Requirements for the MA
Requirements for the IDMA
The interdisciplinary Master of Arts in East Asian Studies (IDMA) is intended primarily for predoctoral students who want intensive area training before pursuing a doctoral program in a particular discipline, or for those planning professional careers in government, business, journalism, or pre-college teaching.
Credit Requirements: Students must earn a minimum of 30 credits of course work (excluding language credits) in two or more departments with an overall GPA no lower than 3.0. At least half of these credits must be carried in courses numbered 2000 or above. In addition, EAS 2005 - APPROACHES TO EAST ASIA , a research methodology course, must be taken in the first year.
Language Requirement: Students must have successfully completed two years of Chinese or Japanese, language training in order to apply to the program and must continue their language study as part of their graduate work. A minimum of three years’ college-level language study or its equivalent is necessary to fulfill the language requirement for the degree.
Course Specialization: Students who specialize in China must take at least one 3-credit course on Japan, and those who specialize in Japan must take at least one 3-credit course on China.
History Courses: Six of the required credits must be taken in course work relating to the ancient and modern history of China or Japan.
Thesis: The thesis topic must be approved by the student’s academic advisor and a faculty committee of three, which regularly included the academic advisor. The faculty committee must present at least two different departments. The thesis must demonstrate an ability to research primary East Asian language materials.
Oral Comprehensive Examination: When course work and thesis are completed, the student must pass an oral comprehensive examination administered by the student’s faculty committee.
