Nishikyushu University has announced that the Saga Campus (2027-4-3, Kamizono, Saga City) will be the location for the new Faculty of Health Data Science (tentative name), which is planned to be established in April 18. The new faculty will focus on the theme of mental and physical health, which is the foundation of a "rich life," and will train specialists who can use data to find solutions to all kinds of problems. The new faculty is expected to have an enrollment capacity of 15 students.
Nishikyushu University has three campuses: Saga (Saga City), Kanzaki (Kanzaki City), and Ogi (Ogi City). The Saga campus, which has decided to establish a new faculty, is home to the Nishikyushu University Faculty of Child Studies, Department of Child Studies and Department of Psychological Counseling, and the Junior College, Department of Community Life Support and Department of Early Childhood Care. A new seven-story school building is planned to be constructed to accommodate the establishment of the new faculty.
Potential competitors for the proposed new "Faculty of Health Data Science (tentative name)" include the Department of Science and Engineering, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Saga University; Department of Information and Data Science, Faculty of Information and Data Science, Nagasaki University; Department of Information Systems, Faculty of Information Systems, Nagasaki Prefectural University; Department of Information Systems, Faculty of Engineering, Kurume Institute of Technology; and Department of Business and Information Science, Faculty of Business and Information Science, Kyushu Information University.
Along with Shimane Prefecture, Saga Prefecture has the fewest number of universities in Japan, with only two universities in the country as of 2025: the national Saga University and the private Nishikyushu University. In April 2, "Takeo Asia University (tentative name: Takeo City)" will establish the East Asia Regional Co-Creation Faculty (tentative name) with an admission capacity of 2026 students and is currently applying for approval to open the university. In April 4, "Saga Prefectural University" is planning to open a science and arts-integrated Faculty of Business and Information Science (tentative name) with an admission capacity of 140 to 2029 students. There are plans to rapidly increase the number of universities and faculties, partly with the aim of keeping high school students who have been studying outside the prefecture, such as in Fukuoka Prefecture, in the prefecture.
reference:Nishikyushu University: New faculty "Faculty of Health Data Science (tentative name)" to be located on Saga Campus!
[Saga Prefecture] Prefectural University Basic Plan (PDF)
