Because of our increasingly aging society, the role of the nursing university in the areas of health and welfare has become a matter of importance for everyone concerned. From the early 1990's, a number of baccalaureate nursing programs have been established in Japan to ensure that the future health care needs of the nation would be met. Oita University of Nursing and Health Sciences was established as one of these institutions in April 1998 by the government of Oita Prefecture. The task of the university is to prepare talented students to be professional nursing practitioners and to advance nursing and health science through creative and relevant research and involvement in social activities.

Our faculty is now putting all of its strength into education and research in order to make our university a center of excellence in nursing. As part of that effort, we established a Master's degree program in Nursing Science in April 2002 and a Doctoral degree program in Nursing Science in April 2004. In addition, we want to emphasize collaborative research and promote international cooperation in the field of nursing. We are also expecting that all of our students will become valuable professionals who can cherish and care for people with varied kinds of needs.

Our university is located on the top of a hill with a good view of the surrounding beautiful mountains. There are also several famous hot springs close to our university. The great natural beauty of the area and the hot springs serve to heal our hearts and minds as well as our physical ailments.

We wish you a happy and meaningful stay at our university.

Tomoko Kusama, PhD, RN, PHN
President and Chairperson of the Board of Directors