Center for Asian Studies
Dr. Lauren Collins, Asian Studies Faculty Advisor
CASE Building, Suite E330
1725 Euclid Ave.
Boulder, CO 80309
lauren.collins@colorado.edu

The study of Asia is critical in our global age. Throughout history and in the present day, communities and countries across Asia have had an enormous influence on the world's economics, politics, culture, international relations, social movements, music, arts, entertainment, religion and more. Regardless of one's profession or discipline, understanding the past and present of this diverse region will be a key advantage in any future career.  

The Asian studies major at CU Boulder offers students an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Asia, encompassing a wide variety of courses that reflect the region's astonishing diversity and complexity. Many students choose Asian studies as a second major that complements their study of such subjects as history, anthropology, international affairs, Asian languages, geography, and even business and economics. As part of the Asian studies major requirements, students will receive a thorough grounding in the history of Asia and will study an Asian language: Arabic, Chinese, Hindi/Urdu, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Sanskrit or Tibetan. Majors are also encouraged to take advantage of the numerous study abroad experiences and international internship opportunities offered through the Center for Asian Studies and CU Boulder Education Abroad. All majors complete their Asian studies degree with the Senior Capstone in Asian Studies, a cumulative learning experience that guides students in producing an original research paper or creative project that deepens their knowledge of the field and gives them a unique opportunity to explore an Asian studies-related topic of their own interest. 

Upon completion of this course of study, students will have received a highly individualized and broad education in the region of Asia that equips them to better understand the region's complex history and diverse cultures, as well as its current dynamics.

Optional Program Tracks

Students have several options when majoring in Asian studies. One is the general Asian studies Bachelor of Arts degree. Alternately, if a student wishes to choose a particular area of sub-regional emphasis that will appear on their transcript, they may decide in their coursework to follow one of three available tracks:

  • Korea track
  • South Asia track
  • Southeast Asia track
  • West Asia/Middle East track

View the Program Tracks tab for more information.

Requirements

Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required courses listed below: 42 credits minimum, 18 of which must be upper division (College of Arts and Sciences minimum). Other courses not listed here, including some study abroad courses and special topics courses, may be applicable toward the Asian studies major, but they must first be approved by the Asian studies faculty advisor.

All required major courses must be passed with a C- or better and cannot be taken pass/fail.  Students must have a grade point average of at least 2.000 in the major in order to graduate. 

Required Courses and Credits

Required Courses
ASIA 2000Gateway to Modern Asia: Exploring Regional Connections3
ASIA 4830Senior Seminar in Asian Studies3
Asian Language
Four semesters of a single Asian language:12-20
Arabic 1
Chinese 2
Farsi 2
Hindi 1
Indonesian 4
Japanese 2
Korean 1
Nepali 4
Sanskrit 3
Tibetan 4
Traditional Asian Civilizations
Choose two introductory courses in different areas from Traditional Asian Civilizations course list (see below).6
Modern Asian Civilizations
Choose one course from Modern Asian Civilizations course list (see below).3
Electives
Upper-division courses from Electives list (see below).15-12
Total Credit Hours42-47

Traditional Asian Civilizations

Students take any two of the following introductory courses, focusing on two different civilizations: East Asia, South Asia, West Asia, or Southeast Asia (6 credits minimum, lower division). 

East Asian Civilization
Introduction to Chinese Civilization
Introduction to Chinese History to 1644
Introduction to Japanese History
Introduction to Japanese Civilization
Introduction to Korean History
Introduction to Korean Civilization
Religions of East Asia
South Asian Civilization
Introduction to South Asian Civilizations
Introduction to South Asian History to 1757
Happiness and Nirvana: Enlightenment in Indian Religions
Introduction to Tibetan Civilization
West Asian Civilization
Introduction to Arab and Islamic Civilizations
Love, Loss and Longing in Classical Arabic Literature
The Muslim World, 600-1250
Introduction to Persian Civilization
Introduction to Middle Eastern History
Islam
The Muslim World, 600-1250
Southeast Asian Civilization
Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia

Modern Asian Civilizations

Students take one course (3 credits, lower division or upper division).

