7 b) the undergraduate curriculum would become overcrowded; c) differences in foreign-language proficiency would have to be addressed in a short time. In educational terms, this transformation of the concept brought about challenges that were unprecedented or at least not comparable with those faced by conventional universities. In designing the curriculum, attention was paid to the following points: 1. Examination of the academic term system in response to increasing internationalization. 2. Consideration of class length per period—50, 75, or 100 minutes. 3. Methods for offering general education and integrating it with specialized subjects. 4. The number of credits and methods for foreign language education. 5. Devising measures for the first year, when the number of faculty members would still be small, especially for laboratory and practical subjects. After comparative examination, it was decided to adopt a three-term system with 75-minute classes. 1.5.2 Policy for Student Selection According to the Blue Cover, first-year entrants were to consist “mainly of graduates of industrial high schools,” but subsequent negotiations resulted in a policy under which fewer than 50 percent of the quota of 60 students would be admitted through recommendations from industrial high schools, while the remainder would be admitted through academic examinations. Subjects related to industry were included, and the way was opened both to students who are not nominated or did not apply through recommendations. For entrants from Colleges of Technology as well, half were to be admitted by recommendation. Thus, for both categories, selection came to consist of recommendation and academic examination, and eventually selection for the master’s program also took the form of recommendation for internal applicants and academic examinations for applicants from other universities. 1.6 Opening of the University After many twists and turns, the University held its entrance ceremony on April 24, 1978, welcoming a total of 292 new students—61 in the first year and 231 in the third year, including two women. Classes began the following day, April 25, and Toyohashi University of Technology officially commenced full operations. Entrance ceremony for the first cohort on April 24, 1978 Campus landscape in 1978
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