East Asian Studies MSc

You can take the MSc in East Asian Studies over one year, full-time, or two years, part-time.

By the end of the programme, you will have completed courses totalling 180 credits.

All students take our course on ‘Doing Research on East Asia: Key Concepts, Approaches and Issues’. This is worth 20 credits.

You will then choose five optional courses, each worth 20 credits. You will select these from a wide range of courses relating to specialised regional and disciplinary knowledge.

The final element of the programme is your dissertation. This is a piece of independent research - 15,000 words (worth 60 credits) - written with the advice and support of a designated supervisor.

Find out more about compulsory and optional courses

We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.

On completion of the programme, you will have gained the skills to:

• articulate and describe major events, actors, and issues impacting East Asia and / or individual countries in the region.
• critically discuss and utilise theoretical and conceptual tools for understanding the region, individual countries, and / or issues relevant to both.
• explain and critique the scholarship in your chosen subject area.
• select and utilise appropriate sources to support your arguments and research.
• apply knowledge and skills to conduct independent research.

East Asia is widely perceived to be the focus of future global politics, with tensions between North Korea and the US, for example, dominating headlines worldwide.

Giving you a thorough grasp of historical and contemporary factors, our programme is designed to equip you with the knowledge to critically engage with these developments, either as they relate to one particular country or in comparison.

You will acquire the tools to analyse, understand and articulate the complexities of East Asia and its constituent countries in a global context, and in career-ready ways.

Your skills will give you an advantage in a range of careers across the private, public, not-for-profit, and for-benefit sectors, including in:

• diplomacy, negotiation and international relations
• politics, policy work, civil service and law
• journalism, broadcasting and media
• business, finance and commerce
• communications, marketing, advertising and public relations
• education, outreach, advocacy and training
• leisure, tourism and travel
• publishing, culture, heritage and the arts
• research and development

The enhanced research skills you will develop through training, coursework and your dissertation are a valuable asset if you wish to continue on to PhD study.

These entry requirements are for the 2024/25 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2025/26 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2024.

A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in a relevant subject.

Students from China

This degree is Band C.

• Postgraduate entry requirements for students from China

International qualifications

Check whether your international qualifications meet our general entry requirements:

• Entry requirements by country

English language requirements

Regardless of your nationality or country of residence, you must demonstrate a level of English language competency at a level that will enable you to succeed in your studies.

English language tests

We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:

• IELTS Academic: total 7.0 with at least 6.5 in each component. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
• TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 100 with at least 23 in each component. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
• C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 185 with at least 176 in each component.
• Trinity ISE: ISE III with passes in all four components.
• PTE Academic: total 70 with at least 62 in each component.

Your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the programme you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, Trinity ISE or PTE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.

Degrees taught and assessed in English

We also accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration:

• UKVI list of majority English speaking countries

We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries (non-MESC).

• Approved universities in non-MESC

If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old* at the beginning of your programme of study. (*Revised 05 March 2024 to extend degree validity to five years.)

Find out more about our language requirements:

• English language requirements

Featured funding

There are a number of scholarship opportunities available for this programme depending on your study pathway.

If you take a Chinese Studies pathway through the MSc in East Asian Studies, you may be considered for a scholarship covering one year of UK tuition fees for the programme. The application deadline for this scholarship is Monday 6 May 2024.

If you take a Korean Studies pathway through the programme, you may be considered for a scholarship which covers £3,000 of tuition fees. The application deadline for this scholarship is Monday 6 May 2024.

• Find out more about these and other masters scholarships in the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures

Search for scholarships and funding opportunities:

• Search for funding