ANTH (all modern Asian anthropology courses)
Exploring a Non-Western Culture: The Tamils
Exploring a Non-Western Culture: Tibet
Exploring Culture and Media in Southeast Asia
Explorations in Anthropology (Ethnography of Southeast Asia; Global Islams)
Anthropological Perspectives: Contemporary Issues (Theory in Cultural Anthropology: Nepal and the Himalayas)
Globalization and Transnational Culture
Anthropology of Tibet
Culture and Society in South Asia
Ethnography of Southeast Asia and Indonesia
ARTH
Capstone Seminar: Topics in Art History (Contemporary Asian Art; China!; Contemporary Art in the Middle East; Contemporary Art of the Himalayas )
ASIA
Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia
Sex and Gender in Asian Film and Literature
Discovering Urban China: Tradition, Modernity, Nostalgia
Politics of Memory and Heritage in Asia
Open Topics in Asian Studies (Depending on topic)
Open Topics in Asian Studies
Urban Asia: Tradition, Modernity, Challenges
Independent Study (Depending on topic)
ECON
Chinese Economic History in Comparative Perspective
ENGL
Literature and Globalization (Israel/Palestine)
Special Topics in Queer Literature (Multicultural and Postcolonial Literature: Post-Orientalism)
ETHN
Asian Pacific American Communities
GEOG (all modern Asian geography courses)
Geography of China
Geographies of South Asia
Geographies of Political Islam
Environment and Development in China
Geography of Tibet
HIST (all modern Asian history courses)
Introduction to South Asian History since 1757
Introduction to Chinese History since 1644
History of Early Modern Societies (Early Modern China 960-1842)
The Vietnam Wars
Seminar in Recent Chinese History
Topics in Comparative History (British Empire India 1760-1947; Modernity in China and Japan )
World War II in Asia and the Pacific
The Vietnam War in US Politics and Culture
The Modern Middle East, 1600 to the Present
Islam in the Modern World: Revivalism, Modernism, and Fundamentalism, 1800-2001
History of Modern Israel/Palestine
History of Modern India
Women in Modern India
Buddha to Gandhi: A History of Indian Nonviolence
Early Modern China: From Genghis Khan to the Opium War
Modern China: Collapse of Imperial Brilliance, 1644-1949
Contemporary China: Radicalism and Reform, 1949 to Present
Inventing Chinese Modernity, 1800 to Present
China and Islam from the 7th Century to the 20th Century
Window on Modern China
Modern Japanese History
History of Early Modern Japan (1590-1868)
The History of Postwar Japan, 1945 to Present
HUMN
Literature and Popular Culture in Modern China
Tradition and Transgression: Modern Japanese Literature in Translation
IAFS
The Post-Cold War World (Contemporary China - International Views; Cultural Revolution - China 1966-79; China in the Global Economy; Afghanistan and Iraq; South Asia-Conflict/Resolution )
JWST
History of Modern Israel/Palestine
MDST
Asian Media and Culture
PSCI (all modern Asian politics courses)
Government and Politics in Southeast Asia
South Asian Politics
Chinese Foreign Policy
Chinese Politics
Middle Eastern Politics
RLST (all modern Asian religion courses)
Topics in Religious Studies (Religion in Modern China)
Topics in Buddhism
Islam in the Modern World
WGST (all Asian Women's Studies courses)
Women in Islam
Gender, Sexuality and Culture in the Modern Middle East
All modern Asian literature courses
Islamic Culture and the Iberian Peninsula
The Arabic Novel
Narrating the City: Literary Mappings of the Urban Landscape
Gender, Sexuality and Culture in the Modern Middle East
Arabic Media
Film and the Dynamics of Chinese Culture
Culture and Literature of Late Imperial China
Literature and Popular Culture in Modern China
Sinophone Literature in the Contemporary World
Topics in Chinese Film
Major Asian Filmmakers
Topics in International Cinema (Contemporary Asian Cinema)
Special Topics
Screening India: A History of Bollywood Cinema
Living Indian Epics: The Ramayana and the Mahabharata in the Modern Political Imagination
South Asian Diasporas: Imagining Home Abroad
The Power of the Word: Subversive and Censored 20th Century Indo-Pakistani Literature
The Many Faces of Krishna in South Asia Literature and Culture
Japanese Culture through Film and Anime
Business Japanese
From Rebellion to Calamity: Contemp Japanese Lit in Transl
The Floating World of Play and Passion: Early Modern Japanese Literature in Translation
Tradition and Transgression: Modern Japanese Literature in Translation
Studies in Japanese Popular Culture
Japanese Sociolinguistics
Contemporary Japanese 1: Current Issues
Film and Korean Culture
Modern Korean Literature in English Translation
Studies in Korean Popular Culture

Electives

After meeting the requirements for coursework in Traditional Asian Civilization and Modern Asian Civilization (listed above), additional courses from those categories may also be be taken as upper-division electives. Upper-division Asian language courses can act as electives, when approved by the Asian studies faculty advisor.

