Visit TDU / Open Campus

First, confirm whether the school, department, or academic division you are interested in is listed in the program for the Saitama Hatoyama Campus or the Tokyo Senju Campus. At Saitama Hatoyama, programs are presented by academic division within the School of Science and Engineering, while at Tokyo Senju they are presented by department. Because advance registration information is available for the 2026 academic year, check the latest program and registration requirements for each event date again shortly before your visit. At Saitama Hatoyama, prioritizing academic-division exhibits and consultations, open laboratories, student-led campus tours, and conversation areas will allow you to explore academics and student life in sequence. At Tokyo Senju, combine departmental briefings and exhibits, open laboratories, workshops and facility tours, conversations with students, and admissions information. Because some programs have fixed start times, planning will be easier if you first narrow your interests down to about two fields you want to see. During your visit, do not stop at simply viewing the facilities; ask about opportunities to use them and the applicable safety rules. In laboratories, confirm how assignments are determined, what experiments and projects students are responsible for, and the themes and process of graduation research. Asking students about their commute and how they usually spend their time in classes and laboratories will provide useful information for comparing campuses and fields.

First, organize your interests around three questions: (1) what you want to research, (2) what methods you want to use, and (3) what you want to create. At the School of Science and Engineering on the Saitama Hatoyama Campus, examples include research combining life sciences and AI, electronics and information with medical devices, and architecture and urban environments with disaster preparedness. Students study foundational subjects in their first year and select a primary course and a secondary course within their academic division in their second year. The secondary course may also be selected from another academic division. The Tokyo Senju Campus has schools covering areas such as engineering, robotics and mechatronics, and information and design. Even within the same field of medical support, the approach may differ, such as biological measurement using electronic circuits, assistive devices using mechanical systems, or biological signal analysis using information technology. The School of Engineering provides experiments and practical training in every year of study. At an open campus event, do not decide based only on the name of a research theme. Confirm whether the emphasis is on experimentation, fabrication, or simulation. For Saitama Hatoyama and Tokyo Senju in turn, it will be easier to compare the campuses if you ask about commuting routes and travel times, facilities available for viewing, safety training and conditions for using equipment, when and how laboratory assignments are determined, and specific examples of student projects and graduation research. The examples in the 2027 laboratory guide can provide useful leads, but confirm the latest research topics and their current status on the day of your visit.

During your visit, do not simply look at machinery and measuring instruments. Confirm when undergraduates begin using them and whether they are used in classes, graduation research, or independent projects. Asking about the timing of laboratory assignments, available hours, the presence of faculty members or supervisors, routine inspections, and procedures in the event of equipment failure will make it easier to assess how students actually learn. The Manufacturing Centers at Saitama Hatoyama and Tokyo Senju are facilities where students can perform fabrication and assembly. However, students cannot simply enter and begin using them freely. Safety training is required before students may use the facilities and perform fabrication themselves, advance reservations for equipment take priority, and users must follow staff instructions. At Tokyo Senju, restrictions are also established regarding authorization to use the facilities and use outside regular hours. Ask specifically what students may use independently, what additional training is required for each piece of equipment, and when technical consultation is available. The August 2026 open campus information for Saitama Hatoyama lists exhibits by academic division, open laboratories, and opportunities to experience fabrication and equipment operation. Student laboratory materials for the 2026 academic year published by the Department of Electronic Systems Engineering in the School of Engineering at the Tokyo Senju Campus include examples of experiments in which students assemble and measure circuits and carry out the entire process from design through evaluation themselves. During your visit, confirm whether the demonstration you see uses the same content and equipment as regular classes or graduation research, and which year students operate the equipment and to what extent.

The progression of practical learning differs by campus and by academic division or department. In the School of Science and Engineering at the Saitama Hatoyama Campus, first-year students study foundational subjects such as mathematics, natural sciences, and information science, and take combinations of courses such as physics and chemistry experiments as specified by their academic division. They then move on to specialized exercises and practical training, such as course-specific life science experiments or mechanical engineering experiments, design, and drafting, leading to graduation research in the fourth year. In the School of Engineering at the Tokyo Senju Campus, the curriculum also progresses from first-year experiments and hands-on workshops to specialized experiments in the second and third years and graduation research in the fourth year. However, required and elective courses and the years in which they are offered differ by department. In the Department of Information and Communication Engineering, for example, second- and third-year experiments are followed by an information and communication project and graduation research in the fourth year. The method of assigning students to laboratories is not necessarily uniform. The Signal Processing Laboratory’s provisional assignment information for the 2026 academic year states that, when applications exceed capacity, assignments are determined by GPA ranking and interviews, but this information applies to one laboratory. At an open campus event, ask specifically when students are assigned to their preferred laboratories and how selection is conducted, the requirements for participating in student projects, the years and hours in which students may use experimental facilities, the content of safety instruction, and how graduation research themes are determined. Because systems and courses may change from the 2026 academic year onward, the latest information must be confirmed.

During your visit, confirm not only whether facilities are available but also how students actually use them. Asking students for specific examples, such as “What did you use in your most recent experiment?”, “How much time did you spend on the report?”, and “How does the amount of time you spend in the laboratory vary from week to week?” will make it easier to understand the actual experience. Ask faculty members and staff, “When and how are laboratory assignments determined?”, “What are the conditions for using facilities outside class?”, and “Are reservations, the presence of a supervisor, or safety rules required?” For graduation research, you may also want to ask about the equipment used, when research begins, and how students can participate in student projects. The existence of examples of joint research with companies does not necessarily mean that you will also be able to participate. Confirm eligibility and conditions by asking, “Can undergraduates in the department or academic division I am interested in also participate?”, “In which year do students participate, and what roles do they have?”, and “When and to what extent do students interact with company engineers?” At Saitama Hatoyama, programs providing opportunities to speak directly with faculty members and students are listed. At Tokyo Senju, conversation areas with students, departmental exhibition rooms, and open laboratories are listed.

During your visit, it is important not to make assumptions about safety based only on the appearance or atmosphere of the facilities. Ask about safety training, protective equipment, hours of use, reservations, entry requirements, supervisors, and where to report abnormalities, and record the answers. If no explanation is provided, answers to questions are not specific, or you cannot confirm under whose direction work is performed, do not draw a conclusion; record the matter as unconfirmed. At the Tokyo Senju Manufacturing Center, users must complete safety training. Depending on the equipment used, work clothes and safety shoes may also be required, and advance reservations receive priority for facility use. Entry outside regular hours is restricted, and users are required to follow the safety guide and instructions from operations staff and to report damage or contamination immediately, among other requirements. Checking the same points specifically at each location you visit will make comparison easier. Consider whether the research suits your interests by looking not only at laboratory names but also at graduation research themes. The laboratory guide for 2027 lists a wide range of themes, including AI, materials, life sciences, medicine, and architecture. For research that interests you, ask what it examines and whether it uses experimentation, calculation, design, surveys, or other methods, and note whether it makes you want to learn more. Rather than how much attention a topic receives, whether it raises questions that you want to investigate over time can provide a basis for comparison.