We have been holding a series of events called “Find-Your-Role-Model” Sessions to provide students with opportunities to interact with alumni and global leaders in healthcare sciences. Through these roundtable-style, informal events, we hope students will find role models to help facilitate their career development and become future global leaders.

      We are honored to welcome Dr. Toru Tateno, an alumnus of Science Tokyo’s Faculty of Medicine, as our guest speaker. Dr. Tateno is the Medical Director of the Pituitary Specialty Clinic at the University of Alberta, Canada. As a physician-scientist, he embodies the bench-to-bedside model by integrating molecular research on pituitary tumors with clinical practice.
After graduating from the Faculty of Medicine in 1999, he completed his residency and advanced clinical training at Science Tokyo Hospital and Japanese Red Cross Musashino Hospital. He then earned his PhD in the Department of Clinical and Molecular Endocrinology at the Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences. He subsequently pursued research and clinical fellowship training in Canada, including at the University of Toronto, where insulin was first discovered. Since joining the University of Alberta as an assistant professor in 2017, he has built an internationally recognized career in both research and clinical medicine. He will be promoted to associate professor in July 2026.
 
【Topics】

Professional background
His career path and the experiences that shaped it; Influential mentors and role models; How his education at our university contributed to his career development; Why he chose to pursue a career abroad and ultimately settled in Canada; Experiences at the University of Toronto and the University of Alberta

Current and upcoming activities
Current research and clinical work; Differences between healthcare systems and medical practice in Canada and Japan; His vision and mission for future research and patient care

Advice for students and healthcare professionals
Skills and mindsets needed to work internationally; Key considerations when planning a medical or research career; What students and young professionals can do now to prepare for future opportunities; Advice for Science Tokyo students interested in global careers.