ANTH 1100Exploring a Non-Western Culture: The Tamils3
ANTH 1105Exploring a Non-Western Culture: Tibet3
ANTH 1170Exploring Culture and Gender through Film3
ANTH 4020Explorations in Anthropology (Islam; Ethnography of Southeast Asia; Global Cultures: Islam; Global Islams)3-6
ANTH/JWST 4050Anthropology of Jews and Judaism (Cultures of Israel and Palestine)3
ANTH 4180Anthropological Perspectives: Contemporary Issues (Theory in Cultural Anthropology: Nepal and the Himalayas)3
ANTH 4505Globalization and Transnational Culture3
ANTH 4690Anthropology of Tibet3-6
ANTH 4750Culture and Society in South Asia3
ANTH 4760Ethnography of Southeast Asia and Indonesia3
ARAB 1011Introduction to Arab and Islamic Civilizations3
ARAB 2231Love, Loss and Longing in Classical Arabic Literature3
ARAB 2320The Muslim World, 600-12503
ARAB 3230Islamic Culture and the Iberian Peninsula3
ARAB 3231In the Footsteps of Travelers: Travel Writing in Arabic Lit3
ARAB 3241Art in Islamic Cultures3
ARAB 3330The Arabic Novel3
ARAB 3340Representing Islam3
ARAB 3350Narrating the City: Literary Mappings of the Urban Landscape3
ARAB 3410Gender, Sexuality and Culture in the Modern Middle East3
ARAB 4200Advanced Readings in Arabic3
ARAB 4250Arabic Media3
ARAB 4840Independent Study1-3
ARTH 2409Intro to Asian Art3
ARTH 3619The Arts of China3
ARTH 3241Art in Islamic Cultures3
ARTH 3629The Arts of Japan3
ARTH 3929Special Topics in Art History (Asian Art: Gods, Kings and Power; Art in Asian Religions)1-3
ARTH/CLAS 4169Topics in Ancient and Classical Art and Archaeology (Persian Empire)3
ARTH/CLAS 4269Art and Archaeology of the Ancient Near East3
ARTH 4449Arts of India and Southeast Asia3
ARTH 4919Capstone Seminar: Topics in Art History (Contemporary Asian Art; China!; Contemporary Art in the Middle East; Contemporary Art of the Himalayas)3
ARTH 4929Special Topics in Art History (Art of Buddhism; Art of the Himalayas/Tibet; Politics/Propaganda Asian Art)1-3
ASIA 1000Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia3
ASIA 1700Introduction to Tibetan Civilization3
ASIA 2852Contemporary Southeast Asia: Environmental Politics3
ASIA 3300Sex and Gender in Asian Film and Literature3
ASIA 3900Discovering Urban China: Tradition, Modernity, Nostalgia3
ASIA 4001Advanced Language Co-Seminar Arts and Humanities1
ASIA 4002Advanced Language Co-Seminar Social Sciences1
ASIA 4200Politics of Memory and Heritage in Asia3
ASIA 4300Open Topics in Asian Studies3
ASIA 4400Open Topics in Asian Studies3
ASIA 4448Wars of Liberation in Southeast Asia3
ASIA 4500Urban Asia: Tradition, Modernity, Challenges3
ASIA 4840Independent Study1-3
ASIA 4842Global Frontiers in Southeast Asia3
ASIA 4930Engage Asia: Internship in Asian Studies1-6
CHIN 1012Introduction to Chinese Civilization4
CHIN 1051Masterpieces of Chinese Literature in Translation3
CHIN 2441Film and the Dynamics of Chinese Culture3
CHIN/JPNS 3200Adv Wrtg Topics on Chinese & Japanese Literature and Civilization3
CHIN 3311The Dao and the World in Medieval China3
CHIN/HUMN 3321Political Thought in Ancient China3
CHIN 3331Culture and Literature of Late Imperial China3
CHIN 3334Chinese Narrative Tradition3
CHIN 3341Literature and Popular Culture in Modern China3
CHIN 3342Sinophone Literature in the Contemporary World3
CHIN 3351Reality and Dream in Traditional Chinese Literature3
CHIN 3361Women and the Supernatural in Chinese Literature3
CHIN 3371Topics in Chinese Film3
CHIN 4210Introduction to Classical Chinese3
CHIN 4220Readings in Classical Chinese3
CHIN 4300Open Topics: Readings in Chinese Literature3
CHIN 4750Daoism3
CHIN 4900Independent Study1-3
CHIN 4980Practical Issues in Chinese Language Pedagogy1
CINE 2513Major Asian Filmmakers3
CINE 4023Topics in International Cinema (Contemporary Asian Cinema)3
CLAS 4169Topics in Ancient and Classical Art and Archaeology (Persian Empire)3
CLAS 4269Art and Archaeology of the Ancient Near East3
ECON 4534Chinese Economic History in Comparative Perspective3
EDUC 4800Special Topics (Asia)1-9
EMUS 1467World Music Ensemble (Japanese; Gamelan )1
EMUS 3467World Music Ensemble (Japanese; Gamelan )1
ENES 3750Xi'an, China: Self-Awareness and Images of the Other3
ENES 3843Special Topics (China through the Eyes of the West)1-3
ENGL 4018Literature and Globalization (Israel/Palestine)3
ENGL 4287Special Topics in Queer Literature (Post-orientalism)3
ENVD 4364Special Topics: History and Historiography of Environmental Design (Topic: Dushanbe Teahouse Restoration)1-6
ETHN 3015Asian Pacific American Communities3
ETHN 3105Selected Topics in Asian American Studies (Bruce Lee and Transpacific )3
