Master in Joint Master's Program in International Development and Peace through Sport

For Master in Joint Master's Program in International Development and Peace through Sport, tuition fees are 535,800 JPY per year.

The Joint Master's Program in International Development and Peace through Sport is a two-year master's degree taught in English at the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Kanoya (NIFS), located in Kagoshima, Japan, with an April start date. NIFS describes itself as the only national four-year physical education university in Japan, working through sport and physical activity to develop individuals with creativity and vitality, and aiming to contribute to national health, learning, and culture in sport and the physical sciences. This joint master's program applies that sport-focused mission to the field of international development and peace-building. Coursework in a program combining sport with international development and peace typically covers sport for development theory, peacebuilding and conflict resolution, physical education policy, international cooperation, and the management of sport-based programs in community and post-conflict settings. Students examine how sport can be used to support social cohesion, youth development, and reconciliation in various regions, alongside more conventional sport science and physical education content drawn from the host institution's specialization. The two-year format allows time for coursework together with a thesis or applied research project. Graduates of programs in this field commonly move into roles with international development organizations, non-governmental organizations, national sport federations, ministries of sport or education, and agencies running peacebuilding or community development programs that use sport as a tool. Others continue into further academic study or research on sport and development. NIFS' national specialization in physical education and sport, together with the program's international development and peace framing, gives students at the Kagoshima campus a combination of sport science and development studies training not widely available elsewhere in Japan.