Ritsumeikan University (立命館大学, Ritsumeikan Daigaku, abbreviated to Rits and 立命 Ritsumei) is a private university in Kyoto, Japan, that traces its origin to 1869. With the Kinugasa Campus (KIC) in Kyoto, and Kyoto Prefecture, the university also has a satellite called Biwako-Kusatsu Campus (BKC) and Osaka-Ibaraki Campus (OIC). Today, Ritsumeikan university is known as one of western Japan's four prestige private universities. "KAN-KAN-DO-RITS" 関関同立 (Kwansei Gakuin University, Kansai University, Doshisha University, and Ritsumeikan University) is the abbreviation that refers to the four leading private universities in the region of 20 million people. Ritsumeikan University is renowned for its International Relations (IR) and Science & Engineering departments, with the Graduate School of International Relations being the only Japanese member of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs. Ritsumeikan University has exchange programmes with schools throughout the world, including The University of British Columbia, The University of Melbourne, The University of Sydney, University of Hong Kong, King's College London and The University of Manchester. Ritsumeikan also currently offers a dual bachelor's degree program and dual master's degree programme in collaboration with American University and Australian National University. Ritsumeikan University Panthers is a top-ranked American-style collegiate football team in Japan and has won three national championships, seven collegiate championships, and nine conference championships.[citation needed] From Wikipedia