FRSI 1011Introduction to Persian Civilization3
FRSI 4900Independent Study1-4
GEOG 3822Geography of China3
GEOG 3832Geographies of South Asia3
GEOG 4762Geographies of Political Islam3
GEOG 4742Topics in Environment and Society (Depending on topic)3
GEOG 4822Environment and Development in China3
GEOG 4832Geography of Tibet3
GEOG 4842Global Frontiers in Southeast Asia3
HIND 1011Introduction to South Asian Civilizations3
HIND 3400Special Topics3
HIND 3441Screening India: A History of Bollywood Cinema3
HIND 3651Living Indian Epics: The Ramayana and the Mahabharata in the Modern Political Imagination3
HIND 3661South Asian Diasporas: Imagining Home Abroad3
HIND 3811The Power of the Word: Subversive and Censored 20th Century Indo-Pakistani Literature3
HIND 3831The Many Faces of Krishna in South Asia Literature and Culture3
HIND 3851Devotional Literature in South Asia3
HIND 4900Independent Study1-3
HIST 1308Introduction to Middle Eastern History3
HIST 1438Introduction to Korean History3
HIST 1518Introduction to South Asian History to 17573
HIST 1528Introduction to South Asian History since 17573
HIST 1618Introduction to Chinese History to 16443
HIST 1628Introduction to Chinese History since 16443
HIST 1708Introduction to Japanese History3
HIST 1800Introduction to Global History (Maritime Asia 1500-1800)3
HIST/JWST 1818Jewish History to 14923
HIST 1828Jewish History Since 14923
HIST 2110History of Early Modern Societies (Early Modern China 960-1842)3
HIST 2166The Vietnam Wars3
HIST 2220History of War and Society (Warfare and Culture in South Asia; Militarism in Japense History; Korea through Wars )3
HIST 2629China in World History3
HIST 3109Seminar in Asian History3
HIST 3328Seminar in Middle Eastern History3
HIST 3628Seminar in Recent Chinese History3
HIST 3718Seminar in Japanese History3
HIST 4020Topics in Comparative History (British Empire India 1760-1947; Modernity in China and Japan)3
HIST 4109World War II in Asia and the Pacific3
HIST 4166The Vietnam War in US Politics and Culture3
HIST 4328The Modern Middle East, 1600 to the Present3
HIST 4329Islam in the Modern World: Revivalism, Modernism, and Fundamentalism, 1800-20013
HIST 4338History of Modern Israel/Palestine3
HIST 4339Borderlands of the British Empire3
HIST/JWST 4348Topics in Jewish History (Tel Aviv—Urban History and Culture; Jews Under Islam)3
HIST 4349Decolonization of the British Empire3
HIST 4359The Global History of Modern Arabia3
HIST/JWST 4378History of Modern Jewish-Muslim Relations3
HIST 4528Islam in South and Southeast Asia (1000 to the Present)3
HIST 4538History of Modern India3
HIST 4548Women in Modern India3
HIST 4558Buddha to Gandhi: A History of Indian Nonviolence3
HIST 4618Early Modern China: From Genghis Khan to the Opium War3
HIST/WGST 4619Women in East Asian History3
HIST 4628Modern China: Collapse of Imperial Brilliance, 1644-19493
HIST 4638Contemporary China: Radicalism and Reform, 1949 to Present3
HIST 4648Inventing Chinese Modernity, 1800 to Present3
HIST 4658China and Islam from the 7th Century to the 20th Century3
HIST 4688Window on Modern China3
HIST 4718Ancient, Classical, and Medieval Japanese History3
HIST 4728Modern Japanese History3
HIST 4738History of Early Modern Japan (1590-1868)3
HIST 4758The History of Postwar Japan, 1945 to Present3
HIST 4808Special Topics in World Areas History (Chinese and Japanese Modernity)3
HUMN 3093Topics in Humanities (Representing Islam; The Arabic Novel; Narrating the City )3
HUMN 3321Political Thought in Ancient China3
HUMN 3341Literature and Popular Culture in Modern China3
HUMN 3811Love, Death, and Desire: Classical Japanese Literature in Translation3
HUMN 3841Tradition and Transgression: Modern Japanese Literature in Translation3
HUMN 3850The Mediterranean: Religion Before Modernity3
HUMN 4100Writing the World in Traditional China3
IAFS 3000Special Topics in International Affairs (Political Economy/Middle East; Turkey—Mediator/Arab Spring; Gender, Geopolitics and Islam )3
IAFS 3010Islam, Geopolitics and Society: Gender, Identity and Place3
IAFS 3520/JWST 4302Global Seminar: Justice, Human Rights and Democracy in Israel6
IAFS/JWST 3530Global Seminar: Jews and Muslims - The Multiethnic History of Istanbul3
IAFS/JWST 3650History of Arab-Israeli Conflict3
IAFS 4500The Post-Cold War World (Contemporary China/International Views; Cultural Revolution/China 1966-79; China and the Global Economy; Afghanistan and Iraq; South Asia/Conflict/Resolution; Arab Awakening)3
INBU 3300International Business and Management3
INBU 3301Doing Business in China3
INBU 4151International Operations in Hong Kong3
INBU 4200International Financial Management3
