UW–Madison offers MA and PhD degrees in Japanese, specializing either in linguistics or in literature and culture. The program provides broad foundations and focused training in these two specialties, assuring that our graduates are amply prepared to teach and conduct research.
The linguistics specialty excels in areas such as functional linguistics, pragmatics, discourse/conversation analysis, sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, and language pedagogy.
The literature and culture specialty covers the classical Heian through contemporary Reiwa periods, offering a wide range of courses on fiction, poetry, drama, popular culture, visual culture, cinema, acoustic culture, and cutting-edge cross-media and avant-garde topics, particularly manga and anime.
The Japanese Program is housed in the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures (ALC), along with the Chinese Program and the Asian Languages and Cultures Program. As such, students will have opportunities to interact with all faculty, staff, and graduate students affiliated with the department to examine their area of specialty in broader regional and disciplinary contexts.
Admissions
Please consult the table below for key information about this degree program’s admissions requirements. The program may have more detailed admissions requirements, which can be found below the table or on the program’s website.
Graduate admissions is a two-step process between academic programs and the Graduate School. Applicants must meet the minimum requirements of the Graduate School as well as the program(s). Once you have researched the graduate program(s) you are interested in, apply online.
| Fall Deadline | January 10 |
| Spring Deadline | This program does not admit for the spring. |
| Summer Deadline | This program does not admit for the summer. |
| GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) | Not Required. |
| English Proficiency Test | Every applicant whose native language is not English, or whose undergraduate instruction was not exclusively in English, must provide an English proficiency test score earned within two years of the anticipated term of enrollment. Refer to the Graduate School: Minimum Requirements for Admission policy: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-1241. |
| Other Test(s) (e.g., GMAT, MCAT) | n/a |
| Letters of Recommendation Required | 3 |
Prior to submitting application and materials, applicants should carefully review the information regarding the program of interest and the faculty’s expertise to determine the fit between their interest and the program. To this extent, prospective applicants may contact a specific faculty to discuss their research interest prior to submitting applications.
Applicants should also review the Graduate School's admission process and Graduate School's minimum requirements.
Applicants must upload an academic writing sample or MA thesis to their application. You may submit a seminar paper, thesis chapter, or journal article. This paper should be in English, and may either be published or unpublished.
For more information on application materials, refer to the application and admissions information page.
Deadlines
In order to be considered for fellowships, project assistantships, and teaching assistantships, all application materials must be in by the fall deadline.
If you do not need any funding support, you may submit applications by April 15.
Funding
Graduate School Resources
Resources to help you afford graduate study might include assistantships, fellowships, traineeships, and financial aid. Further funding information is available from the Graduate School. Be sure to check with your program for individual policies and restrictions related to funding.
Graduate Student Costs
For tuition and living costs, please view the Cost of Attendance page. International applicants recommended for admission to the Graduate School are required to show sufficient funds to attend the University during the course of studies (tuition, food and housing, incidentals and health insurance) to be officially accepted by the Graduate School.
Department Resources
The Department of Asian Languages and Cultures offers financial assistance in the forms of fellowships, teaching assistantships (TAships), and project assistantships (PAships). Please make note of the deadline of January 10 for financial assistance consideration. All necessary materials including test scores must be submitted by the deadline.
If you are an international applicant and receive a fellowship, PAship or TAship, please make note that you will likely be required to show additional financial documentation to meet the minimum required for your official acceptance to the Graduate School.
Other Awards & Fellowships
- Foreign Language & Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships: FLAS fellowships are funded by the U.S. Department of Education and administered by the UW's National Resource Centers to assist students in acquiring foreign language and either area or international studies competencies. FLAS awards are only available for specific languages and are contingent on federal funding.
Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the United States. Applications by students in professional fields are encouraged. Preference will be given to applicants with a high level of academic ability and with previous language training.
Academic Year and Summer FLAS awards are two separate competitions requiring two separate and complete applications.
