Ritsumeikan University

Ritsumeikan University (立命館大学, Ritsumeikan Daigaku?, abbreviated to Rits and 立命 Ritsumei) is a private university in Kyoto, Japan, tracing its roots to 1869. With the Kinugasa Campus, the university also has a satellite called Biwako-Kusatsu Campus (BKC) in Kusatsu, and Shiga Prefecture.

Today, the university is known as one of the four leading private universities in western Japan. KAN-KAN-DO-RITS 関関同立(Kwansei Gakuin University, Kansai University, Doshisha University, and Ritsumeikan University) is the abbreviation that many people refer to when talking about the four leading private universities in the region (of 20 million people and economy similar in size to Canada's). And in today’s newspaper, it is listed as the ‘top private university in Western Japan for policy science’. It has exchange programs with many schools throughout the world, including The University of British Columbia, The University of Melbourne, The University of Sydney, and University of Hong Kong. The school also has a graduate dual degree program and dual masters' degree program offered in collaboration with American University, and a graduate dual degree program offered in collaboration with The University of British Columbia.

Ritsumeikan University Panthers is a very strong collegiate football team in Japan and won three national champions, seven collegiate champions, and nine conference champions.