JPNS 1012Introduction to Japanese Civilization4
JPNS 1051Masterpieces of Japanese Literature in Translation3
JPNS 2441Japanese Culture through Film and Anime3
JPNS 2811Heroes and the Supernatural: Word and Image in Old Japan3
JPNS 3200Adv Wrtg Topics on Chinese & Japanese Literature and Civilization3
JPNS 3311Japanese Colonial and Transnational Literature3
JPNS 3321Fantasy and Sci-Fi in Japanese Literature, Film and Culture3
JPNS 3331Business Japanese3
JPNS 3511From Rebellion to Calamity: Contemp Japanese Lit in Transl3
JPNS/HUMN 3811Love, Death, and Desire: Classical Japanese Literature in Translation3
JPNS 3821Monsters, Monks, and Mayhem: Medieval Japanese Literature in Translation3
JPNS 3831The Floating World of Play and Passion: Early Modern Japanese Literature in Translation3
JPNS 3841Tradition and Transgression: Modern Japanese Literature in Translation3
JPNS 3851Studies in Japanese Popular Culture3
JPNS 3861Imagining the Samurai in Japanese Literature and Culture3
JPNS 3871Horror and the Macabre in Japanese Literature, Film, Culture3
JPNS 3881Environment, Nature and Disaster in Japanese Literature and Culture3
JPNS 3891Travel/Travel Writing in Japanese Literature and Culture3
JPNS 4050Japanese Sociolinguistics3
JPNS 4070Second Language Acquisition of Japanese3
JPNS 4080Kanji in Japanese Orthography3
JPNS 4150Japanese to English Translation: Theory and Practice3
JPNS 4210Contemporary Japanese 1: Current Issues3
JPNS 4300Open Topics: Readings in Japanese3
JPNS 4310Classical Japanese 13
JPNS 4320Classical Japanese 23
JPNS 4400Critical Theory and Japanese Literature and Culture3
JPNS 4900Independent Study1-3
JPNS 4980Practical Issues in Japanese Language Pedagogy1
JWST 1818Jewish History to 14923
JWST/RLST 2600Judaism, Christianity, and Islam: Abrahamic Religions3
JWST/RLST 3100Judaism3
JWST 3530Global Seminar: Jews and Muslims - The Multiethnic History of Istanbul3
JWST 4050Anthropology of Jews and Judaism (Cultures of Israel and Palestine)3
JWST 4302Global Seminar: Justice, Human Rights and Democracy in Israel6
JWST 4338History of Modern Israel/Palestine3
JWST 4378History of Modern Jewish-Muslim Relations3
KREN 1011Introduction to Korean Civilization3
KREN 2441Film and Korean Culture3
KREN 3841Modern Korean Literature in English Translation3
KREN 4900Independent Study1-6
MDST 4211Asian Media and Culture3
MDST 4341International Media and Global Crises3
MUEL 2772World Musics: Asia and Oceania3
MUSC 2772World Musics: Asia and Oceania3
MUSC 4152East Asian Music3
PHIL 1600Philosophy and Religion3
PHIL 3800Open Topics in Philosophy (Buddhism as Philosophy)3
PSCI 3072Government and Politics in Southeast Asia3
PSCI 3102South Asian Politics3
PSCI 4022Chinese Foreign Policy3
PSCI 4028Special Topics (Politics of Southeast Asia)3
PSCI 4028Special Topics (Middle East Politics)3
PSCI 4052Chinese Politics3
PSCI 4242Middle Eastern Politics3
PSCI 4243Modern Warfare: Terrorism, Ideology, Identity3
RLST 2202Islam3
RLST 2320The Muslim World, 600-12503
RLST 2600Judaism, Christianity, and Islam: Abrahamic Religions3
RLST 2610Happiness and Nirvana: Enlightenment in Indian Religions3
RLST 2612Yoga: Ancient and Modern3
RLST 2620Religions of East Asia3
RLST 3040The Quran3
RLST 3060Fundamentalism and Islam3
RLST 3070Islamic Mysticism: Ibn Arabi, Rumi, and the Sufi Tradition3
RLST 3100Judaism3
RLST 3200Yoga, Castes and Magic: Hindu Society and Spirituality3
RLST 3300Foundations of Buddhism3
RLST 3530Global Seminar: Jews and Muslims - The Multiethnic History of Istanbul3
RLST 3550Tibetan Buddhism3
RLST/WGST 3750Women in Buddhism3
RLST 3800Chinese Religions3
RLST 3820Topics in Religious Studies (Tibetan Buddhism; Religion in Modern China; Islam, Politics and Militancy; Art in Asian Religions)3
RLST 4200Topics in Hinduism3
RLST 4250Topics in Buddhism (Buddhist Literature in Tibet; Transnational Buddhism; Buddhist Ethics; Buddhist Ethics; Buddhist Philosophy; Buddhism and Society; Buddhist Esotericism)3
RLST 4260Topics in Judaism (Bible in Judaism/Christianity)3
RLST 4280Body and Magic in India3
RLST 4650Islam in the Modern World3
RLST 4750Daoism3
RLST 4780New Religions of East Asia3
SOCY 3046Topics in Sex and Gender (Sex, Gender, and Social Change in Southeast Asia )3
WGST 2600Introduction to Global Gender, Race and Sexuality Studies3
WGST 3012Gender and Development3
WGST 3201Women, Gender & Sexuality in Jewish Texts & Traditions3
WGST 3220Women in Islam3
WGST 3410Gender, Sexuality and Culture in the Modern Middle East3
WGST 3500Global Gender Issues3
WGST 3750Women in Buddhism3
WGST 4619Women in East Asian History3

