EALC / EALAC / EAS 2019

[EAstudies]

3 minutes ago, bugster88 said:

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.

I'm glad it helped! And I know how it feels since I'm originally from S. Korea, which has a national health insurance system for all citizens and some qualified foreigners. It's pretty intimidating to think about the American health care system. But if you get accepted to a Ph.D. program with a full package, you'll also get health insurance from your school. While each school works with a different insurance company, they tend to be pretty comprehensive. And you can also see a general practitioner at a school's health service/center without an appointment, so your situation would be quite a bit different from a regular Americans who do not have health insurance. 

For example, I got health insurance covered by my undergraduate school, and we had a pretty good package. Also, since we, just like any other school, had doctors on campus, seeing doctors for most little things like cold or stomach bugs were free. So I rarely paid for seeing a doctor off-campus except when I needed a surgery from an injury. And as for the surgery, my insurance package had set $2,500 as a maximum out-of-pocket fee (if and only if you're seeing an in-network doctor, which there were plenty), regardless of a type of surgery and how much it costs. So in some cases, if a surgery costs more than $2,500 in Korea (or Japan), it would be actually cheaper to get it in the States with this specific insurance.

So as a Ph.D. student, you don't have to be too worried about health care. You'll get it covered. But if you want to make sure, you can check what type of insurance your school offers on your school's website and go to the insurance website and read the general condition and agreement. You might also want to check if the insurance package covers dental and eyesight if those are something you regularly need.

[XIAOYUN]

Anyone applying for MA programs in EALAC / EAS?  I am waiting for decisions from Columbia, Harvard, and Duke. Let me know that I am not alone! 

[laine]

@XIAOYUN I''m applying for an MA at Toronto!

[jeangabin]

I just heard back (positively) from Harvard's RSEA MA, so presumably decisions are coming out.

Edited February 28, 2019 by jeangabin

[XIAOYUN]

43 minutes ago, jeangabin said:

I just heard back (positively) from Harvard's RSEA MA, so presumably decisions are coming out.

Congrats! Did you receive an email? Was it from Xiaofei Tian? 

[potsupotsu]

Congratulations on the Harvard acceptance! I guess I'll see you at the visit day in late March (assuming that prospective masters students are also allowed to attend)!

Edited March 2, 2019 by potsupotsu

[inception]

Hi — has anyone heard from Cornell's Asian studies MA? I was hoping they'd come out today, but I guess not.

Congrats @jeangabin!

[newmedianewme]

Quick question for the group.

I was recently rejected from PhD applications to East Asian Studies programs. I believe that my application would be much stronger with an MA, but I'm hesitant to go into debt for one. Anyone have any recommendations for quality East Asian Studies MA programs, preferably with a strong emphasis on media/film, that offer significant funding packages? Any clarity or insight is appreciated!

[nc484dsltyyz]

Hi everyone, has anyone received any words from the CU Boulder's ALC Ph.D. program? I am waiting for them distressfully.

[otters]

Has anyone heard back about funding from M.A. Asian Studies at Berkeley?

[fsodu]

Has anyone heard back from Duke's East Asian Studies MA program? 

[otters]

Has anyone heard back from MARSEA at Columbia?

[Leznver]

Anyone else waiting to hear back from Georgetown MA in Asian Studies program? 

[potsupotsu]

On 3/2/2019 at 9:24 AM, newmedianewme said:

Quick question for the group.

I was recently rejected from PhD applications to East Asian Studies programs. I believe that my application would be much stronger with an MA, but I'm hesitant to go into debt for one. Anyone have any recommendations for quality East Asian Studies MA programs, preferably with a strong emphasis on media/film, that offer significant funding packages? Any clarity or insight is appreciated!

Have you tried looking at some Canadian schools? Tuition is much cheaper over there. 

[redpandaprince]

On 3/2/2019 at 12:24 PM, newmedianewme said:

Quick question for the group.

I was recently rejected from PhD applications to East Asian Studies programs. I believe that my application would be much stronger with an MA, but I'm hesitant to go into debt for one. Anyone have any recommendations for quality East Asian Studies MA programs, preferably with a strong emphasis on media/film, that offer significant funding packages? Any clarity or insight is appreciated!

