Contemporary East and Southeast Asian Studies

Minimum Admission Requirements

• Applicants who wish to enrol in the collaborative specialization must apply to and be admitted to both the collaborative specialization and a graduate degree program in one of the collaborating graduate units.

• To be considered for admission to the collaborative specialization in Contemporary East and Southeast Asian Studies, applicants are expected to have completed coursework on Asia or have had relevant working or living experience in East or Southeast Asia.

Completion Requirements

• Students must satisfy the degree requirements of both the home graduate unit and the collaborative specialization. This can be done concurrently with, or in addition to, home unit requirements.

• Attend the year-long, interdisciplinary core seminar ASI1000Y Issues in Contemporary East and Southeast Studies. Topics vary from year to year.

• Complete 0.5 elective FCE on East or Southeast Asia, or in Asia-related courses within the home graduate unit or any other units (subject to approval from the collaborative specialization director).

• Complete a Major Research Paper (MRP), usually written in the context of a 0.5 FCE independent study course (for example, ASI1001H Independent Research in Asia-Pacific Studies). If an MRP is required in the home graduate unit (or discipline), it must address a topic on contemporary East and Southeast Asian Studies, and be based on original and in-depth research that goes beyond a normal seminar paper at the graduate level. The length is approximately 50 to 60 pages, although certain types of research might well be communicated in formats of shorter length. The MRP requirement can be met in the home graduate unit for an MRP, as long as the topic is related to Asia and is approved by the collaborative specialization director. If there is no such requirement in the home department, students should complete the MRP within the context of a 0.5 FCE reading course. In rare cases when a student undertakes a master's thesis in a home unit, the additional MRP will be waived. Students must seek approval for topics and format from the collaborative specialization director.

• By the time of graduation from the master's degree program, every student is strongly encouraged to have a working knowledge of an East or Southeast Asian language as needed for his or her course of study.