Asian Studies

The Asian Studies Program covers a vast region of the world from the Middle East, through South Asia, to the Far East. The Asian studies major is interdisciplinary in nature with a foundation that rests on learning an Asian language.

Arabic, Chinese, and Japanese languages are regularly taught at Mount Holyoke College, and Sanskrit is offered on occasion. Students may pursue an Asian studies major or minor, a Chinese language minor, or a Japanese language minor. Many of our students are double majors.

Learning an Asian language is an intellectual challenge. However, students who acquire these languages are rewarded with access to richly varied and historically different cultures. Mount Holyoke offers an intensive summer language program in Chinese at the Beijing Language and Culture University. Additionally, there are semesterlong and yearlong study abroad programs for students to learn Asian languages.

In addition to languages, students who major in Asian studies are required to take courses in at least three other disciplines. Courses included in the Asian studies major and minor are offered by departments representing various disciplines: anthropology, art history, economics, geography, history, international relations, philosophy, politics, and religion, as well as film studies and gender studies.

This course of study prepares Asian studies majors and minors to pursue careers in a wide variety of fields.  Our alumnae are working in business (international law and banking, travel organizations, publishing, public relations), media (journalism and film), the arts (museum careers, performing arts, visual arts), government service (national security, diplomacy, political office), education (elementary and secondary education, teaching English as a second language), and graduate study (anthropology, art history, business, comparative literature, economics, history, languages, law, linguistics, politics, religion, and sociology).