Yale East Asian Studies MA

[lhuy]

Hello!

I am looking into Yale's MA program in East Asian Studies and am wondering if any current/past students could share your experiences there? Do you feel like professors are supportive and work closely with students? How is the funding? Does it prepare you for a PhD program?

I am eventually hoping to get into a PhD program in art history and my research focus is on modern Chinese art. I have a BA in art history and am fluent in Chinese. 

Thank you in advance!

Edited January 18, 2022 by lhuy

[realninja]

I didn't do an MA at Yale but from what I know very very few students get funding for the MA.   If you have a BA and are fluent in Chinese, and have a very good writing sample in English, you should be aiming for funded PhD programs directly.  If you have the money to do an MA, that's one thing, but if you have to take out loans, I would say skip it and apply broadly to PhD programs.

[lhuy]

@realninja Thank you for your advice! I am planning to apply to a mixture of MA and PhD programs just so I can have a higher chance of getting in! It feels like most top PhD programs are looking for people with a MA already. 

[realninja]

10 minutes ago, lhuy said:

@realninja Thank you for your advice! I am planning to apply to a mixture of MA and PhD programs just so I can have a higher chance of getting in! It feels like most top PhD programs are looking for people with a MA already. 

Yes, most successful PhD applicants have an MA but not all. Those that don't have an MA usually have degrees in EALC/History from the US, and/or a great writing sample that shows mastery of English as well as research languages (Chinese, Classical Chinese, Japanese, etc., depending on your field).