New University of Tokyo ``Faculty of Value Creation'' established, criticized on SNS for name and reduction in number of students

There have been a number of negative opinions on social media regarding the University of Tokyo's new ``Faculty of Value Creation'' (UTokyo College of Design), which will be established in the fall of 2027. Criticism of the name, such as ``Aren't other faculties creating value?'' is spreading, along with questions about reductions in the number of students in other faculties.

Regarding the name ``Faculty of Value Creation,'' there have been a number of critical posts on sites such as X, with comments such as ``Does this mean other faculties are not creating value?'', ``It's empty,'' and ``It seems like it's a fraud.'' There were also notable posts pointing out that "value creation" overlaps with the origin of Soka Gakkai's name.

In addition, a joke post about the University of Tokyo's faculties that created a fictitious organizational chart that categorized all faculties other than the "Faculty of Value Creation" into the "Faculties of Value Creation," with "Faculty of Liberal Arts" and "Faculties of Non-Law Arts" under that, and then "Faculty of Law" and "Faculties of Lawless Law," became a hot topic.

While there are many negative opinions, there are also a few who say, ````Faculty of Value Creation'' is easier to understand than ``College of Design,'' which has a vague meaning (in English).''

The Faculty of Value Creation combines academic knowledge from the humanities and social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, and other fields with design to solve social issues and create new value. It is a five-year program that includes a bachelor's degree and a master's degree, with all classes taught in English, and the enrollment capacity is 100 students. At the same time, the admission capacity of existing faculties will be reorganized, with major reductions planned for the Faculty of Letters (-53 students) and the Faculty of Agriculture (-40 students).