Complete details about FLAS at UW-Madison are available on the FLAS FAQs (your first stop) and the FLAS Languages & Coordinators pages (should you have additional questions).
- Advanced Opportunity Fellowship (AOF): This fellowship is awarded to highly qualified underrepresented students. To be considered for AOF funding, prospective students must be new to the Graduate School and be admissible to a graduate program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For further information: https://grad.wisc.edu/diversity/.
- Project Assistantships. Availability of PAship varies from one year to another, depending on the types of projects the departmental faculty are engaged in. PAs assist faculty members’ research projects and/or respond to some programmatic needs of the department and other campus units.
- Teaching Assistantships. Availability and types of TAship vary from one year to another, depending on the department’s curricular needs and student enrollment. TAs will support a number of our language and culture courses, typically team-teaching with faculty members. If you are interested in being a teaching assistant in our language programs, you must submit the TA application and necessary materials (1-2 page written autobiography that refers to your prior teaching experience, letter of recommendation that speaks to your teaching experience, video recording of your teaching, if available) through the Graduate School application system by January 10.
- Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS) Awards Office: IRIS manages its own funding opportunities (Scott Kloeck-Jenson Fellowships, IRIS Graduate Fieldwork Awards, Incubator Grants), coordinates the campus component of a number of external programs (Boren Fellowships, Fulbright US Student Program, Fulbright-Hays DDRA, Luce Scholars Program), assists students, faculty, and staff in exploring funding options, and much more. Visit: https://iris.wisc.edu/funding/ for more information on awards. Contact Mark Lilleleht, Assistant Director for Awards, with questions at awards@iris.wisc.edu & 608-265-6070.
- Other Forms of Financial Aid: Loans and some on-campus job openings are handled through the Office of Student Financial Aid. Please contact them to obtain more information.
- Students may also obtain information from the Grants Information Center in the Memorial Library, Room 262, 728 State St., Madison, WI 53706. Phone 608-262-3242.
Minimum Graduate School Requirements
Review the Graduate School minimum academic progress and degree requirements, in addition to the program requirements listed below.
Major Requirements
Mode of Instruction
| Face to Face | Evening/Weekend | Online | Hybrid | Accelerated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | No | No | No | No |
Mode of Instruction Definitions
Accelerated: Accelerated programs are offered at a fast pace that condenses the time to completion. Students typically take enough credits aimed at completing the program in a year or two.
Evening/Weekend: Courses meet on the UW–Madison campus only in evenings and/or on weekends to accommodate typical business schedules. Students have the advantages of face-to-face courses with the flexibility to keep work and other life commitments.
Face-to-Face: Courses typically meet during weekdays on the UW-Madison Campus.
Hybrid: These programs combine face-to-face and online learning formats. Contact the program for more specific information.
Online: These programs are offered 100% online. Some programs may require an on-campus orientation or residency experience, but the courses will be facilitated in an online format.
