Department of East Asian Studies
Faculty
Professor
Susanna Fessler, Ph.D.
Yale University
Associate Professors
Andrew Sangpil Byon, Ph.D.
University of Hawai’i at Manoa
Fan Pen Chen, Ph.D.
Columbia University
Anthony DeBlasi, Ph.D.
Harvard University
John Person, Ph.D. (Department Chair)
University of Chicago
Aaron Proffitt, Ph.D.
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
Assistant Professor
Peter Banseok Kwon, Ph.D.
Harvard University
Lecturers
Jinyoung Mason, M.A.
California State University
Kazumi Ohata, B.A.
Tsuda University
Fang Wang, M.S.
Beijing Language & Culture University
Michiyo Kaya Wojnovich, M.S.
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
Zai Liang, Ph.D., Department of Sociology
University of Chicago
Tom Narins, Ph.D., Department of Geography and Planning
University of California, Los Angeles
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 in 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 majors. 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. Students are permitted to double-major in Chinese Studies and Japanese Studies. Requirements for these programs are as follows:
Requirements for the Major in Chinese Studies (34 credits)
- East Asian Studies Foundations courses: Six (6) credits from among A EAC and A EAS 100- and 200-level courses (except A EAC 101 and A EAC 102)
- Language Requirement: A EAC 201, A EAC 202, A EAC 301, and A EAC 302 (16 credits)
- Information Literacy course: A EAS 305
- Upper Level Courses: Six (6) credits from among A EAC and A EAS 300- and 400-level courses
- Capstone course: A EAS 490
Requirements for the Major in East Asian Studies (34 credits)
- East Asian Studies Foundations courses: Nine (9) credits from among A EAC, A EAJ, A EAK, or A EAS 100- and 200-level courses (except A EAC 101, A EAC 102, A EAJ 101, A EAJ 102, A EAK 101, and A EAK 102)
- Language Requirement: 10 credits of intermediate language courses in any one language taught by the Department (A EAC 201 and 202; OR A EAJ 201 and 202; OR A EAK 201 and 202)
- Information Literacy course: A EAS 305
- Upper Level Courses: Nine (9) credits from among A EAC, A EAJ, A EAK, and A EAS 300- and 400-level courses
- Capstone course: A EAS 490
Requirements for the Major in Japanese Studies (34 credits)
- East Asian Studies Foundations courses: Six (6) credits from among A EAJ and A EAS 100- and 200-level courses (except A EAJ 101 and A EAJ 102)
- Language Requirement: A EAJ 201, A EAJ 202, A EAJ 301, and A EAJ 302 (16 credits)
- Information Literacy course: A EAS 305
- Upper Level Courses: Six (6) credits from among A EAJ and A EAS 300- and 400-level courses
- Capstone course: A EAS 490
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.
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