For a complete outline of degree requirements, see "Program Requirements for UCLA Graduate Degrees" available in the program office and on the Graduate Division homepage.

Course Requirements
Nine courses are required for the degree, at least five of which must be graduate seminars (200 level classes). The other four may be upper division courses (100 level classes) or additional graduate courses. Please note: lower division language classes (below the 100 level) do not count toward completion of the required nine classes.

Of the nine courses, at least five must be in the student's area of concentration including one survey course chosen in consultation with the Graduate Studies Chair. At least one course should be in a cultural area other than the area of concentration. No more than two courses in the 500 series (independent studies) may apply toward the nine courses and only one of these courses may be counted toward the minimum of five graduate courses required for the degree.  

Language Requirements
A minimum of three years of an East Asian language, either Chinese, Japanese, or Korean, or demonstrated equivalency is required in addition to the nine courses required to complete the degree.

Some students enter the program already proficient in their East Asian language of choice, and may therefore be able to complete the degree in a shorter period of time. For those students seeking further language development, the East Asian Studies MA is a great way to pursue an additional year (or perhaps two for some students) of language study while simultaneously engaging in graduate level coursework. Taking such language courses will, however, inevitably lengthen the time necessary to complete the degree. Finally, students who have mastered one East Asian language are free to use their time to study a second East Asian language, but such classes will be purely electives and will not count toward the degree. Students requiring significant language study are encouraged to do intensive summer work either at UCLA or abroad.

Students should be advised that some graduate level classes require advanced proficiency in an East Asian language (or perhaps its ancient variant such as classical Chinese or Japanese) in order to enroll. While such enrollment requirements are not the norm, they are not uncommon.

Capstone Project
The Capstone Project consists of the submission of three research papers (at least one seminar and two upper division papers) and evaluation of them by the ad hoc committee. The original evaluators of each paper will constitute each student’s three-person ad hoc committee.

Note: It is the student’s responsibility to contact each member of the committee as early as possible, so that faculty can indicate if they want revisions in the papers before they are formally submitted to program's office. Please make sure that you give the committee members plenty of time to review your papers, recommend corrections, and make comments.

The average acceptable paper for comprehensive examination is between 15 and 20 pages in length. Each paper submitted should include the professor’s comments and their evaluation (this may take many forms, edits on the paper, notes written in the margin, typed comments, etc.).

Additional requirements:
• Papers must be written under the supervision of three different professors;
• The papers are required to be a minimum of 15-20 pages in length each;
• The papers are to reference at least 10 sources, listed in a bibliography.

Students submit submit hardcopies of each paper to the program’s counseling office (Bunche Hall 10256) during their last term. Electronic copies can be accepted as well.   The papers should be submitted by the last day of classes during the quarter the student wishes to graduate. The departmental chair will review the comments from the grading professors to determine satisfactory/unsatisfactory. Please submit the three papers along with the Capstone Project Approval Form to the program office. 

Thesis

 The thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research. The thesis option is available by permission of the graduate adviser. Upon obtaining permission, the student, in consultation with the graduate adviser, selects a three-member faculty committee to supervise and assess the thesis.  Please review regulations governing the nomination of master's committee members.   The thesis committee works closely with the student in the development, writing, and revision of the thesis, and is responsible for reading, evaluating, and approving the drafts and final version of the thesis, ensuring thereby that it meets the University standards of scholarship. Once the final version is approved, the thesis committee recommends the award of the M.A. degree.

Academic Advisors
Upon entrance into the program, the chair of the program will serve as each student’s temporary academic advisor. In this capacity, the chair and the advising office will serve to aid incoming students during the first quarter.
Students who are interested in pursuing a thesis as the final project and who are interested in working with a particular faculty should contact them directly to express their interests. Working closely with a particular faculty member is not required, especially if a student is considering a Capstone Project option.