Curricular Requirements
| Minimum Credit Requirement | 51 credits |
| Minimum Residence Credit Requirement | 32 credits |
| Minimum Graduate Coursework Requirement | All 51 credits must be graduate-level coursework. Refer to the Graduate School: Minimum Graduate Coursework (50%) Requirement policy: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-1244. |
| Overall Graduate GPA Requirement | 3.50 GPA required. |
| Other Grade Requirements | PhD candidates should maintain a 3.5 GPA in all coursework and may not have any more than two incompletes on their record at any one time. |
| Assessments and Examinations | Japanese linguistics students need to complete two take-home preliminary examinations that cover the following three areas:
Japanese literature/culture students are required to take a comprehensive preliminary examination. All students must present a dissertation proposal to the members of their Dissertation Committee and have it accepted within one semester of passing the preliminary examination. |
| Language Requirements | Japanese linguistics students are required to demonstrate basic knowledge of the structure of one Asian language other than Japanese, equivalent to two semesters' language instruction on campus. The language requirements must be completed by time when students finish taking the preliminary exams. Japanese literature students must demonstrate reading proficiency in both classical Japanese and Japanese. |
| Graduate School Breadth Requirements | All doctoral students are required to complete a doctoral minor or graduate/professional certificate. Refer to the Graduate School: Breadth Requirement in Doctoral Training policy: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-1200. |
Required Courses
Linguistics Pathway1
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | ||
| ASIAN 434 | Introduction to Japanese Linguistics | 3 |
| ASIAN 435 | Teaching of Japanese | 3 |
| ASIAN 775 | Japanese Applied Linguistics (Repeatable) | 3 |
| Additional Coursework 2 | 18 | |
Must be graduate-level courses from departments such as ASIAN, ENGL, FRENCH, ITALIAN, GERMAN, LINGUIS, SPANISH, PORTUG, CURRIC, ANTHRO, SOC, PSYCH that cover relevant topics to be determined in consultation with the co-advisor. | ||
| Breadth | 9-12 | |
| Dissertator Credits | 12+ | |
| Students must enroll in enough dissertator credits to reach the 51-credit minimum. | ||
| Thesis Research | ||
| Total Credits | 51 | |
- 1
These pathways are internal to the program and represent different curricular paths a student can follow to earn this degree. Pathway names do not appear in the Graduate School admissions application, and they will not appear on the transcript.
- 2
It is recommended that students take a research methods course.
Literature Pathway1
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | ||
| ASIAN 533 | Readings in Early Modern Japanese Literature | 3 |
| ASIAN 563 | Readings in Modern Japanese Literature | 3 |
| ASIAN 573 | Readings in Classical Japanese Literature | 3 |
| ASIAN 763 | Studies in Japanese Literature | 3 |
| ASIAN 833 | Topics in East Asian Visual Cultures | 3 |
| Additional Coursework | 12-15 | |
Must be graduate level courses from departments such as ART HIST, ASIAN, ENGL, FRENCH, ITALIAN, HISTORY that cover relevant topics to be determined in consultation with the co-advisors. Students must also take three additional courses in Japanese literature / culture numbered 700 or higher. | ||
| Breadth | 9-12 | |
| Dissertator Credits | 12+ | |
| Students must enroll in enough dissertator credits to reach the 51-credit minimum. | ||
| Thesis Research | ||
| Total Credits | 51 | |
- 1
These pathways are internal to the program and represent different curricular paths a student can follow to earn this degree. Pathway names do not appear in the Graduate School admissions application, and they will not appear on the transcript.
Graduate School Policies
The Graduate School’s Academic Policies and Procedures provide essential information regarding general university policies. Program authority to set degree policies beyond the minimum required by the Graduate School lies with the degree program faculty. Policies set by the academic degree program can be found below.
Major-Specific Policies
Prior Coursework
Graduate Credits Earned at Other Institutions
With program approval, students are allowed to transfer no more than 9 credits of graduate coursework from other institutions. Coursework earned ten years or more prior to admission to a doctoral degree is not allowed to satisfy requirements.
Undergraduate Credits Earned at Other Institutions or UW-Madison
With program approval, no more than 7 credits of graduate coursework (as defined above) completed while a UW–Madison undergraduate may transfer to satisfy degree requirements. Coursework earned ten years or more prior to admission to a doctoral degree is not allowed to satisfy requirements.
Credits Earned as a Professional Student at UW-Madison (Law, Medicine, Pharmacy, and Veterinary careers)
Refer to the Graduate School: Transfer Credits for Prior Coursework policy.
Credits Earned as a University Special Student at UW–Madison
With program approval, students are allowed to transfer no more than 9 credits of graduate coursework (as defined above) taken as a UW–Madison Special student. Coursework earned ten years or more prior to admission to a doctoral degree is not allowed to satisfy requirements.
Probation
A semester GPA below 3.5 will result in the student being placed on academic probation. If a semester GPA of 3.5 is not attained during the subsequent semester of full-time enrollment, the student may be dismissed from the program or allowed to continue for 1 additional semester based on advisor appeal to the Departmental Graduate Studies Committee. A student on probation may not take the preliminary examination.
