Director of Undergraduate Studies: Prof. Theodore Hughes, 506 Kent; 854-8545; th2150@columbia.edu

Departmental Office: 407 Kent; 854-5027

• http://www.columbia.edu/cu/ealac/

The program in East Asian studies offers a wide range of courses in a variety of disciplines, as well as training in the Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Tibetan languages. The program is designed to provide a coherent curriculum for undergraduates wishing to major in East Asian studies, with disciplinary specialization in anthropology, art history, economics, history, literature, philosophy, political science, sociology, or religion. The department also offers a series of introductory and thematic courses especially designed for students seeking to acquire some knowledge of East Asia as part of their broader undergraduate experience.

Admission to Language Courses

All students wishing to enter the language program at other than the first term of the elementary level must pass a language placement test before registering. The language placement exams are held during the change of program period, the week before classes begin.

Students who have been absent from the campus for one term or more must take a placement test before enrolling in a language course beyond the first term of the elementary level.

Any students who wish to place out of the Columbia College Foreign Language Requirement for a language taught in the department of East Asian Languages and Cultures must consult with the director of the relevant language program. The names of the directors, and additional information about East Asian language programs, can be accessed via the department website at http://www.columbia.edu/cu/ealac/.

Language Laboratory

An additional hour of study in the language laboratory is required in elementary, second-year, and third-year Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. Students who plan to take CHNS C1101-C1102, C1111-C1112, C1201-C1202, C1221-C1222, or W4003-W4004; JPNS C1101-C1102, C1201-C1202, or W4005-W4006; and KORN W1101-W1102, W1201-W1202, or W4005-W4006 must attend all assigned language laboratory sessions. Grades for written and oral work in the language laboratory and for additional work in oral drill sessions count as 25 percent of the final grade in the course. Assignments of laboratory hours are made during the first session of the regular classes.

Language Instruction

Please see Admission to Language Courses for information on the language placement test and schedule. Students whose native language is not English are not required to take an additional foreign language if they have completed the secondary school requirement in the native language.

For more information on Chinese language courses please visit the Chinese Language Program Web site.

Introductory Chinese

For beginners who wish to study Chinese at a slower pace. The entire course consists of two parts covering the same material as the first semester of Elementary Chinese (CHNS C1101/F1101). Students who have successfully completed the Courses I and II (W1010-W1011) will be admitted to Elementary Chinese II (C1102/F1102) in the spring semester. Alternatively, students who suddessfully complete Course I and choose to study in a summer or another program and upon passing the program placement test be placed into the Intermediate Chinese course.

Elementary Chinese (Level 1)

N-sections: for students who have no or a limited background in Chinese.

W-sections: for students of Chinese heritage or advanced beginners with Mandarin speaking ability but minimal reading and writing skills

Note:

Advanced beginners or heritage students who can speak Mandarin are not accepted into the N sections.

Intermediate Chinese (Level 2)

N-sections: continuation of elementary N focusing on further development of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills.

W-sections: continuation of elementary W focusing on reading skills and written language. Open to students of Chinese heritage or those with good speaking skills in Chinese only.

Advanced Chinese I (Level 3)

N-sections: continuation of the intermediate N focusing on more sophisticated language usage and fluency as well as reading skills with systematic vocabulary expansion.

W-sections: continuation of intermediate W focusing on practical writing skills and semi-formal or formal style of Chinese used in various professional settings. Open to students with good speaking skills in Chinese only.

Other Advanced Courses (Level 4)

Please see the courses listed on-line.

Course Numbering

The following are general guidelines to the numbering of department courses open to undergraduates, although not all courses conform to them. Students with questions about the nature of a course should consult with the instructor or the director of undergraduate studies.

Study Abroad

East Asian Studies majors or thesis-track concentrators who plan to spend their junior spring abroad must take the required disciplinary and senior-thesis-related courses in the spring of their sophomore year. Contact the director of undergraduate studies for details.

The Kyoto Center for Japanese Studies

The Kyoto Center offers Columbia students the opportunity of study in Japan in a program combining intensive instruction in the Japanese language with courses taught in English on a wide range of topics in Japanese studies. Students should have at least the equivalent of two years of Japanese by the time of their departure. The program is most appropriate for the junior year, though other arrangements are considered. East Asian Studies majors or thesis-track concentrators who opt to spend their junior spring at the Kyoto Center must take the required disciplinary and senior-thesis-related courses in the spring of their sophomore year (contact the director of undergraduate studies for details). For further information about the Kyoto Center, consult Prof. Henry Smith, 407 Kent; (212) 854-5027; hds2@columbia.edu.

Grading

Courses in which the grade of D or P has been received do not count toward the major or concentration requirements.

Departmental Honors

Departmental honors are conferred only on East Asian Studies majors who have earned a grade point average of at least 3.6 for courses in the major, have pursued a rigorous and ambitious program of study, and have submitted senior theses of superior quality, clearly demonstrating originality and excellent scholarship. Qualified seniors are nominated by their thesis advisers. Normally no more than 10 percent of the graduating majors in the department each year receive departmental honors. Concentrators are not eligible for departmental honors.