MPhil in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (Japanese Studies)

University of Cambridge

The Japanese Studies pathway is a specially designed one-year graduate seminar and research course with substantial taught elements for students who want to deepen their undergraduate education and/or prepare for a PhD in Japanese studies.

All students in the year group attend the Theories and Methodologies in Japanese Studies Seminar, at which they meet regularly and are introduced to various disciplinary approaches in Japanese Studies. In addition, they are guided through the various steps of academic research, writing, presentation and career development. They are free to choose two additional courses from a variety of options so that each student receives a tailor-made education. Approximately half of the time is allocated to individual research and the writing of a dissertation under the guidance of leading scholars.

The aim is to equip students to carry out independent academic work, including training, where appropriate, in how to use Japanese-language sources for research purposes, which lies at the heart of the programme. Our guiding principle is to ensure that each student receives the best possible education, providing a coherent course but with the flexibility to cater for individual needs.

At the end of the MPhil programme, students will be expected to have:

• acquired the ability to read, interpret and translate primary sources in modern and/or classical Japanese;
• acquired a good knowledge of the general scholarship on modern and/or classical Japanese studies;
• acquired an in-depth knowledge of the secondary literature relevant to the subject of their dissertation;
• developed the ability to formulate original research questions and to produce a well-constructed argument to answer them, in the form of an independent piece of research based on the use of primary and secondary sources; and
• acquired the skills to use a library and internet resources independently.