There aren't many funded MA programs for EAS in the United States. A lot of departments use them as a means for raising revenue. The funded ones that I know of are the University of Massachusetts Amherst, University of Oregon, University of Washington and University of Colorado. These schools all offer TAships to (some) MA students; if that's what you'd be interested in doing, its good to have some kind of teaching experience when applying, particularly language teaching experience. I can't speak for any of the other programs but I did my MA at UMass and they have a small but strong faculty in media, lit and language. In terms of emphasis, I would focus less on any program at large and focus on the professors in your field you'd like to work with on a particular project. If a program doesn't have someone who they feel is equipped to supervise your project, they probably won't admit you, so figuring out specific people you could work with and reaching out to them is a good way to boost your chances. I totally feel you on not wanting to go into debt, but be forewarned that even if you don't go into debt or have to take out loans, even funded MAs likely won't give you as much funding as they give PhDs. I hope this helps!

[otters]

Did anyone get financial / funding information (like FLAS) attached with their Columbia MARSEA decision? 

[laine]

Got into uoft's MA program!

[EAstudies]

On 3/3/2019 at 2:24 AM, newmedianewme said:

Quick question for the group.

I was recently rejected from PhD applications to East Asian Studies programs. I believe that my application would be much stronger with an MA, but I'm hesitant to go into debt for one. Anyone have any recommendations for quality East Asian Studies MA programs, preferably with a strong emphasis on media/film, that offer significant funding packages? Any clarity or insight is appreciated!

 

I'm not well-informed about MA programs, but I've seen quite a few people who got their Masters in East Asian countries and came back to the United States for Ph.D. (and successfully entered TT if that's your interest). This can work especially well if you received your BA in the United States or Canada (and perhaps other English-speaking countries--not sure about this part, though) and trying to come back to the United States for a doctoral degree. I was also seriously thinking of pursuing this option as a plan B. Tuitions there tend to be much cheaper than in the United States, and if you get Masters from the country of your interest, your degree will be relevant to your academic trajectory (Of course, how much cheaper it would depend on each country and school (e.g., private vs. public university)). Also, there might be scholarships available from the government or other foundations like MEXT for Japan or NIIED scholarship for South Korea, which will cut costs even further. 

 

[Fantasmapocalypse]

17 hours ago, EAstudies said:

 

I'm not well-informed about MA programs, but I've seen quite a few people who got their Masters in East Asian countries and came back to the United States for Ph.D. (and successfully entered TT if that's your interest). This can work especially well if you received your BA in the United States or Canada (and perhaps other English-speaking countries--not sure about this part, though) and trying to come back to the United States for a doctoral degree. I was also seriously thinking of pursuing this option as a plan B. Tuitions there tend to be much cheaper than in the United States, and if you get Masters from the country of your interest, your degree will be relevant to your academic trajectory (Of course, how much cheaper it would depend on each country and school (e.g., private vs. public university)). Also, there might be scholarships available from the government or other foundations like MEXT for Japan or NIIED scholarship for South Korea, which will cut costs even further. 

 

That's an interesting trick! But from everyone I've talked to, earning your graduate degree outside of the US (or West) is a real gamble... general opinion seems to be a degree from a non-Western institution is not worth "much", though... of course, that assumes you intend to come back to the States for the PhD. I bet you could do just fine in the right schools/which schools you are talking about.

[Leznver]

29 minutes ago, Fantasmapocalypse said:

That's an interesting trick! But from everyone I've talked to, earning your graduate degree outside of the US (or West) is a real gamble... general opinion seems to be a degree from a non-Western institution is not worth "much", though... of course, that assumes you intend to come back to the States for the PhD. I bet you could do just fine in the right schools/which schools you are talking about.

I'd have to agree. I've done a lot of informational interviewing this application season and the standard response I have received about going outside the USA is that a MA degree from an Asian University just doesn't stand up in the US. Europe is a bit better but you will be lacking a network if you decide to come back to the USA for work. If those factors are not major in your decision making process ie: not intending to come back to the USA, specific program interests or financial reasons etc... then go for it!

[EAstudies]

56 minutes ago, Fantasmapocalypse said:

That's an interesting trick! But from everyone I've talked to, earning your graduate degree outside of the US (or West) is a real gamble... general opinion seems to be a degree from a non-Western institution is not worth "much", though... of course, that assumes you intend to come back to the States for the PhD. I bet you could do just fine in the right schools/which schools you are talking about.

Yes, that's generally very true. It's risky to do MA in countries other than the U.S. and Canada, and this includes "Western" institutions (and even other English-speaking countries like Australia or New Zealand).  

Nonetheless, as far as I know, this is an uncommon practice in area studies (e.g., East Asian studies; and note that I'm not saying this is a "common" practice). So, for example, if you want to apply for East Asian studies with the focus on Japan and did BA in the U.S. or Canada, doing Masters in Japan isn't a bad idea. However, if you want to go into a traditional department like history, anthropology, or any other non-Area studies major it can be quite risky and should think about it twice. 

