Kochi University of Technology (高知工科大学 Kōchi Kōka Daigaku) is a prefectural university in Tosa Yamada, Kami, Kōchi, Japan. After its founding in 1997, Professor Yasuharu Suematsu was its first president. Kochi University of Technology serves 2056 undergraduate students, 224 Master students and 74 Doctoral students (as of May 1, 2013).
Kochi University of Technology (KUT), established in 1997, was originally a private university. Founded by the Kochi prefectural government, KUT ambitiously set its sights in becoming a world class university through the pursuit of unique excellence. KUT’s revolutionary design, introducing innovations never before seen in universities in Japan, contributed greatly to development in university education. Despite its relatively small scale, KUT has had a strong presence with its distinctive character and progressive education system. Notably, KUT took the lead in adopting a quarter system to enable intensive learning. Valuing student autonomy, KUT has no compulsory courses.