The program language requirement may be satisfied in any of the following ways:

-Language courses
A minimum of three years of an East Asian language, either Chinese, Japanese, or Korean, or demonstrated equivalency is required in addition to the nine courses required to complete the degree. Three years of an East Asian language is equivalent to UCLA courses: Chinese 100C, Japanese 100C, Korean 100C.

-Language placement exam
Students who took language courses in non-UCLA programs and would like to continue taking the language course at UCLA, must take a placement exam before enrolling in the course. Language placement exams are offered by Asian Languages and Cultures department during week 0 of Fall quarter and week 1 of Winter quarter.

-Native speaker exemption
Native speakers of Chinese, Korean, or Japanese may be exempt from taking language courses. Exemption petitions are approved on individual basis by program's chair.

Additional Information
Some students enter the program already proficient in their East Asian language of choice, and may therefore be able to complete the degree in a shorter period of time. For those students seeking further language development, the East Asian Studies MA is a great way to pursue an additional year (or perhaps two for some students) of language study while simultaneously engaging in graduate level coursework. Taking such language courses will, however, inevitably lengthen the time necessary to complete the degree. Finally, students who have mastered one East Asian language are free to use their time to study a second East Asian language, but such classes will be purely electives and will not count toward the degree. Students requiring significant language study are encouraged to do intensive summer work either at UCLA or abroad.

Students should be advised that some graduate level classes require advanced proficiency in an East Asian language (or perhaps its ancient variant such as classical Chinese or Japanese) in order to enroll. While such enrollment requirements are not the norm, they are not uncommon.

Please note that the language requirement must be completed by the end of the quarter prior to expected graduation quarter for the Thesis plan.


Capstone Project


The Capstone Project consists of the submission of three research papers (at least one graduate seminar and two upper division papers) and evaluation of them by the ad hoc committee. One paper can come from outside of the area of concentration, but it requires an approval of the program chair. The original evaluators of each paper will constitute each student’s three-person ad hoc committee.

Note: It is the student’s responsibility to contact each member of the committee as early as possible, so that faculty can indicate if they want revisions in the papers before they are formally submitted to program's office. Please make sure that you give the committee members plenty of time to review your papers, recommend corrections, and make comments.

The average acceptable paper for comprehensive examination is between 15 and 20 pages in length. Each paper submitted should include the professor’s comments and their evaluation (this may take many forms, edits on the paper, notes written in the margin, typed comments, etc.).

Additional requirements:

o Papers must be written under the supervision of three different professors;

o The papers are required to be a minimum of 15-20 pages in length each;

o Each paper submitted should include the professor’s comments and their evaluation (this make take many forms, edits on the paper, notes written in the margin, typed comments, etc.);

o The papers are to reference at least 10 sources, listed in a bibliography

o The papers have to be submitted via email to idpgrads@international.ucla.edu during the last term, by the last day of the quarter in which the student is graduating. The papers should be submitted as three separate documents, preferably in pdf form;

o The Capstone Approval Form has to be submitted to the East Asian Studies office along with the papers.
It is preferred that the professors sign the same approval form, but if that's not possible, the professors can put their signatures on separate forms.

The departmental chair will review the comments from the grading professors to determine satisfactory/unsatisfactory.

Master thesis is a piece of original research paper with focus on East Asia written under the direction of three faculty committee. A master’s thesis is about 50-page long and it should be publishable as a single article. It is the student's responsibility to formally appoint their Faculty Thesis Committee but all nominations must be approved in consultation with the East Asian Studies Program Chair/Faculty Advisor and the UCLA Graduate Division.

Please scroll down to find information on the rules governing the nomination of a thesis committee. 

Students who intend to complete the degree by submitting a thesis need to follow these steps:

- Forward M.A. thesis committee nomination form to the program's office by Friday of week 2 of the final quarter of enrollment. The form has to be signed by faculty thesis committee. After the nomination document is reviewed by the chair of the program, it is forwarded to the Graduate Division for final approval.

- Students need to communicate clearly and in a timely manner with their committee about their progress. In some instances, enrollment in 598 (Research and Preparation of M.A. Thesis) course may be required.

