with 22 institutions in India, as well as 17 department-level international exchange agreements with 12 institutions. At present, 41 Indian students are enrolled at HU. This visit is expected to further strengthen academic exchange and collaboration between HU and JGU, as well as with other universities and research institutions in India.

2. “Jeol × Hiroshima University Knotted Room,” the Shared Advanced Electron Microscopy Facility Featuring the First Double-Collector System in the Chugoku-Shikoku Region, Has Opened!

On June 5, WPI-SKCM² held an opening ceremony for the advanced electron microscopy facility, “JEOL × Hiroshima University Knotted Room,” at the Science Knot Building on the Hiroshima University Higashi-Hiroshima Campus.

Central to the new facility is the advanced electron microscope “NEOARM,” capable of atomic-resolution TEM/STEM observation and featuring the first double-collector system in the Chugoku-Shikoku region. The facility is expected to support a wide range of research and analytical needs in fields such as materials science, semiconductors, and nanotechnology.

3. Hiroshima University Ranked Among Japan’s Top 10 National Universities in QS World University Rankings 2027

Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a UK-based higher education evaluation organization, released the QS World University Rankings 2027 on June 18, 2026. In this ranking, Hiroshima University (HU) ranked among the top 10 national universities in Japan.

HU achieved higher scores in several indicators, particularly Employer Reputation, which is based on QS surveys of employers and human resources professionals around the world. As a result, HU maintained its position among the top 10 national universities in Japan for the second consecutive year.

4. U.S. Consul General Richard N. Larsen Visits HU and Delivers a Lecture

On May 29, 2026, a delegation led by Richard N. Larsen, U.S. Consul General in Osaka-Kobe, paid a courtesy visit to Hiroshima University (HU) and met with Executive Vice President (Global Initiatives) Shinji Kaneko. Following the meeting, Consul General Larsen delivered a lecture at the University's Global Learning Center.

It is expected that Consul General Larsen’s visit and lecture will further promote educational and research exchanges and strengthen collaboration between HU and institutions in the United States.

High-impact Research from Top-tier Journals

How Plants Make Copies of Themselves – Key Gene Identified in Model Plant

A Hiroshima-University-led research team has discovered a key gene responsible for the initiation of gemma development, acting as a “master switch” to start asexual reproduction (cloning) in the model plant Marchantia polymorpha (common liverwort).

・Development of weather intervention methods supporting future disaster mitigation

(Published in the Journal of Computational Science on April 10)

・COVID’s lingering shadow faded after Omicron － but not for everyone

(Published in PLOS One on May 8)

・Financial education may need to move beyond knowledge alone in the digital age

(Published in the International Journal of Financial Studies on June 1)

Hiroshima University 3+1 Program – Supporting International Undergraduate Students Through Research Supervision and Facilitating Their Path to Hiroshima University Graduate Schools

“Hiroshima University 3+1 Program” is an initiative that accepts international students who have completed their second or third year at partner universities as Special Auditing Students, providing them with specialized education as well as academic supervision, including guidance on their graduation theses to be submitted to their home universities. Hiroshima University (HU) also encourages students to pursue postgraduate studies at the university upon completion of the program with a structured pathway to facilitate this transition.

On June 26, 2026, the Program Completion Ceremony for “Hiroshima University 3+1 Program” was held. This year, a total of 183 students completed their studies in the program, which included participants from both the “Morito Institute of Global Higher Education 3+1 Program” and “The IDEC Institute 3+1 Program.”

As of June 2026, the program is projected to have produced a total of 1,072 graduates, 318 of whom have gone on to pursue postgraduate studies at HU.

Established in AY2016, the “Morito Institute of Global Higher Education 3+1 Program” was named after Tatsuo Morito, HU's first president. It offers courses and research guidance primarily in Japanese.

Starting in AY2024, HU launched “The IDEC Institute 3+1 Program,” in which courses are conducted primarily in English, to further promote internationalization. The program accepts international students who have completed their third year at partner universities as Special Auditing Students.

Students in “Hiroshima University 3+1 Program” engage in research and write their graduation theses under the supervision of a faculty member at HU. The completed theses are submitted to their home universities, where bachelor's degrees are conferred. Upon successfully completing the program requirements, students are awarded a program completion certificate by HU.

(Tuesday, August 4, 2026) Join Us for the International Seminar “Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in Literacy”

The Institute for Diversity & Inclusion, Hiroshima University will hold the International Seminar “Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in Literacy” on Tuesday, August 4, 2026.

This event explores literacy beyond spoken and written language, as well as the development of reading and writing across diverse languages and writing systems from the perspective of cultural and linguistic diversity. Drawing on recent research, the two lectures offer fresh perspectives on literacy and its development.

The next issue will be sent on August 26.

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