Program Overview

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Asian Languages and Cultures, PhD

The Department of Asian Languages and Cultures offers a new interdisciplinary MA and PhD program in Asian Languages and Cultures. Students may take advantage of the many opportunities within the department and on campus to do in-depth research on Asia from multiple disciplinary perspectives and across the traditional area studies divisions of East, South, and Southeast Asia.

Program Description

We welcome applications from students who are interested in working transregionally, transdisciplinarily, or both. This includes students with a traditional background in Asian Studies and related academic fields as well as those whose path to studying Asia has been through professional work. The Department of Asian Languages and Cultures has developed a lively intellectual community around Transasian Studies and is supporting student-led seminars, reading groups, workshops, and other events.

Faculty and Research Areas

Asian Languages and Cultures is home to nearly twenty faculty whose research and teaching specialties cover a wide range of topics, including:

• Traditional medicine in India
• The history of yoga
• Contemporary mindfulness practice with insights from Tibetan Buddhism
• Human rights in Thailand
• Chinese ghost stories, traditional poetics and philology
• Sociolinguistics and discourse analysis of the Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian languages
• Analysis of classical Japanese tale fiction, early modern comedic narratives, manga, and anime
• Japanese counterculture
• Korean cinema and media

Admissions

Graduate admissions is a two-step process between academic programs and the Graduate School. Applicants must meet the minimum requirements of the Graduate School as well as the program(s). The program may have more detailed admissions requirements, which can be found below.

Admissions Requirements

• Fall Deadline: January 10
• Spring Deadline: This program does not admit in the spring.
• Summer Deadline: This program does not admit in the summer.
• GRE (Graduate Record Examinations): Not Required.
• English Proficiency Test: Refer to the Graduate School's policy.
• Other Test(s) (e.g., GMAT, MCAT): n/a
• Letters of Recommendation Required: 3

Funding

The Department of Asian Languages and Cultures offers financial assistance in the forms of fellowships, teaching assistantships (TAships), and project assistantships (PAships). Please make note of the deadline of January 10 for financial assistance consideration.

Types of Funding

• Fellowships
• Teaching Assistantships (TAships)
• Project Assistantships (PAships)
• Foreign Language & Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships
• Advanced Opportunity Fellowship (AOF)
• Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS) Awards Office

Requirements

Curricular Requirements

• Minimum Credit Requirement: 51 credits
• Minimum Residence Credit Requirement: 32 credits
• Minimum Graduate Coursework Requirement: 51 credits must be graduate-level coursework.
• Overall Graduate GPA Requirement: 3.00 GPA required.

Other Grade Requirements

• Students must earn a B or above in all coursework (numbered 300 or above, not including research credits) taken as a graduate student.

Assessments and Examinations

• The preliminary exam must be taken within 1 semester after completing doctoral coursework.
• Comprehensive written preliminary exams will be based on reading lists developed with the committee.
• A dissertation proposal must be approved within 1 year after completing prelim exams.

Language Requirements

• Additional language coursework beyond the MA requirements is not required in general, but students must gain sufficient competence to pass the research language exams required by the advisors.

Required Courses

• Asia and Related Graduate Coursework: In consultation with advisor, students must complete at least 36 credits in Asia-related graduate courses in the department or elsewhere in campus.
• Additional Coursework: In consultation with advisor, students must complete at least 15 credits of additional coursework to meet the 51-credit minimum requirement.

Policies

Prior Coursework

• With program approval, students are allowed to transfer no more than 9 credits of graduate coursework from other institutions.

Probation

• Refer to the Graduate School's policy.

Advisor / Committee

• Starting fall 2018, all students are required to be supervised by co-advisors.
• Dissertation committees must have at least four members representing more than one graduate program.

Credits Per Term Allowed

• 15 credit maximum.

Time Limits

• Refer to the Graduate School's policy.

Grievances and Appeals

• These resources may be helpful in addressing concerns.

Professional Development

Graduate School Resources

• Take advantage of the Graduate School's professional development resources to build skills, thrive academically, and launch your career.

Program Resources

• Throughout the academic year, professional development trainings, workshops, and graduate student-organized activities take place.

Learning Outcomes

1. Demonstrate a thorough and in-depth understanding of research problems, potentials, and limits with respect to theory, knowledge, or practice in the selected area of the student's focus.
2. Formulate ideas, concepts, designs, and/or techniques beyond the current boundaries of knowledge within the specialized field(s).
3. Create scholarship and advance knowledge that makes a substantive contribution to the field(s).
4. Articulate and communicate complex ideas in a clear and understandable manner to both specialized and general audiences.
5. Recognize, apply, and foster ethical and professional conduct.