East Asian Studies (B.A.)
Looking for a way to gain entry into a new world? The Bachelor of Arts with a Major in East Asian Studies is an immersive program that takes a multidisciplinary approach to East Asia. Explore the history, politics, society, philosophy, arts, cinema, languages, and literature of China, Japan, and Korea.
Become a leader on a region of major global significance. East Asian Studies will let you encounter the region as a whole, while allowing you to concentrate in either Chinese Studies, Japanese Studies, or Korean Studies.
By the time you graduate you will have gained written and spoken fluency in a critical language that you choose to focus on: Chinese, Japanese, or Korean.
Degree Type
Campus Availability
East Asian Studies at UNG
- Aqcuire linguistic and cultural fluency, concentrating on China, Japan, or Korea
- Gain a panoply of in-demand skils to become a leader on a region of global importance.
- Global Competence
- Research and Comparative Methods
- Social and Business Communication
- Cultural Understanding
- Fluency in Chinese, Japanese, or Korean
- East Asian Studies Majors have been recipients of numerous nationally competitive scholarships: Boren, Cox-State Department Diplomacy Seminar, Critical Language, Freeman Asia, Fulbright, and Gilman Scholarships.
Experience the East Asian Studies Major
The major will provide you a number of in-demand skills that include global competence, critical comparative thinking, and the ability to conduct research, with attention to social and business communication along the way.
Take courses on East Asia in up to nine (9) disciplines, ranging from Political Science to Film Studies.
Become fluent linguistically and culturally, with a focus on Chinese, Japanese, or Korean Studies.
Experience study abroad programs in China, Japan, or South Korea.
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Director
Area(s) of Expertise: East Asia, History of Modern China, History of Modern Korea, the historical imagination in literature
East Asian Studies Faculty
Area(s) of Expertise: East Asian Language and Literature, Chinese
Ran Chen, Ph.D.Profile page
Program Coordinator
Chinese Flagship Program
Office locationBarnes Hall, 313, Dahlonega
Jiyoung Daniel, Ph.D.Profile page
Associate Professor, Korean
Office locationDunlap Hall, 314-C, Dahlonega
Area(s) of Expertise: Korean as a Foreign Language (KFL), linguistics, second language acquisition
Area(s) of Expertise: Political and Social Philosophy, Ethics, Chinese Philosophy
Christopher Jespersen, Ph.D.Profile page
Director of Special Programs & Professor
Office locationBarnes Hall, 308, Dahlonega
Mina Kyounghye Kwon, Ph.D.Profile page
Professor, English
Office locationDunlap Hall, 202A, Dahlonega
Area(s) of Expertise: World Literature, Asian/Asian American Studies, Performance Studies
Area(s) of Expertise: Physical Geography, Human Geography, Environmental Geography, Geography of East Asia, World Regional Geography
Tomoe Nishio, Ph.D.Profile page
Associate Professor, Japanese
Program Director, UNG Summer: Japanese Language and Culture
Office locationBarnes Hall, 304, Dahlonega
Area(s) of Expertise: Second language acquisition, applied linguistics, Japanese pedagogy
Robin O'Day, Ph.D.Profile page
Associate Professor, Anthropology
Office locationBarnes Hall, 303, Dahlonega
Area(s) of Expertise: Cultural Anthropology, specialization in Japanese culture
Area(s) of Expertise: Chinese, Second Language Acquisition, Pedagogy and Assessment, Interlanguage Pragmatics
Haelim SuhProfile page
Associate Professor
Office locationNesbitt Academic Building, 4218, Gainesville
Area(s) of Expertise: media and communication studies, media globalization and popular culture, critical approach
Sawako TsutsumiProfile page
Lecturer, Japanese
Office locationNesbitt Academic Building, 4112, Gainesville
Area(s) of Expertise: International relations of East Asia; Chinese foreign policy; US-China relations; and politics on the Korean Peninsula
Candice WilsonProfile page
Associate Professor
Office locationFilm & Digital Media Building, 105, Gainesville
Area(s) of Expertise: Japanese cinema, horror cinema, film history and cinema aesthetics
Area(s) of Expertise: Chinese Painting, Art History, East Asian Studies
Affiliated Faculty
Area(s) of Expertise: German history, Southeast Asia, modern Europe, holocaust/genocide, aviation history, world history
Timothy May, Ph.D.Profile page
Associate Dean, College of Arts & Letters
Professor of Central Eurasian History
Office locationBarnes Hall, 314, Dahlonega
Area(s) of Expertise: Mongol Empire, Mongolia, Central Eurasian history, Islamic history, the Crusades
What Your Journey Could Look Like
Where Can a Major in East Asian Studies Lead You?
This program will prepare you for public service or for jobs in the private sector, for instance in one of the many companies in Georgia that are connected with China, Taiwan, Japan, or South Korea.
Many of our students plan to continue their education – either in the US or in the country they have specialized in.
Use the career insights tool to explore different opportunities related to this degree program. Learn about average salary and discover the skills you need to get the job you want.
Define Your Own College Experience
We're Here for You
At UNG, you're not alone. You have access to licensed therapists and other mental health resources to support your well-being.
Explore East Asia
You'll go abroad in China, Japan or Korea in order to gain first-hand experience of East Asian language, culture, and lifestyle.
Make Your Money Count
Take control of your personal finances. Attend budgeting workshops, make a financial action plan or connect with a money mentor.
