Southeast and South Asian Studies

Expertise on the region to the immediate north of Australia was one of the goals of establishing the Australian National University in 1946. It now boasts the greatest concentration of Southeast Asia scholars outside Southeast Asia, and sets the pace for the study of this dynamic region, home to a tenth of the world's peoples and meeting place of all its major religions. Two Canberra libraries, that of the ANU and the Australian National Library , together contain 1.5 million volumes on Asia, about 70% of the total Australian collection. The fact that Canberra is closely involved in the region, home to Australia's government and embassies of all the ten countries of Southeast Asia, makes it a lively venue for the study of this changing region.

The Southeast and South Asian Studies include the advanced study of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Tibet. There is a particular interest in the study of Islam in Southeast Asia. The program is able to draw on the expertise of a great range of scholars specialising in various disciplines and countries of the region from all parts of the university. It encourages applications from mature-age and part-time students and has trained graduates for employment in government, the diplomatic service, education, research and analysis, consultancies and international aid agencies. The coursework postgraduate degrees Master of Asia Pacific Studies, Master of Arts (Southeast Asian Studies) and Master of Arts (Asian Studies) are designed to accommodate those wishing to extend their knowledge of the region as well as those with little or no previous knowledge. This means that graduates from all disciplines may apply for admission.

The Master of Arts (Asian Studies) by Coursework and Research is a two year degree. It comprises 50%coursework - 48 units,  and if a Distinction average has been obtained, students proceed to supervised research for a further year on a 48 unit, 20,000 to 30,000 word sub-thesis. The coursework units in the Southeast Asian Studies postgraduate degrees include language units relevant to the applicant's interests and needs, a compulsory unit on the concept of Southeast Asia as a region of study, and a strong selection of elective units, including international relations and strategic and defence studies. A feature of the elective units is the availability of a special reading unit (Readings in Southeast Asian Cultures) for which each student will be assigned a supervisor who will direct a program of readings specially designed to meet student needs. Students in South Asian Studies have several introductory units from which to choose, including - India: Emerging Giant and Religion and Politics in South Asia. Students can also choose language courses in Hindi, Urdu, and Sanskrit. Postgraduate supervision is also available on Tibetan topics, but not Tibetan language.

Research only degrees.

The Master of Philosophy (M. Phil) is a two year supervised research degree requiring the completion of a thesis (60 000 words maximum).

At the doctoral level (for students enrolled in a PhD), the Program is inter-disciplinary and intra-regional in nature and serves as a focus for discussion and research on Southeast and South Asian issues among staff and students. The Program interacts with discipline-based programs elsewhere in the Graduate School and students enrolled in the Southeast and South Asia Program may be affiliated to a related Program where such interaction would benefit their research.

Students enrolled in coursework or doctoral programs are encouraged to attend any of the regular seminar series in the university (including the Humanities Research Centre , the Centre for Cross Cultural Research , the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies and APSEM ), which are of interest to them.

Through its teaching, seminars, supervision and research the program trains specialists on Southeast and South Asia in the wide range of disciplinary, language and area skills essential for a better understanding of the rapid social, political and economic changes in the region.

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