Edited March 10, 2019 by EAstudies

[EAstudies]

38 minutes ago, Leznver said:

I'd have to agree. I've done a lot of informational interviewing this application season and the standard response I have received about going outside the USA is that a MA degree from an Asian University just doesn't stand up in the US. Europe is a bit better but you will be lacking a network if you decide to come back to the USA for work. If those factors are not major in your decision making process ie: not intending to come back to the USA, specific program interests or financial reasons etc... then go for it!

2

2

It's true that if you can do MA in the US or Canada, that's much better than doing it in East Asia due to how the application process works. So I wasn't denying that part, and that was not the point. The thing is that newmedianewme asked if there's an MA where he or she can finish without getting into debt. And the chance is very slim at least in the US, and I'd say even in Canada, especially if newmedianewme is not a Canadian citizen. That's why I mentioned another route that is far less popular but nonetheless has been taken by some people in EALC. 

And I've seen people who did MA in European countries far less often than the people who did MA in East Asian countries in EALC departments. (And by this, I'm not talking about people who did BA in Europe or East Asia.) The vast majority did MA in the U.S. or Canada, which is an ideal option if available. But given that that's not an option due to a financial circumstance or whatnot, I've seen people (who did BA in the United States or Canada) finishing MA in an East Asian country (especially with a full government scholarship) and coming back to the States more so than the people who have done the same in continental Europe. But then, North Americans who go to Asia or Europe to do Masters in East Asian studies and come back are too few in number, so I don't have a reliable sample size to compare the two. So just a grain of salt. But I do have a general doubt that a degree from Europe (unless it's from the UK) will be any better than a degree from East Asia, even by a tiny bit.

That being said, I don't know too much about MA programs, so if anyone can recommend MA programs in the US or Canada that's quite affordable, that would be super helpful to newmedianewme because I do think, for an obvious reason, that would be the best case scenario if he/she wants to stay in the U.S. after Masters. 

Edited March 10, 2019 by EAstudies

[nekoinu]

On 3/2/2019 at 9:24 AM, newmedianewme said:

Quick question for the group.

I was recently rejected from PhD applications to East Asian Studies programs. I believe that my application would be much stronger with an MA, but I'm hesitant to go into debt for one. Anyone have any recommendations for quality East Asian Studies MA programs, preferably with a strong emphasis on media/film, that offer significant funding packages? Any clarity or insight is appreciated!

I think you should look into the University of Alberta. I am not sure but I think they provide full? some? funding through TAship. I see their alumni on many of "Current Graduate Students" page of great Ph.D. programs, including Columbia.

 

And, what Interesting discussion about doing M.A. outside of the U.S! 

[newmedianewme]

On 3/7/2019 at 12:19 PM, redpandaprince said:

There aren't many funded MA programs for EAS in the United States. A lot of departments use them as a means for raising revenue. The funded ones that I know of are the University of Massachusetts Amherst, University of Oregon, University of Washington and University of Colorado. These schools all offer TAships to (some) MA students; if that's what you'd be interested in doing, its good to have some kind of teaching experience when applying, particularly language teaching experience. I can't speak for any of the other programs but I did my MA at UMass and they have a small but strong faculty in media, lit and language. In terms of emphasis, I would focus less on any program at large and focus on the professors in your field you'd like to work with on a particular project. If a program doesn't have someone who they feel is equipped to supervise your project, they probably won't admit you, so figuring out specific people you could work with and reaching out to them is a good way to boost your chances. I totally feel you on not wanting to go into debt, but be forewarned that even if you don't go into debt or have to take out loans, even funded MAs likely won't give you as much funding as they give PhDs. I hope this helps!

Thank you everyone who chimed in on my question. I'm pressed to believe that an MA from a Chinese institution would be worth much, given that I'm interested in Chinese nation-branding and media censorship which wouldn't be fully explorable in Mainland China's academia. I have toyed with the idea of getting an MA from a Taiwanese university. I did a year of Mandarin study at NTNU after my BA (at UT Austin) as a recipient of the Huayu scholarship and I really enjoyed my time there. Unfortunately, I'm not sure it would give me a competitive edge. I do have a history of tutoring, which would make me a good fit for TAships, so I really appreciate the tip!

Also, I'm really interested in applying to MA programs in Canada. Not something I seriously considered before, but the cases you all make are really strong. Thank you for the insight!!

 

[homesicksub]

Hi, did anyone else here get into Columbia’s MARSEA? With some generous funding, it’s currently my top choice.