Message from the President

　My name is Reiko Hara, and I have recently been appointed President of the Association of Private Nursing Universities in Japan.
　I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all member institutions for their continued support of our association.
　Our association was founded in 1976 with 11 member institutions and is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. As of fiscal year 2026, we have 214 member institutions (205 universities and 9 junior colleges).Private universities account for 70 percent of nursing universities, and we believe that private universities bear a significant responsibility for nursing education and that our association plays a vital role in this regard.

　The purpose of this association is “to promote private nursing universities through research and surveys on their education, research, and management, as well as through mutual cooperation and collaboration among members; to contribute to the fulfillment of their mission; and thereby to contribute to the progress and development of nursing and nursing education and research in Japan.”
　The committees of this association primarily conduct activities targeting faculty members at private nursing universities.The “University Education Committee” provides training on educational support for students requiring special assistance at nursing universities; the “Research Activities Committee” organizes research grant programs and research seminars for faculty; the “International Exchange Committee” provides grants to facilitate international exchange; the “University Administration and Management Committee” conducts workshops on effective student recruitment; and the “Regional Activities Committee” promotes initiatives to build networks among regions.

　In addition, starting in fiscal year 2024, we have been implementing the “Nursing Appeal Promotion Project” as a special initiative. Against the backdrop of a declining number of high school students aspiring to become nurses—a trend driven by the declining birthrate—we are focusing on digital natives,social media-native Generation Z students have an interest in social issues and achieving the SDGs, and noting that a new course titled “Comprehensive Inquiry Period” has been introduced for first- and second-year high school students, we partnered with Shinken Ad to feature social issues and distinctive nursing initiatives in the supplementary booklet “Inquiry × SDGs: Solving Local Issues and Careers.”
　Furthermore, we created a video showcasing the appeal and diversity of nursing and released it as an advertisement on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. The ad content was organized into three parts: “Where I Want to Work,” “What I Love,” and “My Future Dreams.” Among the social media platforms, TikTok and YouTube had the highest viewership, with the “Where I Want to Work” segment receiving the highest viewership rate.Since the “Things I Enjoy” and “Future Dreams” segments also resonated strongly with middle and high school students, we plan to continue distributing them this fiscal year as well.
This initiative to promote the appeal of nursing aims to provide high school students with an opportunity to explore nursing as an issue closely relevant to their own lives, with the goal of increasing the number of students aspiring to become nurses.

　We understand that, in response to the Central Council for Education’s report, “A Grand Design for Higher Education Toward 2040,” our member institutions are working to implement education that makes learning outcomes visible, based on their respective founding principles and unique educational philosophies, in order to achieve the goals outlined in the report.Our Association intends to continue these efforts while soliciting feedback from all member institutions.
We look forward to your continued cooperation with our Association’s activities.

HARA Reiko
President, the Japan Society of Private Colleges and Universities of Nursing