Program Tracks

Korea Track

Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required major courses listed below: 42 credit hours minimum, 18 of which must be upper-division (College of Arts and Sciences minimum). Other courses not listed here, including some study abroad courses and special topics courses, may be applicable toward the Asian Studies major, but must first be approved by the Asian Studies Faculty Advisor.

Required Courses
ASIA 2000Gateway to Modern Asia: Exploring Regional Connections3
ASIA 4830Senior Seminar in Asian Studies (The Senior Thesis/Project should focus on a Korean topic.)3
Asian Language
4 semesters of Korean language (20 credit hours). Additional semesters can count as Asian Studies Electives.20
Traditional Asian Civilizations
Students take two introductory courses, one on Korea and one on South, West, or Southeast Asia; 6 credits minimum, lower division.6
Korean Civilization
Introduction to Korean History
Introduction to Korean Civilization
West, South, or Southeast Asian Civilization
West Asian Civilization
Introduction to Arab and Islamic Civilizations
Love, Loss and Longing in Classical Arabic Literature
Introduction to Persian Civilization
Introduction to Middle Eastern History
Islam
South Asian Civilization
Introduction to South Asian Civilizations
Introduction to Tibetan Civilization
Introduction to South Asian History to 1757
Happiness and Nirvana: Enlightenment in Indian Religions
Southeast Asian Civilization
Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia
Modern Asian Civilizations
Students take one course; 3 credit hours, lower division or upper division.3
Electives
Students take 12-15 upper-division credit hours, 6 credit hours of which focus on Korea.15-12
Courses with a Korean focus
Advanced Korean 1
Advanced Korean 2
Modern Korean Literature in English Translation
Studies in Korean Popular Culture
Total Credit Hours50-47

South Asia Track

Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required courses listed below: 42 credit hours minimum, 18 of which must be upper-division (College of Arts and Sciences minimum). Other courses not listed here, including some study abroad courses and special topics courses, may be applicable toward the Asian Studies major, but must first be approved by the Asian Studies Faculty Advisor.

Required Courses
ASIA 2000Gateway to Modern Asia: Exploring Regional Connections3
ASIA 4830Senior Seminar in Asian Studies (The Senior Thesis/Project should focus on a South Asian topic.)3
Asian Language
4 semesters of a single South Asian language (12-20 credit hours). Additional semesters can count as Asian Studies Electives.12-20
Hindi (sequence of three years offered)
Sanskrit (available through Continuing Education)
Tibetan and Nepali (offered for one year, plus study abroad and transfer credit options)
Traditional Asian Civilizations
Students take two introductory courses, one on South Asia and one on West, East, or Southeast Asia; 6 credits minimum, lower division.6
South Asian Civilization
Introduction to South Asian Civilizations
Introduction to Tibetan Civilization
Introduction to South Asian History to 1757
Happiness and Nirvana: Enlightenment in Indian Religions
East, West, or Southeast Asian Civilization
West Asian Civilization
Introduction to Arab and Islamic Civilizations
Love, Loss and Longing in Classical Arabic Literature
Introduction to Persian Civilization
Introduction to Middle Eastern History
Islam
East Asian Civilization
Introduction to Chinese Civilization
Introduction to Korean History
Introduction to Chinese History to 1644
Introduction to Japanese History
Introduction to Japanese Civilization
Introduction to Korean Civilization
Religions of East Asia
Southeast Asian Civilization
Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia
Modern Asian Civilizations
Students take one course; 3 credit hours, lower division or upper division.3
Electives
Students take 12-15 upper-division credit hours, 6 credit hours of which must focus on South Asia.15-12
Courses with a South Asian Focus
Anthropology of Tibet
Culture and Society in South Asia
Geographies of South Asia
Geography of Tibet
Borderlands of the British Empire
Decolonization of the British Empire
Islam in South and Southeast Asia (1000 to the Present)
History of Modern India
Women in Modern India
Buddha to Gandhi: A History of Indian Nonviolence
The Post-Cold War World (South Asia)
South Asian Politics
Yoga, Castes and Magic: Hindu Society and Spirituality
Advanced Hindi 1
Advanced Hindi 2
Special Topics
Screening India: A History of Bollywood Cinema
Living Indian Epics: The Ramayana and the Mahabharata in the Modern Political Imagination
South Asian Diasporas: Imagining Home Abroad
The Power of the Word: Subversive and Censored 20th Century Indo-Pakistani Literature
The Many Faces of Krishna in South Asia Literature and Culture
Devotional Literature in South Asia
Foundations of Buddhism
Topics in Religious Studies (Tibetan Buddhism)
Topics in Hinduism
Women in Buddhism
Total Credit Hours42-47