Advisor / Committee
Starting fall 2018, all students are required to be supervised by co-advisors. One of the co-advisors must be a member of the Japanese Program, but the other co-advisor can be identified from related fields outside of the Japanese Program.
At the point of beginning work on the dissertation, a single dissertation advisor (most likely one of the co-advisors) may be chosen, or the co-advising arrangement may continue for the dissertation as well.
Dissertation committees must have at least four members representing more than one graduate program, three of whom must be UW–Madison graduate faculty or former UW–Madison graduate faculty up to one year after resignation or retirement. At least one of the four members must be from outside of the student’s major program or major field (often from the minor field).
Credits Per Term Allowed
15 credits
Time Limits
Refer to the Graduate School: Time Limits policy.
Grievances and Appeals
These resources may be helpful in addressing your concerns:
- Bias or Hate Reporting
- Graduate Assistantship Policies and Procedures
- Hostile and Intimidating Behavior Policies and Procedures
- Employee Assistance (for personal counseling and workplace consultation around communication and conflict involving graduate assistants and other employees, post-doctoral students, faculty and staff)
- Employee Disability Resource Office (for qualified employees or applicants with disabilities to have equal employment opportunities)
- Graduate School (for informal advice at any level of review and for official appeals of program/departmental or school/college grievance decisions)
- Office of Compliance (for class harassment and discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual violence)
- Office Student Assistance and Support (OSAS) (for all students to seek grievance assistance and support)
- Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (for conflicts involving students)
- Ombuds Office for Faculty and Staff (for employed graduate students and post-docs, as well as faculty and staff)
- Title IX (for concerns about discrimination)
Students should contact the department chair or program director with questions about grievances. They may also contact the L&S Academic Divisional Associate Deans, the L&S Associate Dean for Teaching and Learning Administration, or the L&S Director of Human Resources.
Other
n/a
Professional Development
Graduate School Resources
Take advantage of the Graduate School's professional development resources to build skills, thrive academically, and launch your career.
Program Resources
Throughout the academic year, professional development trainings, workshops, and graduate student-organized activities take place. The Director of Graduate Studies is eager to hear from students about what interests they have for such events.
Graduate School Office of Professional Development
The Graduate School Office of Professional Development (OPD) coordinates, develops, and promotes learning opportunities to foster the academic, professional, and life skills of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers and scholars.
Professional development topics include Individual Development Plans, communication, mentoring, grant writing, dissertation writing, career exploration, job search strategies, and more. OPD collaborates with the Writing Center, Libraries, DoIT Software Training for Students, Delta, career centers, and others to provide a wealth of resources and events tailored to the needs of UW–Madison graduate students.
The office developed and maintains DiscoverPD, an innovative tool for UW–Madison graduate students to advance their academic and professional goals. DiscoverPD introduces nine areas (or "facets") of professional development, includes a self-assessment, and provides a customized report of areas of strength and weakness. The report comes with recommendations to help graduate students strengthen their ability within each area.
More information on campus resources for student professional development is available at Graduate Student Professional Development. Students may keep up-to-date by reading GradConnections, the weekly newsletter for graduate students, and bookmarking the Events Calendar to keep tabs on upcoming workshops of interest.
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate a thorough and in-depth understanding of research problems, potentials, and limits with respect to theory, knowledge, or practice in at least one of the following areas of study: Japanese literature and culture, Japanese linguistics, and Transasian studies.
- Formulate ideas, concepts, designs, and/or techniques beyond the current boundaries of knowledge within the specialized field(s).
- Create scholarship and advance knowledge that makes a substantive contribution to the field(s).
- Articulate and communicate complex ideas in a clear and understandable manner to both specialized and general audience.
- Recognize, apply, and foster ethical and professional conduct.
People
Please visit the Asian Languages & Cultures website for a complete list of faculty, instructional, and academic staff.