Beijing Tomonkai

About the Beijing Tomonkai

In the 1980s, after China’s reform and opening-up, the Beijing Tomonkai began its activities with alumni who were expatriates or international students. Currently chaired by Masaya Tokutani, we hold regular gatherings every two months and events such as spring and autumn Keio–Waseda golf competitions with the Beijing Mita-kai, which we have won 12 consecutive times since 2018.

The relationship between Waseda University and China dates back to 1899, when Waseda became the first university in Japan to accept government-financed students from the Qing Dynasty. Founders of the Chinese Communist Party, Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao, as well as Liao Chengzhi, who laid the foundation of Japan–China trade, also studied at Waseda. Even today, the Chinese government includes many former Waseda students.

In July 2023, President Aiji Tanaka visited Beijing. The double-degree program at Peking University resumed after suspension during the pandemic, and students studying in China also participate in our Tomonkai. Although Japan–China relations are sometimes turbulent, to sing the school anthem with Japanese and Chinese students and alumni here in Beijing, 2,000 kilometers away from the “Northwest of City,” feels extraordinary. If you are a student or alumnus living in Beijing, please join us.
Jun Sakaida (Graduated in 2008, School of Political Science and Economics)

The attractive points of Beijing

Beijing combines the attractions of a historic and cultural city like Kyoto and strengths of a capital city like Tokyo. In addition to historic sites such as the Palace Museum, Summer Palace, and Great Wall, visitors can closely observe traditional culture such as the hutongs (alleys) and siheyuans (courtyard houses).

Being the capital of China, the city offers not only traditional Beijing cuisine such as Peking duck but also local delicacies from around the country. Sichuan and Yunnan restaurants, which (then) US Secretary of the Treasury Yellen visited in 2023, are also popular among our members.

Beijing draws some of the finest minds in China, mainly in Tsinghua University and Peking University, and is vibrant with IT and high-tech industries that support Chinese innovations.

Winter sports have also increased in popularity since the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, with many ski resorts in the suburbs.
Jun Sakaida (Graduated in 2008, School of Political Science and Economics)

Message from the Chairperson and the Vice Chairperson

Our members include both Japanese alumni living in Beijing and students currently studying in China. We also interact with the Beijing branch of the Alumni Association in China, which many Chinese alumni join after returning to Beijing.

In China, Waseda is synonymous with a famous Japanese university and boasts significant recognition. This is because since 1899, Waseda University has accepted Chinese students, many of whom led the country’s founding, became central figures in the normalization of Japan–China relations, and contributed to the friendship between the two countries.

Neighboring China and Japan have long interacted and learned from each other to develop each society. We are proud that our alma mater has contributed greatly to bridging these two nations. Moreover, we could not be happier if the Beijing Tomonkai can continue to gather a diversity of people and further help the Japan–China friendship.
Chairperson Masaya Tokutani (Graduated in 1990, School of Science and Engineering)

Established around 1980, the Beijing Tomonkai comprises a wide variety of members, mainly expatriates from Japanese companies, including the executives of large companies. As well as monthly get-togethers, golf competitions, tea gatherings, and mahjong games, we also interact with the Mita-kai and Tokyo Big6 as in the case of other Tomonkai around the world. Such interaction with diverse people regardless of company or alma mater is a major attraction of the Beijing Tomonkai. We carry out our activities extensively and flexibly, sometimes visiting the former house of Li Dazhao, who was a great senior of Waseda, or actively collecting donations such as after the Kumamoto Earthquake and during the COVID pandemic.
Vice Chairperson Zhang Hong (Graduated with a master’s degree in 1990, Graduate School of Political Science)

Messages from the Members

I have worked in Beijing for 27 years in total. While other expats return to Japan after a few years (as the school song says “Her students change from year to year, Meet and part with youth’s delight”), Chinese alumni are always there for me whenever I return to Beijing from Japan. In Tokyo, the Beijing Tomonkai Tokyo Branch that comprises former members also exists, and I have been able to expand my business network in both Japan and China. I also enjoy visiting 33 restaurants in total listed in the MICHELIN Guide Beijing together with other alumni as part of our Gourmet Group activities.
Toru Odaka (Graduated in 1987, School of Literature I)

During my university days, I belonged to sports clubs and always had strong love for Waseda. Nowadays, as I interact passionately with senior alumni beyond industries and titles and receive fresh stimuli from those studying in China at the Tomonkai, my love for Waseda has been renewed. Meeting with Chinese members who have ties with Waseda is also wonderful. When I listen to their stories and sing the school anthem and “Konpeki no sora (Deep Blue Sky)” together in a circle at the end of a gathering, I feel the warm ties of Waseda that connect people beyond borders and get emotional thinking about the Japan–China friendship!
Rika Iwai (Graduated in 2019, School of Law)

Covered in Waseda Gakuho, February 2026 Issue

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