Starting in April 2026, the Institute for Information Management and Communication (IIMC) will provide Student Google Accounts to all eligible ECS-ID holders, including students, part-time instructors, and professors emeriti.

Google Workspace has long been available to faculty and staff. With the introduction of a dedicated Google Workspace environment for students, the University aims to enhance education and research by making collaboration and data sharing more convenient while maintaining a secure computing environment.

1. Background

Until now, differences between the Google Workspace environments used by faculty/staff and by students have sometimes made file sharing and schedule coordination inconvenient.

To address this, the University will establish a dedicated student Google Workspace environment (domain: st.kyoto-u.ac.jp) that is managed separately from the existing faculty/staff environment. This separation helps ensure the security of existing faculty and staff data while allowing collaboration between faculty, staff, and students through appropriate sharing permissions within Google Workspace services.

2. Services Available

Student Google Accounts provide access to Google Workspace services that support collaboration, learning, and research.

⚠️ Please Note: Gmail is NOT provided. For university email (KUMOI), please continue using Microsoft 365.

3. Examples of Use

Providing a common Google Workspace platform for both faculty/staff and students will make collaboration easier in many situations.

Laboratories and Seminars

Faculty and staff can invite students to shared drives and shared folders, making it easier to distribute research materials, collaborate on documents in real time, and supervise thesis work. Shared Google Calendars can also simplify meeting scheduling.

Classes

Faculty and staff can use Google Classroom to distribute course materials, collect assignments, and communicate with students. Google Classroom is intended to complement, rather than replace, the University's primary Learning Management System (LMS).

Learning and Research Support

Students will have secure access to Google's latest generative AI tools, including Gemini and NotebookLM. These tools can assist with a variety of academic tasks, such as summarizing literature, organizing information, generating ideas, and supporting research and learning activities.
 

4. Important Notice for Users of Existing Personal Google Accounts

If you have already created a personal Google Account using your @st.kyoto-u.ac.jp email address, please note the following.

As the new student Google Workspace environment is introduced (scheduled from December 2025 onward), your existing personal Google Account will conflict with the new University-managed account.

Detailed instructions will be provided separately to affected users. However, you should be aware that you will need to back up or transfer your data—for example, by changing the email address associated with your personal Google Account before the migration.

5. Schedule (Tentative)

• Around March 2026: Student Google Accounts will be created, and account information will be provided to current and newly enrolled students.
• April 2026: Official launch of the Student Google Account service.

Additional information, including user guides and operating procedures, will be announced around March 2026.

We encourage all users to take advantage of these new services to support collaboration, learning, and research. We hope the new Student Google Workspace environment will provide a more convenient and productive academic experience for everyone.