Department of East Asian Studies

Faculty

Professors
Susanna Fessler, Ph.D.
Yale University
James M. Hargett, Ph.D.
Indiana University
Charles M. Hartman, Ph.D.
Indiana University

Associate Professors
Andrew Sangpil Byon, Ph.D.
University of Hawai’i at Manoa
Fan Pen Chen, Ph.D. (Department Chair)
Columbia University
Anthony DeBlasi, Ph.D.
Harvard University

Assistant Professors
Peter Banseok Kwon, Ph.D.
Harvard University
John Person, Ph.D.
University of Chicago
Aaron Proffitt, Ph.D.
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor

Lecturers
Michiyo Kaya Wojnovich, M.S.
University at Albany
Shu-Han Yeh, Ph.D.
University at Albany

Affiliated Faculty
Michitake Aso, Ph.D., Department of History
University of Wisconsin at Madison
Cheng Chen, Ph.D., Department of Political Science
University of Pennsylvania
Angie Y. Chung, Ph.D., Department of Sociology
University of California, Los Angeles
Youqin Huang, Ph.D., Department of Geography and Planning
University of California, Los Angeles  
Kwan Koo Yun, Ph.D., Department of Economics
Stanford University

Adjuncts (estimated): 4

The Department of East Asian Studies offers courses in the languages and cultures of the three major civilizations of East Asia: China, Japan and Korea. The department provides instruction in elementary, intermediate and advanced Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. There are also courses taught in English on Chinese, Japanese, and Korean literature, philosophy, religion, history, geography, economics and political science.

Careers
Graduates of the Department traditionally enter careers in teaching, international trade, U.S. government, and the travel industry. The degree is also excellent preparation for professional graduate programs in business administration (M.B.A.), law, librarianship, and Teaching English as a Second Language. The department strongly encourages students interested in East Asian Studies to double-major within a separate department or college. Combinations with particularly strong employment potential are East Asian Studies and economics, business, and political science.

Special Programs or Opportunities
The University maintains exchange programs in China with Beijing University, Beijing Normal University, Fudan University, East China Normal University, and Sichuan University. These programs provide students an opportunity to study Chinese language and selected topics in the humanities and social sciences in China for summers, one semester, or an entire academic year. The university also maintains similar exchange programs with Kansai Gaidai and Tokyo University of Foreign Studies in Japan and with Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea. All departmental majors are strongly encouraged to participate in these exchange programs in order to gain first-hand experience of life in contemporary East Asia.

Degree Requirements

The Department of East Asian Studies offers three concentrations or degree tracks. Each is a separate and distinct course of study leading to the B.A. degree. These are 1) the Major in Chinese Studies, 2) the Major in East Asian Studies, and 3) the Major in Japanese Studies. Students may not double-major in East Asian Studies and Chinese Studies or Japanese Studies. Requirements for these programs are as follows:

Requirements for the Major in Chinese Studies (34 credits)

• One introductory course from: A EAS 103, 105; A EAC 170
• Required language: A EAC 201, 202, 301, and 302
• Required Information Literacy course: A EAC 205
• Two intermediate prerequisite courses from: A EAS 260, 266, 270; A EAC 210, 211, 212, 230, 280, 379, 380
• One seminar from: A EAC 414, 415, 420, 430, 432, 471, 480; A EAS 450; A EAS/A HIS 468, 475, 478
• One 300-or 400-level elective from: any A EAC course; A EAS 495

Requirements for the Major in East Asian Studies (34 credits)

• One introductory course from: A EAS 103, 104, 105; A EAC 170; A EAJ 170; A EAK 170
• Language (any combination of 10 credits from the following): A EAC 101, 102, 201, 202, 301, 302, 414, 415; A EAJ 101, 102, 201, 202, 301, 302, 410, 411; A EAK 101, 102, 201, 202, 301, 302
• One required Information Literacy course: A EAC 205, A EAJ 205, or equivalent as approved by advisor
• Two intermediate prerequisites courses from: A EAS 261, 265, 266, 270; A EAC 210, 211, 212, 230, 260, 280, 379, 380; A EAJ 210, 212, 275, 384, 385
• Two seminars from: A EAS 450, 468, 475, 478; A EAC 420, 430, 432, 471, 480; A EAJ 435, 436, 437, 438, 460
• Two 300-or 400-level electives from: any A EAS, A EAC, A EAJ, A EAK course

Requirements for the Major in Japanese Studies (34 credits)

• One introductory course from: A EAS 103, 104; A EAJ 170; A EAC 170; A EAK 170
• Required language: A EAJ 201, 202, 301, and 302
• Required Information Literacy course: A EAJ 205
• Two intermediate prerequisite courses from: A EAJ 210, 212, A EAJ/A HIS 278, A EAJ/A HIS 384, A EAJ/A HIS 385; A EAS 261, 265, 266, 270
• One seminar from: A EAJ 435, 436, 437, 438, 460; A EAS/A REL 450, A EAS/A HIS 468
• One 300- or 400-level elective from: any A EAJ course; A EAS 357, 362, 375, 495

Honors Program in the Three East Asian Studies Majors

Students with 3.50 grade point average in one of the department’s majors are eligible for its Honors Program. In addition to completing the regular requirements for the major in Chinese Studies, East Asian Studies, or Japanese Studies, students in the Honors Program complete a further six credits of A EAS 495, Colloquium in East Asian Studies.

At the beginning of the fall semester (preferably of the senior year), students will submit their honors proposals to the faculty. If the faculty approves a proposal, the student will be permitted to enroll in A EAS 495 (3 credits), which consists of directed readings and conferences involving appropriate members of the faculty. The project will be evaluated by the project adviser at the end of the fall semester and if the student is making appropriate progress, they will be permitted to enroll in A EAS 495 (3 credits) again in the spring semester. The project will be formally evaluated by the Department Honors Committee no later than the mid-term point in the second semester of the senior year. The final version of the project must be submitted by the last day of classes during the second semester of the senior year.