Degree Requirements

East Asian Studies Major

Majors will choose courses in consultation with a faculty advisor. In their senior year students will apply the methodologies of two disciplines to a research topic normally focusing on China, Japan, or their interaction. The major requires:

1. two semesters of intermediate Chinese or Japanese,
2. two core survey courses, one from II.a. and one from II.b.,
3. five area studies courses with a maximum of two from III.b and c combined, and
4. a senior research project, that in conjunction with the other requirements, will total forty credit hours.

Advisors can help the student select which courses in approved study-abroad programs will meet the requirements below:

1. Language requirement: two semesters of intermediate Chinese or Japanese course work, or the equivalent. Majors are encouraged to begin their language work at Denison during their first year.
2. Two Core Courses surveying both:
   1. Traditional

      Course List

      Code	Title
      EAST/HIST 141	Traditional East Asian Civilization (normally offered in the spring)
      EAST/CHIN 206	Dream and Fantasy in East Asian Literature (normally offered in the fall)
      EAST/JAPN 219	Voices from the Dark Valley: East Asians Under Japanese Fascism (1910-1945)
      EAST/AHVC 231	Art of Japan
      or EAST/AHVC 232	Art of China

      1

      Students who take both "Art of Japan" and "Art of China" will fulfill their traditional core course requirement and satisfy one of the five Area Studies (III.A.) requirements. Note that students choosing this option must take both EAST 231 - Art of Japan/AHVC 231 - Art of Japan and EAST 232 - Art of China/AHVC 232 - Art of China to meet the traditional core requirement.

   2. Modern East Asian Civilization

      Course List

      Code	Title
      EAST/HIST 142	Modern East Asian Civilization (normally offered in the fall)
      EAST/JAPN 235	Introduction to Modern Chinese and Japanese Literature (normally offered in the spring)

3. Five East Asian area studies courses, which may include the following:
   1. East Asian Area Studies

      Course List

      Code	Title
      EAST/AHVC 131	Asian Art and Visual Culture
      EAST/AHVC 232	Art of China
      EAST/AHVC 231	Art of Japan
      EAST/AHVC 333	Art and Revolution in 20th Century China
      EAST/CHIN 206	Dream and Fantasy in East Asian Literature
      EAST/JAPN 239	Introduction to Japanese Genre Fiction
      EAST/CHIN 305	Spontaneity: Taoism and Chinese Literature
      EAST/JAPN 309	Japan's Modern Canon
      CHIN 340	Chinese Cinema in English: A Cultural and Literary Study
      EAST/JAPN 273	Modern Japan in Film and Literature
      HIST 211	Modern East Asia at War
      HIST 312	China’s Golden Age? The Tang Dynasty
      EAST/JAPN 235	Introduction to Modern Chinese and Japanese Literature
      EAST/REL 216	Religions of China

   2. Independent and Directed Study (maximum of two from B and C combined) - Examples:

      Course List

      Code	Title
      CHIN 361	Directed Study
      CHIN 362	Directed Study
      JAPN 361	Directed Study
      JAPN 362	Directed Study
      EAST 361	Directed Study
      EAST 362	Directed Study
      EAST 363	Independent Study
      EAST 364	Independent Study

   3. Comparative Courses (Maximum of two from B and C combined):

      Course List

      Code	Title
      East Asia in comparison with another region of the world
      EAST/AHVC 131	Asian Art and Visual Culture
      EAST/COMM 409	International Communication
      ECON 412	Economics of the Developing World
      ECON 423	International Trade
      POSC 332	Politics in Latin America, Africa, and Asia
      POSC 355	International Political Economy
      EAST/REL 105	Buddhism

4. ​Senior Research Project
   EAST 450 - Senior Research Project: East Asian Studies: Senior Project in East Asian Studies. Selecting two disciplines, students choose a topic in East Asian Studies and utilize the skills of both disciplines to analyze that topic in a major research paper, directed by faculty members in those disciplines. This research project culminates the major and can be proposed for either semester of the senior year. The student must have signatures from the two advisors in the course registration period preceding the semester when the project will be written. Only students completing a yearlong research project are eligible for special recognition.

East Asian Studies Minor

The twenty-eight credits to fulfill the East Asian Studies minor include: two semesters of intermediate Chinese or Japanese, the two core courses, and three additional courses chosen from East Asian area studies courses chosen from category III (see below). Only one independent study course, or one comparative course will count towards the minor.

Additional Points of Interest

Study Abroad

Approved programs of study in the People’s Republic of China include programs in Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai, and Xian. In Japan, students may study in programs in Tokyo, Osaka and Nagasaki. The availability of semester-long, year-long or summer courses depends on the respective program.

Summer Research Through Denison's Young Scholar Awards

No separate East Asian awards exist. Guidelines are on the Gilpatrick Center's homepage under student research. The research must culminate in a written or artistic project and a presentation to other summer scholars. Student scholars will live on Denison's campus and the student stipend is $3,700. Dormitory housing is provided. Meals are excluded. Applications: Submit by late January for the coming summer.

Summer Internships

There are no special grants for East Asian Studies internships. However, the Center for Career Exploration can be a resource for students interested in searching and applying for internships. There are also internship stipend programs meant to support students in their respective internship experiences. Contact the Austin E. Knowlton Center for Career Exploration by phone (740-587-6656) or email (career@denison.edu) to learn more about Denison internship resources and how stipend funding works.

The Language and Culture Program

This is an exciting residential option that gives students the opportunity to hone their language skills and to participate in special cultural events. Students who choose this residential option will live in a small community of their peers who share their enthusiasm for foreign languages and cultures. Extracurricular activities and programming in the Language House support language acquisition and permit a closer relationship with professors and languages assistants from the Department of Modern Languages.