1913
Sophia University is founded. Former residences of Akaboshi Tetsuma and of Ōshima Hisanao are turned into a student dormitory.
1920
The student dormitory consisting of former Akaboshi residence and Ōshima residence is named “St. Aloysius Hall.”
1932
Along with the construction of Building No. 1, a new dormitory building is constructed. At the same time, former Akaboshi residence is relocated next to it and the student dormitory consisting of these two buildings is called “St. Aloysius Hall.”
1946
Father Franz Bosch, S.J. borrows a part of the former employee dormitory of the Nakajima Aircraft Industry, Co. Ltd. and opens a dormitory where fifty students can be accommodated. (Kichijōji Dormitory)
1948
The university purchases Quonset huts from US military authorities and relocates them to the campus to set up a male student dormitory (known as Bosch Town) around the area of present Building No. 6 and Building No. 7.
1956
Sophia House is completed. Residents of Bosch Town and of St. Aloysius Hall move in the next year. Father Bosch becomes the first head supervisor of the Sophia House men’s dormitory.
1958
John Hughes, S.J. becomes the second head dormitory supervisor.
November 1958
Father Bosch passes away.
November 1959
Unveiling ceremony of the bust of late Father Bosch is held on University Foundation Day.
1961
Meisen women’s dormitory is completed.
1963
Manuel Diaz, S.J. becomes the third head dormitory supervisor.
1967
The tenth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
1968
Javier Garralda, S.J. becomes the fourth head dormitory supervisor.
June 1968
On-campus student protests take place for the first time, following the entry of the police into the campus. Student protests flare up at Sophia.
1970
An OECD education mission visits Japan, and suggests that Japan should take a more active role in international educational cooperation.
1972
The fifteenth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
January 1972
Students opposed to increase in tuition fees occupy the entrance to the Jesuit residence (S.J. House). Riot police are brought in and lock the protesters out of the campus.
1973
Sō Masataka, S.J. becomes the fifth head dormitory supervisor.
1973
In response to the oil shock, the men’s dormitory introduces new rules, including turning off the ceiling lights after 23:00.
1973
St. Mary’s Dormitory is completed in time for the opening of Sophia Junior College.
1977
The twentieth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
October 1977
Twenty-five students from Xavier University come to Japan and stay at the Sophia House men’s dormitory.
1978
Matsuoka Kōji, S.J. becomes the sixth head dormitory supervisor.
1980
Sekiya Makoto, S.J. becomes the seventh head dormitory supervisor.
1980
Enoki women’s dormitory is completed.
1980
A new dormitory policy is introduced. The purpose of the policy is to instill in the residents a proper attitude as dormitory residents and thereby to prevent the dormitory from turning into something like an apartment complex.
June 1981
A social gathering of the Sophia House men’s dormitory, Meisen women’s dormitory, and Enoki women’s dormitory is held.
December 1981
A joint sports festival for the Sophia House men’s dormitory, Meisen women’s dormitory, and Enoki women’s dormitory is held for the first time.
1982
The twenty-fifth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
1982
The twenty-fifth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
August 1982
Job-hunting consultation with graduates who used to reside in the dormitory is held for the first time.
November 1982
A ceremony marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is held. The Sophia Student Dormitory Alumni Association is founded.
December 1982
A new version of “Dormitory Rules and Regulations” is approved at a general dorm meeting.
1983
The Japanese government announces “the 100,000 international student plan.”
November 1986
Dormitory supervisors conduct a survey on the raison d'être of the Sophia House men’s dormitory.
1987
The thirtieth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
January 1987
“Resolution of the Residents of the Sophia House Men’s Dormitory” is approved at an extraordinary general dorm meeting.
October 1987
The Sophia House men’s dormitory receives a notice from the chancellor of Sophia School Corporation and the president of Sophia University stating that the dormitory is to be closed down. A dormitory review committee consisting of the dormitory supervisors and staff members of Sophia School Corporation is formed. The committee submits its final report to the chancellor and to the president in December 1988.
1992
The thirty-fifth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
April 1992
The article “Close yet Distant: the Sophia House Men’s Dormitory” is published in Jōchi Daigaku Shimbun (The Sophia Times).
1997
The fortieth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
November 2000
In its report “Higher Education in a Global Era,” the University Council of Japan (an advisory body to the Minister of Education) recommends the acceptance of a larger number of international students.
January 2001
The Sophia School Corporation announces the “Grand Layout,” a broad plan for the university covering the period until 2013, the university’s centennial anniversary. The plan announces that the Sophia House men’s dormitory is to be demolished.
2002
The forty-fifth anniversary of the Sophia House men’s dormitory is celebrated.
2005
Sophia Edagawa men’s dormitory (located at Edagawa, Kōtō Ward, Tokyo) is completed.
May 2005
The Sophia House men’s dormitory is closed down.
November 2005
The university holds a Mass and a farewell party to commemorate the closing of the men’s dormitory.
2012
Sophia’s Faculty of Foreign Studies receives a MEXT grant for “the promotion of global human resource development.”
April 2012
Sophia Soshigaya International House (located at Soshigaya, Setagaya Ward, Tokyo) is opened.
April 2019
Sophia-Arrupe International Residence (located at Shinanomachi, Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo) is opened.