-Students must attend thesis workshop offered by the UCLA Graduate Division during their final quarter. Please check the website for schedule.

-Thesis must be filed with the Graduate Division by the filing deadline which usually is the last day of the quarter.  Please check here for the list of filing deadlines. 

-Review the official UCLA manuscript preparation guidethat contains established criteria for uniformity in the format of theses.

 

REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE NOMINATION OF MASTER'S THESIS COMMITTEES

For more information please check Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study 

1. Master's Thesis committees are appointed by the Dean of the Graduate Division, acting for the Graduate Council,
upon nomination by the Chair of the Department (or Interdepartmental Program), after consultation with the student.

2. Master's Thesis committees consist of a minimum of three faculty members from UCLA.

3. Master's Thesis committee members must hold one of the following academic ranks:
A. Professor (any rank, regular series)
B. Professor Emeritus
C. Professor-in-Residence (any rank)
D. Acting Professor (any rank)

4. Adjunct Professor (any rank), Professor of Clinical X (any rank), and Visiting Professor (any rank) may serve as one of the three regular members (not as chair) on professional (not M.A. or M.S.) master's thesis committees.

5. Acting Assistant Professors may serve as regular members but not as chairs.

6. The chair of the committee and at least one other member must hold academic appointments in the student's department or in the case of a student in interdepartmental program, must be selected from a list of faculty members who actively participate in the program.

7. Additional members from any of the above titles as well as those with the title of Lecturer may be appointed to the committee and/or serve as Co-Chairs, and shall have the same voting rights and responsibilities as the other committee members.

8. By petition, one of the minimum three members may be a faculty member from another UC campus who holds an appropriate appointment as listed above.

Please note that non-UC faculty is not allowed to serve on thesis committee.

Filing Fee is intended for students who are in good academic standing and who have completed all degree requirements except for filing their thesis or submitting their capstone project. 

To use the Filing Fee Application (in lieu of registration and paying tuition), students must meet the following criteria:


o  You were registered and enrolled at UCLA during the preceding quarter.  (Students who were registered in Spring are eligible for the filing fee in Summer or Fall)

o You have completed all degree requirements for the degree:  

- Language Petition was submitted to the Graduate Division and approved

- Advancement to Candidacy petition was submitted to the Graduate Division, and students must have advanced to candidacy at least one quarter prior to the term of filing fee usage

- If submitting a thesis, your thesis committee nomination form was submitted to the Graduate Division and approved


o You do not use more than 12 hours of university resources (including faculty time) since last being registered and the first day of class for the new term


If you meet the above requirements, you can submit filing fee request by the deadline. 


Note: If you do not complete your degree in the quarter that you filed your Filing Fee request, the university views you as out-of-status (not a student). You will need to re-apply to the program and be re-admitted in order to complete your degree and graduate.


Departmental scholars are not eligible for a filing fee quarter.

M.A. Degree Worksheet


M.A. Degree Worksheet (for students who matriculated in Fall 2024)


M.A. Degree Worksheet Draft This is a draft Excel worksheet you can use to keep track of your progress. Refer to the above M.A. Degree Worksheet for the detail instructions and requirements.


Division of Graduate Education (DGE) Language Petition

 

EAS Thesis Committee Nomination Form (use for THESIS)

DGE Thesis Committee Nomination Form (use for THESIS)



EAS Capstone Committee Nomination Form (use for CAPSTONE PROJECT)

Capstone Project Approval Form

Capstone Project Sample Title Page


DGE Master's Advancement to Candidacy Petition
Please obtain your unofficial transcript (MyUCLA) and highlight courses you wish to count towards your course requirement. Email the ATC Petition form and your transcript to idpgrads@international.ucla.edu by the end of Week 2 of the graduating quarter (registered and enrolled). If students plan to petition for a filing fee quarter, students must have advanced to candidacy at least one quarter prior to the term of Filing Fee usage.

East Asian Studies Student Handbook

  student handbook