East Asian Studies
Undergraduate
One of four interdisciplinary majors within the Asian Studies program, East Asian studies allows students to specialize in the history, languages, cultures, and politics of East Asia. Complementing course work at Mount Holyoke are extracurricular activities and study abroad programs that broaden and deepen students’ understanding of Asia.
Program Overview
Language study is the core component of the major. We offer four levels of instruction in Chinese, three in Japanese, and two in Korean. As a student of East Asian Studies, you are expected to incorporate the humanities and the social sciences fully into your studies with classes at Mount Holyoke and the other colleges in the Five College Consortium.
On campus, you will experience regional culture at many levels, including language tables and clubs, guest lectures, performing and visual arts, film, festivals, and regional cuisine. These activities are often initiated by and benefit greatly from the diverse student population of Mount Holyoke and particularly the large numbers of students from Asian countries or with an Asian background.
Most of our students spend a semester or a summer in study abroad programs. ²¤ÂÜÊÓƵapp has affiliated programs or exchanges in China at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Peking University (summer), and University of Hong Kong; in Japan at the Associated Kyoto Program (year) and the Japan Women’s University; and in South Korea at the Ewha Womans University and the Sookmyung Women’s University.
East Asian Studies majors and minors graduate to pursue graduate studies and careers in fields as varied as law, education, business, NGOs, journalism, the arts, and government service.