The Certificate in Tibetan and Himalayan Studies offers students interdisciplinary expertise in this critical region. Culturally and ethnically Tibetan areas constitute one-quarter of the land area of the People’s Republic of China (roughly the size of Western Europe) as well as the country of Bhutan and parts of north India, Nepal and Pakistan. As a focus of tension between India and China, Asia’s foremost superpowers, this region is geopolitically crucial. Also known as “the Third Pole’’, it is home to the headwaters of seven of Asia’s major rivers and a hotspot for global climate change, biodiversity, and ecosystem services.
CU Boulder is a leading center of research, teaching and scholarship on Tibetan and Himalayan Studies and Environmental Sciences. Expertise on the region includes strong faculty leadership in the departments of Anthropology, the Center for Asian Studies, Geography and Religious Studies. Housed within the Center for Asian Studies, the Tibet Himalaya Initiative (THI) is a multidisciplinary hub for research, teaching and public engagement on Tibet and the greater Himalaya region. The city of Boulder itself is a significant location in the history and spread of Tibetan Buddhism in the West. Students have the flexibility within the program to focus their concentration on specific areas of interest. One-year of study in a language spoken in the Himalayan region provides a cultural and linguistic foundation to explore the region in greater depth, and study abroad is highly encouraged.
Requirements
The certificate in Tibetan and Himalayan Studies entails 18 credit hours of coursework, of which 3 credit hours is an introductory class, ASIA 1700 or ANTH 1105. Students must complete 9 out of 18 hours at the upper division level, with a minimum of 12 credit hours taken on campus.
Students are welcome to use up to 6 transfer credit hours for either upper or lower division courses, including in language study and study abroad, and to petition for other electives to count for upper division credits.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Requirements | ||
| Lower Division Requirements | ||
| One Introductory Course | 3 | |
| Introduction to Tibetan Civilization | ||
or ANTH 1105 | Exploring a Non-Western Culture: Tibet | |
| Language Courses | ||
| Six credit hours in Tibetan (TBTN), Chinese (CHIN) or Hindi (HIND) language courses at any relevant, offered level. | 6 | |
Within these six credit hours must be at least one Tibetan (TBTN) language course. Tibetan is offered through DILS (Directed Independent Language Study). | ||
| Upper Division Requirements | ||
| One ASIA course focused on Tibet | 3 | |
| Open Topics in Asian Studies (Tibetan Literature and Culture OR Encounters: Tibet and the West) | ||
| Encounters: Tibet, the Himalayas, and the West | ||
| Enlightened Visionaries, Dirty Tricksters and Warrior Heroes: Masterworks of Tibetan Literature | ||
| One GEOG, ANTH, or RLST course focused on Tibet | 3 | |
| Anthropological Perspectives: Contemporary Issues (The Himalayas) | ||
| Anthropology of Tibet | ||
| China’s Diverse Geographies: Environment, Society, Politics | ||
| Geography of Tibet | ||
| Tibetan Buddhism | ||
| Women in Buddhism | ||
| Topics in Buddhism (Buddhist Literature in Tibet) | ||
| One additional course from either of the two upper-division categories above. | 3 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 18 | |