Regional Studies–East Asia

To receive the master of arts in Regional Studies–East Asia, a student must satisfy the requirements established by the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (Harvard Griffin GSAS) for all master’s degree candidates as well as those additionally determined by the Committee on Regional Studies-East Asia. The Regional Studies–East Asia (RSEA) program only offers a master of arts (AM) degree; it does not offer a PhD.  

Advising

The RSEA program matches newly admitted students to academic faculty advisors in their field and area of study. The RSEA director of graduate studies meets with students regularly and is available for consultation as are the chair and the program administrator. Students make individual arrangements with a faculty member to serve as their thesis advisor.

Academic Requirements

The RSEA program is designed to be flexible, allowing students the opportunity to pursue their own particular East Asia-related interests, whether wide-ranging or relatively focused, within the guidelines of the RSEA requirements. To receive the A.M. in Regional Studies—East Asia, a student must satisfy the common requirements established by the Harvard Griffin GSAS for all master of arts degree candidates, as well as those additionally determined by the RSEA Committee. During the two-year program of study, students take a total of sixteen four-credit courses. Students may take courses outside the East Asian studies field but should consult their faculty academic advisors regarding their proposed course of study.

All students must graduate with at least eight RSEA-approved four-credit courses that must meet the following criteria:

• A minimum grade of B or higher must be received in all courses in compliance with Harvard Griffin GSAS policy.
• At least six courses used to fulfill RSEA course requirements must be FAS courses even though RSEA students are permitted, within Harvard Griffin GSAS guidelines, to take up to two courses per term (no more than half their enrollment each term) through cross-registration at other Harvard schools or allied universities.
• At least six courses used to count toward RSEA course requirements must be courses on East Asian topics as indicated by course descriptions or approved by the RSEA Committee.
• Only two East Asian language courses may be used to fulfill the RSEA course requirement; however, they may not be counted toward the six East Asian content courses requirement. Such East Asian language courses must be at least at or above the fourth-year level in the case of a primary East Asian language or in the case of a second East Asian language, at least at the second-year level. (see below for more information on the language requirement)
• In addition to the RSEA 350: Proseminar course, only one RSEA 300: Thesis Writing and Research course, satisfactorily completed, may be used to fulfill RSEA course requirements.
• RSEA G1 students are not permitted to take RSEA 390 or other unsupervised TIME courses. G2 students who wish to take the RSEA 390 course must submit a note of approval from their faculty academic advisor that states the reason for taking a TIME course and that expressly gives approval of it to the RSEA program administrator.

Policy on Incompletes

An RSEA student is not permitted to have more than one incomplete grade at any given time. Students with more than one incomplete grade at any point during graduate studies will be placed into unsatisfactory status, which may compromise their funding. A grade of incomplete (INC) in a course must be converted into a letter grade before the end of the next registration period. Students not clearing an incomplete grade by the next registration period may not be permitted to register. Courses not receiving a grade at the end of the term will be treated as incomplete.

Language Requirement

To fulfill the RSEA East Asian language requirement students must have proficiency in one modern East Asian Language to the fourth-year level. 

To satisfy the language requirement, students must either complete a minimum of a third-year level East Asian language course at Harvard University or demonstrate equivalent proficiency through a language placement exam administered by the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations (EALC). 

Students entering the RSEA program with some East Asian language knowledge must take a language placement exam. These placement exams are designed to assign students to the most appropriate course level. Students who qualify to take courses at the fourth-year level or above may use the placement exam to demonstrate fulfillment of the RSEA language requirement.  

Ideally, students will enter the program with some East Asian language ability. Students without prior background in an East Asian language will be required to take six courses to master an East Asian language to the required fourth-year level; however, a student may take an intensive second-year summer program between their first and second year in an approved language program to attempt to acquire their language proficiency.  

Thesis Requirement

All RSEA degree candidates must complete a thesis under the guidance of and in close consultation with their thesis adviser. The minimum thesis standards for the RSEA A.M. degree are: 

• The thesis must adhere to standards of academic integrity as outlined in the Harvard Griffin GSAS Policies.
• The thesis should demonstrate original research and a fresh interpretation of a subject. 
• The thesis should demonstrate significant use of primary sources in one or more East Asian languages. 
• The thesis should demonstrate the student's familiarity with previous scholarship related to the subject matter. 
• The thesis should follow the appropriate scholarly format and include proper scholarly apparatus, including footnotes and bibliography.
• The body of text (i.e., excluding bibliography and other supplementary materials) should be 60-80 pages in length (approximately 15,000 -20,000 words, excluding footnotes).

Current students should refer to the RSEA Sharepoint for additional details and specific policies. 

Residence

The RSEA program ordinarily entails two full years in residence. The minimum requirement for AM candidates is one year of full-time residence at the full tuition rate. During that time, students must follow an RSEA-approved plan of study consisting of at least eight four-credit courses that satisfy the basic RSEA course requirements (as defined above), pay the required tuition costs, and maintain satisfactory academic progress by achieving the minimum of a B (3.0) grade point average.

After the first year of residence, some RSEA students may choose — with the prior approval of their faculty academic advisor and the RSEA Committee — to spend time away from campus as a Traveling Scholar to do primary research for their thesis or to study language. Additional information and application forms for non-residence status are available in Policies. Students should carefully read the policy on non-resident students.   

Additional information on the Regional Studies–East Asia master's program may be found on the RSEA program website.