Asian Studies, Minor
This interdisciplinary minor encourages students to explore the complex influence of Asian culture across such areas as history, art, religion, relationships, politics, language, and philosophy. Students can shape their program to suit their interests through a diverse array of approved electives.
Requirements Accordion Open
A minor is earned in conjunction with a bachelor's degree.
To receive a minor (18 - 24 units) at Northern Arizona University, you must complete a planned group of courses from one or more subject matter areas with a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.0. At least 12 units of the minor must be unique to that minor and not applied to any other minor.
Overview Accordion Closed
In addition to University Requirements:
- Complete individual plan requirements.
Students may be able to use some courses to meet more than one requirement. Contact your advisor for details.
No more than fifty percent of the units used to satisfy minor requirements may be used to satisfy major requirements.
| Minimum Units for Completion | 18 |
| Study Abroad | Recommended |
Purpose Statement
The purpose of the Asian Studies minor is to encourage students to explore the complex influence of Asian culture across such disciplines as history, art, religion, politics, language, and philosophy. Students shape their program to suit their interests through a diverse array of approved electives, creating a specialized course of study in three different disciplines.- The content studied within these two emphases contextualizes the deeply rooted cultural traditions that shape all aspects of modern Asian societies, ranging from their aesthetic values to their economic strategies. The skills the students develop in the context of their Asian Studies curriculum include Critical Thinking, Civil Discourse, Comparative Cultural Awareness and Interdisciplinarity, Critical Reading, Effective Writing.
- Learning experiences provided within these emphases include regular on-campus academic and language course work, supplemented with various international internship and study abroad opportunities. Moreover, individual undergraduate research is prioritized and student are encouraged to develop their in-class research projects further and participate in NAU’s annual Undergraduate Student Research Symposium.
- The future opportunities for which these emphases prepare the students include pursuit of graduate degrees and/or careers in museums and other cultural institutions, international journalism, government and NGO related work, and communications and marketing. The ASN-IGP program is designed specifically to prepare future generations of engineers, scientists and businesspersons for leadership in an increasingly global labor market.
- Demonstrate introductory knowledge of methods and theories in the study of Asia.
- Demonstrate knowledge about selected major Asian cultures and their cultural products (languages, religions, arts, histories, etc.).
- Demonstrate facility in writing about the study of Asia, which may include writing in an Asian language.
- Demonstrate proficiency in the essential interdisciplinary approaches to the study of Asia, including critical reading, critical thinking and effective writing.
Details Accordion Closed
Minor Requirements
Take the following 18 units:
- Select from the following (3 units):
- Select from the following (15 units):
- ARB 101, ARB 102, ARB 201, ARB 202
- ARH 143, ARH 269, ARH 270, ARH 370, ARH 380
- CCS 199, CCS 299, CCS 497
- CHI 101, CHI 102, CHI 201, CHI 202
- ES 206, ES 378
- GSP 241
- GSP 348 (when topic is Asia)
- HIS 230, HIS 231, HIS 249, HIS 250, HIS 251, HIS 270, HIS 312, HIS 314, HIS 325, HIS 331, HIS 332, HIS 378, HIS 379, HIS 421
- HUM 261, HUM 362
- JPN 101, JPN 102, JPN 201, JPN 202
- PHI 150
- POS 361, POS 370, POS 372
- REL 150, REL 211, REL 231, REL 241, REL 261, REL 303, REL 306, REL 312, REL 332, REL 352
- TH 351
You must select courses from at least three disciplines or departments. The Asian studies advisory committee may consider additional courses for minor credit if your subject or problem content is specifically, or in large part, concentrated on Asian societies and cultures.
We encourage you to select courses in an Asian language, although this is not required. If you must meet a language requirement for your bachelor's degree, we strongly recommend that you take an Asian language to meet that requirement.
For additional information about this minor, contact the plan advisor.
Additional Information
Be aware that some courses may have prerequisites that you must also successfully complete. For prerequisite information, click on the course or see your advisor.
Asian Studies organizations
- Association for Asian Studies
- The Asia Society
- American Oriental Society
- Middle Eastern Studies Association
Teaching opportunities
The Asian Studies minor has been used by many students as preparation for teaching English in Asia. Many organizations provide such opportunities.Japan Exchange and Teaching Program Accordion Closed
Sponsored by the Japanese government to attract English speakers as assistant teachers in Japan's junior and senior high schools. JET teachers work under supervision of a fully certified teacher. Call toll free: (800) INFO-JET or visit www.jetprogramme.org.
Reach to Teach Accordion Closed
Reach to Teach is a free ESL Teacher Placement Agency that works with schools in Taiwan, Korea, China, and the United Arab Emirates to send participants overseas to teach English students. They provide plenty of information about the various countries and programs available. For information call (201) 467-4612 or visit http://reachtoteachrecruiting.com/.
Transitions Abroad Accordion Closed
Transitions Abroad has an excellent guide about understanding, finding,and applying for teaching jobs in several Asian nations. The guide also includes a long list of resources for each individual nation that they compiled information about. If interested, visit http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/work/esl/articles/workinasia.shtml.
NAU Asia email list
The NAU Asian Studies Program Committee has created the NAUASIA electronic mailing list (listserv). This email list is for NAU community members who are interested in expanding Asia as an area of interest and knowledge for both students and faculty on the NAU campus. It is used for sharing news of faculty and student research and teaching in Asia, Asia-related events on the NAU campus, and Asia-related teaching and research opportunities for faculty and students.For the purposes of NAUASIA, we define "Asia" in its broadest terms, including both the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and the broader Asia-Pacific realm. We invite all faculty, staff, students and community members who are interested in being informed or getting involved in Asia-related topics on the NAU campus to be a part of the NAUASIA email list.How to subscribe to the list Accordion Closed
- To subscribe to the NAUASIA email list, please send an email message from your most frequently used email account to listserv@lists.nau.edu
- In your email, include a single line of text in the body of the message that reads:subscribe NAUASIA yourfirstname yourlastname Example: To: LISTSERV@LISTS.NAU.EDU Subj: [leave the subject line blank] SUBSCRIBE NAUASIA Jane Doe [put this in the body of your email]
- The NAU Listserv system will automatically extract your email address from your message and then add it to the subscriber list. A confirmation email will be sent to the email address that you use within 3 minutes. Please click on the confirmation link to be added.
How to post a message to the list Accordion Closed
- To send a message to all the people currently subscribed to the NAUASIA email list, send your email message to NAUASIA@LISTS.NAU.EDU.
- Note that you will need to use the email address that you subscribed with.
- Example:
- To: NAUASIA@LISTS.NAU.EDU Subj: Sample Message to Post [Enter message using editor or mail input, send as normal email]
- All posts will be moderated by the NAUASIA list owners.
How to unsubscribe from the list Accordion Closed
- If you wish to unsubscribe from this mailing list, please send an email to: LISTSERV@LISTS.NAU.EDU
- Include a single line of text in the body of the message that says:
- Example:
- To: LISTSERV@LISTS.NAU.EDU Subj: [leave the subject line blank] UNSUBSCRIBE NAUASIA
Questions? Accordion Closed
If you have any questions please contact:- Alan A. Lew, Professor, Department of Geography, Planning and Recreation, Alan.Lew@nau.edu- Zsuzsanna Gulácsi, Professor, Art History and Religious Studies, Department of Comparative Cultural Studies, Zsuzsanna.Gulacsi@nau.edu