Ph.D. in Trans-Asian Studies

Admission to Candidacy

Candidacy is the most important University milestone on the way to the Ph.D. degree. Admission to candidacy rests both on the fulfillment of department requirements and on an assessment by department faculty that the student has the potential to successfully complete the Ph.D.

Following University policy (GAP 4.6.1), students are expected to complete the candidacy requirements by Spring Quarter of the second year of graduate study.

Pre-Candidacy Requirements

1. Demonstrate proficiency in at least two East Asian languages by completing the following courses or demonstrating equivalent linguistic attainment by passing the appropriate certifying examinations.

   • CHINLANG 213 - Fourth-Year Modern Chinese, Third Quarter (5 units)
   • CHINLANG 213B - Fourth-Year Modern Chinese for Bilingual Speakers, Third Quarter (3 units)
   • JAPANLNG 213 - Fourth-Year Japanese, Third Quarter (2-4 units)
   • KORLANG 213 - Fourth-Year Korean, Third Quarter (4 units)
2. Proseminar sequence: Complete the following courses for a letter grade of B or higher.
   • EALC 201 - Proseminar in East Asian Humanities I: Skills and Methodologies (3 units)
   • EALC 202 - Proseminar in East Asian Humanities II: Current Scholarship (1 unit)
3. Additional course requirements: Complete the following with a letter grade of B or higher.

   • Two advisor-approved courses in Korean/Japanese/Chinese literature and culture or linguistics from among the offerings of the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, not including courses taken to fulfill the language requirement.

   • MTL 334A, MTL 334B, and/or similar courses as approved by the student's advisor.

   • Two upper-division or graduate-level Asia-focused courses in fields outside the department, as approved by the student’s advisor.

4. Qualifying paper

   • All Doctoral students must complete an MA qualifying paper. An MA thesis is accepted instead of a qualifying paper for students initially admitted as EALC MA students. Students seeking an MA en route to the PhD must secure approval from the primary advisor and submit an MA thesis.

   • A graded MA qualifying paper or thesis must be submitted to the DGS and SSO with an accompanying note from the student’s primary advisor by week five of spring quarter of the second year of study for the annual review and candidacy decision.

   • During the quarter when students complete the MA qualifying paper or thesis (25-30 pages), they must enroll in EALC 299.

Teaching Requirement

1. Complete the following course during spring quarter of the year before serving as a teaching assistant. Typically, this occurs during spring quarter of the second year of graduate study.
   • DLCL 301 - The Learning and Teaching of Second Languages (3 units)

2. Demonstrate pedagogical proficiency by serving as a teaching assistant for at least three quarters, starting no later than autumn quarter of the third year of graduate study. The department may approve exceptions to the timing of the language teaching requirement.

Post-Candidacy Requirements

1. Demonstrate proficiency in at least two Asian languages to be chosen in consultation with the primary advisor according to the candidate’s specific research goals. For both languages, students must be at least proficient at the fifth-year level. Reading proficiency must be certified through a written examination or an appropriate amount of coursework to be determined on a case-by-case basis. This requirement must be fulfilled by the end of the fourth year of graduate study.

2. Complete two seminars at the 300 level. EALC 200 may be substituted for one of these two seminars.

3. Pass a comprehensive qualifying examination that tests the candidate’s breadth and depth in the primary field of research and methodological competence in the relevant discipline before advancing to Terminal Graduate Registration (TGR) status.

4. Students should submit a dissertation prospectus before advancing to Terminal Graduate Registration (TGR) status. The prospectus should comprehensively describe the dissertation project and include sections on the project rationale, key research questions, contribution to the dissertation’s field, literature review, chapter-by-chapter description, a projected timeline, and bibliography.

5. Pass the University Oral Examination (dissertation defense). General regulations governing the oral examination are found in Graduate Academic Policies and Procedures (GAP 4.7.1). The candidate is examined on questions related to the dissertation after acceptable parts have been completed in draft form.

6. Following university policy (GAP 4.8.1), submit a dissertation demonstrating the ability to undertake original research based on primary and secondary materials in Japanese.