Southeast Asia Track

Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required courses listed below: 42 credit hours minimum, 18 of which must be upper-division (College of Arts and Sciences minimum). Other courses not listed here, including some study abroad courses and special topics courses, may be applicable toward the Asian Studies major, but must first be approved by the Asian Studies Faculty Advisor.

Required Courses
ASIA 2000Gateway to Modern Asia: Exploring Regional Connections3
ASIA 4830Senior Seminar in Asian Studies (The Senior Thesis/Project should focus on a South Asian topic.)3
Asian Language
4 semesters of Indonesian language (12 credit hours)12
Traditional Asian Civilizations
Students take two introductory courses, one on Southeast Asia and one on South, West, or East Asia.; 6 credits minimum, lower division.6
Southeast Asian Civilization (required)
Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia
West Asian Civilization
Introduction to Arab and Islamic Civilizations
Love, Loss and Longing in Classical Arabic Literature
Introduction to Persian Civilization
Introduction to Middle Eastern History
Islam
South Asian Civilization
Introduction to South Asian Civilizations
Introduction to Tibetan Civilization
Introduction to South Asian History to 1757
Happiness and Nirvana: Enlightenment in Indian Religions
East Asian Civilization
Introduction to Chinese Civilization
Introduction to Korean History
Introduction to Chinese History to 1644
Introduction to Japanese History
Introduction to Japanese Civilization
Introduction to Korean Civilization
Religions of East Asia
Modern Asian Civilizations
Students take one of the following courses on Southeast Asia.3
Exploring Culture and Media in Southeast Asia
Ethnography of Southeast Asia and Indonesia
Capstone Seminar: Topics in Art History (Southeast Asia)
Contemporary Southeast Asia: Environmental Politics
Politics of Memory and Heritage in Asia
Wars of Liberation in Southeast Asia
Urban Asia: Tradition, Modernity, Challenges
Special Topics in Environmental Studies (Env Gov Mekong Delta, Vietnam)
Global Frontiers in Southeast Asia
The Vietnam Wars
Islam in South and Southeast Asia (1000 to the Present)
Government and Politics in Southeast Asia
Topics in Sex and Gender (Sex, Gender, and Social Change in Southeast Asia)
Major Electives
Students take 15 additional upper-division credit hours, 3 credit hours of which focus on Southeast Asia (3 credit hours can be lower-division if Modern Asian Civilization filled by an upper-division course)15
See main catalog entry for the Asian Studies major for a full list of Asian Studies Major Electives.
Total Credit Hours42

West Asia/Middle East Track

Students must complete the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences and the required courses listed below: 42 credit hours minimum, 18 of which must be upper-division (College of Arts and Sciences minimum). Other courses not listed here, including some study abroad courses and special topics courses, may be applicable toward the Asian Studies major, but must first be approved by the Asian Studies Faculty Advisor.

