2026 (the 8th year of Reiwa) marks the Year of the Fire Horse. At Osaka Dental University, the new year began with the annual New Year’s gathering held on January 5, where the Chairman and President gave an address as part of the faculty/staff development program.

Chairman and President Takayoshi Kawazoe set "Innovation" as the key theme for the year and outlined the future objectives of each school, faculty, and graduate school, reflecting on the university’s achievements to date.

School of Dentistry & Graduate School of Dentistry

• - Achieve a pass rate of over 95% for the National Examination for Dental Practitioners every year (new graduates)
• - Increase the number of female graduate students and female faculty members

Faculty of Health Sciences & Graduate School of Health Sciences

• - Promote innovation through the “System Oral Engineering Course” and “Healthcare informatics classes” in the Department of Oral Health Engineering
• - Promote opportunities to obtain dual licensure with “Social Worker" qualification

Faculty of Nursing

• - Achieve a 100% pass rate in the first National Licensing Examination for Nurses
• - Establish a graduate school offering master’s and doctoral programs in April 2027

To ensure the sustainable management of the university, Chairman and President Kawazoe emphasized the following key initiatives: (1) continued profitability of the university hospital; (2) promotion of graduate education, including enrollment of adult learners; (3) sustained high pass rates on national examinations; and (4) raising the level of competition for admission. Through these initiatives, he expressed his commitment to the further growth of Osaka Dental University.