Kokushikan University — Master’s in Law (Graduate School of Law)

Kokushikan University’s Graduate School of Law offers a Master’s degree in Law, which is designed to build on foundational legal education and develop advanced legal knowledge and research skills. This program allows students to study in-depth legal theory and practice to address complex, interdisciplinary issues in contemporary society — including criminal law and related areas such as criminal justice, offender treatment systems, and legal responses to crime.

In this master’s program, students engage in specialized research and coursework under the guidance of faculty members. While the university doesn’t label it a standalone LL.M in Criminology, students can focus on criminal law topics and criminology-related legal research as part of their studies and a master’s thesis. The curriculum is structured to cultivate highly skilled legal professionals and researchers capable of analyzing and solving complex legal problems.

The program typically includes advanced coursework, seminars, and research supervision that allows each student to tailor their studies — for example, toward criminal law, criminal justice policy, legal theory on crime and punishment, or comparative legal responses to crime — followed by the completion of a master’s thesis.

Graduates of this Master’s in Law can pursue careers in legal practice, research, public policy, law enforcement advisory roles, academia, or further doctoral education. Because the program is rooted in Japanese legal education, proficiency in Japanese is generally important for success in coursework and research.

If you’re specifically aiming for something branded as LL.M in Criminology, that exact degree naming may not exist at Kokushikan — but the Graduate School of Law’s Master’s in Law with a criminal law/criminology focus effectively serves the same purpose academically.

NOTE: The university may have additional program-specific eligibility requirements. It is recommended to verify these on the official university website.