Required Courses
ASIA 2000Gateway to Modern Asia: Exploring Regional Connections3
ASIA 4830Senior Seminar in Asian Studies (The Senior Thesis/Project should focus on a West Asian topic.)3
Asian Language
4 semesters of a single West Asian language (14-20 credit hours). Additional semesters can count as Asian Studies Electives.14-20
Arabic (sequence of three years offered)
Farsi (sequence of three years offered)
Traditional Asian Civilizations
Students take two introductory courses, one on West Asia and one on South, East, or Southeast Asia; 6 credits minimum, lower division.6
West Asian Civilization
Introduction to Arab and Islamic Civilizations
Love, Loss and Longing in Classical Arabic Literature
Introduction to Persian Civilization
Introduction to Middle Eastern History
Islam
East, South, or Southeast Asian Civilization
East Asian Civilization
Introduction to Chinese Civilization
Introduction to Korean History
Introduction to Chinese History to 1644
Introduction to Japanese History
Introduction to Japanese Civilization
Introduction to Korean Civilization
Religions of East Asia
South Asian Civilization
Introduction to South Asian Civilizations
Introduction to Tibetan Civilization
Introduction to South Asian History to 1757
Happiness and Nirvana: Enlightenment in Indian Religions
Southeast Asian Civilization
Origins of Contemporary Southeast Asia
Modern Asian Civilizations
Students take one course; 3 credit hours, lower division or upper division.3
Electives
Students take 15-12 upper-division credit hours, 6 credit hours of which must focus on West Asia.15-12
Courses with a West Asian Focus
Advanced Arabic 1
Advanced Arabic 2
Arabian Nights, Arabian Days: Popular Literature in the Arab World and Beyond
The Making of Middle Eastern Identities: Arabs and Their ¿Others¿
Islamic Culture and the Iberian Peninsula
In the Footsteps of Travelers: Travel Writing in Arabic Lit
Art in Islamic Cultures
The Arabic Novel
Arabic Poetry
Representing Islam
Narrating the City: Literary Mappings of the Urban Landscape
Tradition, Authenticity, and Reform in Islam
Gender, Sexuality and Culture in the Modern Middle East
Advanced Readings in Arabic
Arabic Media
Art and Archaeology of the Ancient Near East
Topics in Environment and Society (Geographies of Contemporary Muslim Societies: Islam, Biopolitics, and the Postcolonial)
Geographies of Political Islam
Seminar in Middle Eastern History
The Modern Middle East, 1600 to the Present
Islam in the Modern World: Revivalism, Modernism, and Fundamentalism, 1800-2001
History of Modern Israel/Palestine
History of Modern Jewish-Muslim Relations
The Mediterranean: Religion Before Modernity
History of Arab-Israeli Conflict
The Post-Cold War World (Afghanistan and Iraq)
Global Seminar: Jews and Muslims - The Multiethnic History of Istanbul
Global Seminar: Justice, Human Rights and Democracy in Israel
Middle Eastern Politics
Islam
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam: Abrahamic Religions
Judaism
Total Credit Hours44-47

Recommended Four-Year Plan of Study

Through the required coursework for the major, students will complete all 12 credits of the Arts & Humanities area and some of the credits in the Social Sciences area of the Gen Ed Distribution Requirement and the Global Perspective component of the Gen Ed Diversity Requirement. Depending on elective courses selected within the major, students can potentially also complete the Social Sciences area of the Gen Ed Distribution Requirement.

Plan of Study Grid
Year One
Fall SemesterCredit Hours
Traditional Asian Civilization - Major course 3
1st Semester Single Asian Language (example: 1010) 5
Gen. Ed. Skills course (example: Lower-division Written Communication) 3
Elective/MAPS 3
 Credit Hours14
Spring Semester
Traditional Asian Civilization - Major course 3
2nd Semester Single Asian Language (example: 1020) 5
Gen. Ed. Skills course (example: QRMS) 3
Elective/MAPS 3
 Credit Hours14
Year Two
Fall Semester
ASIA 2000 Gateway to Modern Asia: Exploring Regional Connections 3
3rd Semester Single Asian Language (ex: 2110) 5
Gen. Ed. Distribution/Diversity course (example: Social Sciences/US Perspective) 3
Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Natural Sciences) 3
Elective/MAPS 3
 Credit Hours17
Spring Semester
Modern Asian Civilization - Major course (Upper Division) 3
4th Semester Single Asian Language (ex: 2120) 5
Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Natural Sciences with lab) 4
Gen. Ed. Distribution (example: Social Sciences) 3
 Credit Hours15
Year Three
Fall Semester
ASIA Elective (Upper Division) 3
Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Social Sciences) 3
Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Natural Sciences) 3
Elective 3
Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
Spring Semester
ASIA Elective (Upper Division) 3
Gen Ed. Skills course (example: Upper-Division Written Communication) 3
Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example: Natural Sciences) 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
Year Four
Fall Semester
ASIA Elective (Upper Division) 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
Spring Semester
ASIA 4830 Senior Seminar in Asian Studies 3
Gen. Ed. Distribution course (example Social Sciences) 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
 Total Credit Hours120

Learning Outcomes 

With an undergraduate degree in Asian Studies, students will:

  • Develop a rich understanding of Asia as a complex and diverse region of critical importance in historical and contemporary geopolitics.
  • Learn from Asia through self-critical and respectful, curiosity-based intellectual inquiry (rather than treating it as an object of knowledge), thus gaining a broader, more nuanced understanding of the region and its communities in both the past and present.
  • Comprehend the diverse challenges and opportunities facing various Asian countries today, as well as the complexities of the historical factors and events that contributed to these current dynamics.
  • Acquire an interdisciplinary approach to a range key issues by learning how these would be viewed, studied and discussed differently by historians, sociologists, anthropologists, geographers, artists and others.
  • Gain practical knowledge through hands-on, student-driven research projects, internships in Asia and in Boulder, and study abroad programs in Asia.
  • Become skilled critical readers and thinkers, as well as better communicators with the skills to analyze and to communicate complex ideas in a clear, coherent manner.
  • Have a basic level of familiarity with an Asian language.
  • Grasp the pivotal importance Asia has to life in the U.S. in the 21st century.
  • Appreciate the vast diversity within Asia and connections across countries and regions within Asia.
  • Have the necessary skill sets and cultural competency to be able to work in Asia and in Asia-related careers such as media, journalism, technology, foreign service, the military, development and education.