The China Studies Program offers a unique multidisciplinary and historically grounded curriculum on contemporary China. The curriculum reflects China’s increasing international influence — from its foreign policy and presence in international organizations to its importance in the world economy — as well as the domestic political, economic and social changes associated with China’s recent development.
Academic Requirements - Students concentrating in China Studies take four China Studies courses and two courses from any of the other Asian Studies programs, including Asia Regional courses offerings, and must pass the Chinese language proficiency examination.
- All China Studies concentrators also must complete the core requirement for Comparative National Systems prior to the start of their third semester (for those students who spent their first year of SAIS study at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, they should complete the requirement during the first semester of study on the SAIS DC campus).
- China Studies concentrators are required to take a capstone oral examination. For those students who qualify for honors, this will be given in conjunction with the Economics program. All others will take the capstone oral offered by faculty in the China Studies Program.
- Beginning with academic year 2012-2013, students will be responsible for demonstrating familiarity with the content of materials on the China Studies core reading list compiled by China Studies faculty.
- The Program expects that all students beginning in academic year 2012-2013 will have taken modern Chinese history class prior to coming to SAIS or while at SAIS.
Internships
China Studies strongly encourages its students to complete an internship during the summer between the first and second years of study and helps students identify prospective internship opportunities. Each year China Studies provides limited funding to help offset some of the costs students may incur in undertaking internships in Greater China -- China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. Internships are under various auspices, including multinational corporations, governments and international NGOs. Internships may also be available through the Grassroots China Initiative (click here//link) directed by China Studies faculty member, Dr. Anne Thurston.
In addition, students may wish to participate in the “Asia Career Trek,” that is offered most academic years. The Asia Career Trek is a week-long series of networking and information-gathering events with companies and organizations in Greater China to learn about professional opportunities in the region arranged by SAIS Career Services for SAIS students. The “Trek” is generally scheduled for a week in January over the SAIS winter break.
For more information about internships, click here.
Research Opportunities
China Studies offers a research seminar in Chinese economic and financial development for which students complete research papers of publishable quality. In addition, students may have opportunities to serve as research assistants for academic books or other projects.
Study Tours When funding is available, China Studies faculty may organize travel for limited numbers of students on topics involving Chinese domestic or foreign policy. Recent trips have included a study trip focused on China's water resources management, a trip (organized in conjunction with the SAIS international Development Program) on environment and poverty reduction in China, and a trip to Ethiopia and Ghana on China in Africa. China Studies students have also participated regularly in the Asia Foundation Study Tour to China, offered during the early part of the summer.
The Hopkins-Nanjing Center Certificate Advanced Standing
Students who have been admitted to SAIS in Washington, D.C., and are sufficiently advanced in the Chinese language are eligible for a five-semester M.A. and certificate program. Students who spend two semesters at the center in Nanjing graduate with a Certificate in Chinese and American Studies. After three additional semesters at SAIS in Washington, they also graduate with an M.A. from SAIS.
The year in Nanjing may be completed during any contiguous academic year. For instance, a student may (1) attend classes in Nanjing before or while applying to SAIS;(2) spend a year in Nanjing after completing two semesters at SAIS in Washington; or (3) begin study in Nanjing in the fall after completing three semesters in Washington. Students pursuing this option must meet the admission requirements of both programs. Hopkins-Nanjing Center work may not be combined with a SAIS dual-degree program such as the SAIS-Wharton M.A.-M.B.A. or the SAIS-Stanford M.A.-J.D. Acceptance to the Hopkins-Nanjing Center or to SAIS does not constitute acceptance to the other institution. U.S. and other international students completing a graduate degree elsewhere may petition their home university to accept work completed at the Center as credit toward their degree.
Beginning in Fall 2010, students who hold a certificate from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center and have been admitted to SAIS and have chosen to concentrate in China Studies can receive credit for up to four courses on China taken at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center . These courses must be similar to those offered by the China Studies Department at SAIS in Washington DC or be consistent with the aims of the SAIS China Studies curriculum. To receive credit for courses offered by the Hopkins-Nanjing Center toward the SAIS China Studies concentration, students with a Certificate from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center entering SAIS must submit to the China Studies Department for review and approval a list of those courses completed at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center that they wish to have count as fulfilling the courses on China required for the concentration. As part of the course approval process, students will be asked to provide an official transcript from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center and may be asked to provide supporting materials from the courses for which they are seeking SAIS credit, such as course syllabi. Consistent with SAIS standards for course credit, courses from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center on which a student has received a grade below a B- will not be eligible for SAIS credit. Students who receive China Studies credit for courses taken at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center will still need to take the two additional Asian Studies courses at SAIS-DC to complete the six-course China Studies concentration requirement and pass the Chinese language proficiency exam, as well as complete the core requirement for Comparative National System. All students are strongly encouraged to have taken courses in both Chinese domestic and foreign policy. The Program recommends that students complete for credit or at minimum audit at least one course on China Studies in Washington DC.
M.I.P.P. Program
China Studies welcomes students in the M.I.P.P. program to affiliate with the China Studies program. To have this affiliation recorded on their transcript, M.I.P.P. students must complete a minimum of three China Studies courses offered by the SAIS China Studies Program.
Ph.D. Program
China Studies has a very small Ph.D. program, generally admitting only one student each year. Current students and recent graduates in the China Studies Ph.D. program have conducted or are conducting dissertation research on diverse topics such as: U.S.-China military relations, the Chinese foreign policymaking process, China’s energy strategy, China’s environmental policy, the politics of Taiwan security policy, China's role in U.N. sanctions policy, cross-Strait relations and the process of building a telecommunications regulatory apparatus in China.
Typical China Studies Courses
(See www.sais-jhu.edu/courses for course descriptions.)
- Contemporary Chinese Politics
- Chinese Foreign Policy
- US-China Relations
- China in the 21st Century: Challenges to State and Society
- China’s Environment and Development: Policy, Politics
and Sustainability - China’s Reforms and Changing Role in the Global Economy
- Grassroots China: The Social Consequences of Development
- Law and Society in China
- Modern China: History and Political Conflict
- Political Leadership in Greater China
- Reform and Development of China’s Financial Sector
- Advanced Research Seminar on China and the Financial Crisis
- Taiwan and Cross-Strait Relations
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