[EALC / EALAC / EAS 2019]

On 2/19/2019 at 8:53 PM, EAstudies said:

Just my personal opinion:

The U.S. is indeed in a precarious state, to put it generously. Nonetheless, I don't think the U.S. will completely "eat itself" in the next six or seven years to the point academia will also collapse. Major U.S. schools have large endowments compared to schools in other countries due to how they operate the schools, and they still have influential scholars, resources, and research networks here. State schools are indeed more dependent on the government grant, but if you're a student from the U.S., I don't think your stipend will be affected any time soon. And regional studies like EALC/EAS are not an exception.

If any, after doing a Ph.D. in the United States, you can be a professor in another country. Every year, there are quite a few Ph.D. recipients who get a tenure-track job in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, etc. This is a very common practice. However, the other way is simply not an option. There are numbers of scholars who have a B.A. or M.A. from East Asian schools, but all of them (or at least I haven't seen a single exception yet) have their final degrees, i.e., Ph.D., in the United States. This sounds unfair since this is East Asian studies, but this is the reality. So you should consider where you'd really like to stay after graduation. If you are sure that you only want to stay in Japan and nowhere else, then U Tokyo is a great option. But if you seriously want to remain in academia and do not work in an industry, a Ph.D. degree from the United States will open a bigger academic job market for you, and this includes moving back to Japan.

Lastly, you should remember that methodologies and the academic trend may differ in the United States and Japan. Even if you're studying the same discipline, let's say Japanology, the U.S. schools are becoming more and more inter-regional and interdisciplinary (though in varying degrees). Also, grad schools here and there have different cultures or vibes (e.g., a relationship between a grad student and professor), so that would be another thing to consider. 

And congrats on your acceptances!

 

On 2/20/2019 at 6:04 AM, potsupotsu said:

Yes, I'd echo what @EAstudies said. I'm not an American citizen myself, and I definitely agree that the situation in the US seems incredibly scary, but remember that the current president is fairly unpopular and the election is coming up soon, so you will very likely not have to experience this for the entire 6 years you spend in graduate school in the US.

Also, while Toudai is a great school, keep in mind @EAstudies point about the way a foreign degree will be looked at in the US. I'd also encourage you to think about the way the training you will receive in Japan will be perceived in the US because there are major differences between Japanese-style scholarship and US-style scholarship. Japanese historians, for example, tend to produce works that are very descriptive and focus narrowly on a particular subject or particular documents, while in the US you will be encouraged to make a more analytic "big picture" argument. Both styles have their positives, but it might be difficult to make a name for yourself in the US if you produce Japanese-style work. 

Thank you @EAstudies and @potsupotsu for your kind responses. It's given me a broader perspective from which to consider this: what kind of work do I want to do; what kind of scholar do I want to be? Thank you for reminding me of these questions. My stay in the US does not have to be permanent, but the training I receive at a US institution would indeed greatly influence my future prospects and capabilities as a researcher.

Now to weigh a US Ph.D. program against secure employment in a country with healthcare relatively figured out...a whole different sort of problem, haha.

[EALC / EALAC / EAS 2019]

btw, congrats to everyone and their acceptances! this thread is filled with amazing people!

[EALC / EALAC / EAS 2019]

Hey All,

Not sure if this is the right place, but I wanted to ask your opinion about going into a Ph.D. program in the US in its current political state. I've been accepted to one the US schools I applied to (not UPenn, which is all quiet on the western front), and I'm so excited! But I'm also nervous about going into something this intense when the US looks about ready to eat itself.

As context, I'm currently living and working in Tokyo. I also have the opportunity to enter a PhD program at UTokyo, so it's not US or nothing for me.

Anyway, if anyone has any thought or words of advice, I'd love to hear it!

[EALC / EALAC / EAS 2019]

@potsupotsu Let's hope so! And thank you for the words of encouragement! I applied for 2017 Fall two years ago, and struck out on every application. The more that times passes, the more I fret that this year might be a repeat of that (yikes). But you're right. It's too soon to worry. Especially since it's not over until its over. Here's to hoping the emails we're waiting for come through soon! 

[EALC / EALAC / EAS 2019]

Hi all! Long time lurker here, finally decided to post. Congratulations to all those receiving good news! And hang in there to those still waiting (I'm with you).

Anyone still waiting to hear from certain departments, and if so which ones? I feel like I may have missed the boat even for a waitlist if I haven't heard anything by now...even UPenn is giving me the cold shoulder.