Academic Biography

Kazuo Kuroda received his B.A. from Waseda University's Faculty of Political Science and Economics in 1989, his M.A. from Stanford University in 1993, and his Ph.D. from Cornell University in 1996, specializing in Education and Development Sociology.

After graduating, he worked at the World Bank (1996–1997) and then at the Overseas Development Council in Washington, D.C., before returning to Japan. He joined the faculty of Hiroshima University from 1997 to 2003, then moved to Waseda University's GSAPS as an Assistant Professor in 2003, becoming a full Professor in 2006.

At Waseda, he served as Dean of the Center for International Education (2010–2012), Visiting Professor at the University of Tokyo (2010–2012), and Dean of the International Affairs Division (2014–2018), overseeing the largest international affairs office of any Japanese university at the time. He served as Dean of GSAPS from 2020 to 2022.

He is currently President of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), the world's leading scholarly association in the field, and chairs the Research Standing Committee of the World Council of Comparative Education Societies (WCCES). He is also a director of the Japan Comparative Education Society and the Japan Society for International Development (JASID), and served on the Japanese National Commission for UNESCO (2012–2016) and the MEXT Council on Promotion of International Cooperation in Education (2014–2016).

Education

• Ph.D., Cornell University, 1996 (Education and Development Sociology)

• M.A., Stanford University, 1993

• B.A., Waseda University, 1989 (Faculty of Political Science and Economics)

Academic Positions

• 2006–present: Professor, GSAPS, Waseda University

• 2020–2022: Dean, GSAPS, Waseda University

• 2014–2018: Dean, International Affairs Division, Waseda University

• 2010–2012: Dean, Center for International Education, Waseda University

• 2010–2012: Visiting Professor, University of Tokyo

• 2003–2006: Assistant Professor, GSAPS, Waseda University

• 1997–2003: Faculty Member, Hiroshima University

• 1996–1997: World Bank

• Pre-1997: Overseas Development Council, Washington, D.C.

Professional Memberships & Leadership

• President, Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), 2025–present

• Chair, Research Standing Committee, World Council of Comparative Education Societies (WCCES), 2019–present

• Executive Director, Japan Comparative Education Society (日本比較教育学会)

• Director, Japan Society for International Development (JASID)

• Member, Japanese National Commission for UNESCO, 2012–2016

• Member, MEXT Council on Promotion of International Cooperation in Education, 2014–2016

• Visiting Research Fellow, JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development

Editorial Roles

• Editorial Board, International Journal of Educational Development (since 2004)

• Advisory Editorial Board, Global Comparative Education (since 2017)

• Editor, Peabody Journal of Education

• Contributing Editor, UNESCO publications

Awards & Recognition

• U21 Award (2019), Universitas 21 — for outstanding contributions to the internationalization of higher education

• Special Award, Japan Society for International Development (JASID), 2020