Introducing the School of Business and the Graduate School of Business

School of Business

Osaka-based business school with a history of over 140 years

The former Osaka University of Commerce (“Osaka Shoka Daigaku” in Japanese), the predecessor of the School of Business, was Japan's first municipal university , which originated as a university that would be engaged in academic pursuits in the new fields necessary for industry at that time.
The university was founded under the slogan “The new university should not be content with being a mere extension of a vocational school nor an imitation of national universities” (words of Hajime Seki, the then Osaka City Mayor). The university boasted various features unique to a university run by a local government, including having a Department of Municipal Administration for the first time for a, university of commerce.
At the current School of Business too, highly original research is conducted, including research aimed at utilizing a management perspective to solve regional social issues and research on how to achieve the development of Osaka amid globalization. The School of Business of Osaka Metropolitan University aims to achieve further growth by handing down the history and tradition of the Faculty of Business of Osaka City University and integrating it with the management and accounting sections of the School of Management, College of Sustainable System Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University.

History of the School of Business

—History and Tradition Kept Alive—

The School of Business of Osaka Metropolitan University can trace its history back to 1880, when the Osaka Commercial Training Institute, a private organization, was founded.
With a history of over 140 years, the School of Business is one of the longest-established undergraduate schools in Japan.
The Osaka Commercial Training Institute later developed into Osaka City Commercial School and then Osaka University of Commerce in the pre-WWII era, both of which played a leading role in the academic fields of commerce and business administration together with Tokyo Higher Commercial School/Tokyo University of Commerce (currently Hitotsubashi University) and Kobe Higher Commercial School/Kobe University of Commerce (currently Kobe University). These three education institutions were called “Japan’s three greatest higher commercial schools/universities of commerce.”
After the end of WWII, Osaka University of Commerce became the Faculty of Business of Osaka City University in April 1949, and the Graduate School of Business was also established. The history and tradition of the faculty have been handed down by the School of Business of Osaka Metropolitan University. The School is still highly rated as one of the leading undergraduate schools in this field.

Why “Shogakubu”?

—School of Business’s Pride in Examining the Economy and Society from the Perspective of Corporate Activities—

The Japanese name of the School of Business is “Shogakubu,” which can be literary translated as the “School of Commerce.” Many Japanese people say this Japanese name sounds outdated. Some of them even recommend that the name be changed to “Keieigakubu” (lit. “School of Business Administration”).
This problem is not only ours but seems to be faced and discussed by many other shogakubu around Japan. However, we are proud, and hope to continue to be proud, in using the Japanese name “Shogakubu.”
This is not just a matter of a name. Shogakubu and keieigakubu certainly look similar to each other but are not completely the same.
To say in a slightly exaggerated way, shogakubu generally try to examine the movement of the economy and society from the perspective of corporate activities, while keieigakubu try to focus only on corporate activities themselves.
We believe this gap is large, and we hope to place high importance on fitting this definition of shogakubu. In this sense, our School of Business can be positioned between an ordinary school of business administration and a school of economics. Students and instructors there examine corporate activities and the movement of the economy and society as webs of corporate activities. Therefore, they can deal with a wide range of subjects.

Academic Tradition of the School of Business

—Thoughtful Practical Science and Integration between Theory and Verification—

Since the beginning of its history, the School of Business has aimed to integrate theoretical research and research for verification.
While this aim can be taken for granted in the social science field, it has constituted the academic tradition of the School of Business.
Theory is certainly important, but it should not only serve theoretical purposes.
The School of Business has consistently striven to develop methods of producing theories from realities and applying theories to realities.
We will cherish such methods we have developed so far.