The Dr. David Chu Program in Contemporary Asian Studies (CAS) offers undergraduate students a major program and minor program designed to comprehend Asia’s role in new global dynamics. Several of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies are in Asia, yet the outcomes of modernization across the region have been varied, as seen through differing approaches to government, wealth distribution, ethnic diversity, gender dynamics, human rights, religion, and migration. Our students consider all of these factors in present-day South, Southeast, and East Asia, in the context of the diverse histories that inform these societies. The CAS program provides a lens through which to examine the links between Asia’s history, its increasing influence in world affairs, the challenges and opportunities arising in this time of rapid transformation.
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The Centre for South Asian Studies hosts a minor program in South Asian Studies, which also has access to the faculty and resources of the groundbreaking Contemporary Asian Studies program. Students study South Asia in an approach attentive to global formations. They are introduced to the study of South Asia—Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka—through a wide angle view of Asian modernities, political economies and cultures, all the while delving into to specialist close-ups of South Asia. With open access to comparative courses in Contemporary Asian Studies program, students can learn from tenured and tenure-track faculty specialists in South, East, and Southeast Asia.
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The interdisciplinary Master’s Program in Contemporary East and Southeast Asian Studies (formerly Asia-Pacific Studies, or MAPS) is designed for students wishing to pursue careers that will require them to understand this vibrant and sometimes tumultuous part of the world, whether their chosen fields are in academia, business, government, international or non-governmental organizations. Drawing students from a dozen graduate faculties to elicit a truly multi-disciplinary dialogue, the program limits the number of students to 20 in order to facilitate learning and intellectual exchange in a small group setting.
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The Collaborative Master’s and Doctoral Program in South Asian Studies offers entry into a graduate student community, as well as a methodological grounding for students already accepted into a graduate program at the University of Toronto. The program is designed to give students an interdisciplinary overview for the critical study of South Asia as a field of expertise and as a lens through which to read a wide range of global processes. Engagement with these questions through the collaborative program will be noted on the transcripts of participating students.
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The Asian Institute offers a variety of resources to both undergraduate and graduate students in their teaching programs, and involved in affiliated activities at the Institute. to learn more about student groups, scholarships, and travel opportunities check out our Student Resources page.
Student Resources
June 25, 2018
Composed of the world’s five largest emerging economies, the BRICS has commonly been perceived in competition with the G7, a group of industrialized, democratic and developed states. Since the inception of BRICS summitry in 2009, most popular commentary and analysis...
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June 21, 2018
On 25-27 July 2018, the tenth annual stand-alone BRICS summit will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa. In the aftermath of the G7 summit in Charlevoix, Canada, on 8-9 June 2018, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Qingdao,...
Read full articleNovember 27, 2017
Opportunities and Awards
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June 13, 2017
The annual China Central Television English Speaking Contest is regarded as the most difficult English-speaking proficiency competition in the country. It attracts millions of viewers from across the nation. The event is particularly well known and widely viewed in Xinjiang,...
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October 13, 2016
In late 2015, when the Asian Institute announced the Richard Charles Lee Big Ideas Competition – calling on University of Toronto students to develop big ideas for social entrepreneurship in Asia – the three of us began brainstorming what would...
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April 20, 2016
Peace, Conflict and Justice Studies student Naveeda Hussain recounts what she’s learned as a Political Intern at the Canadian Embassy in Yangon, Burma.
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July 16, 2015
I have, no doubt, fallen in love with Southeast Asia. Golden stupas, rolling mountainsides, and magnificent sunsets are never far from the bustling cityscapes that dot the region. As one of the most dynamic areas in the world, the region’s...
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May 8, 2015
Throughout my two years of graduate studies, I have learned that having a short-term goal is important for keeping my pace steady and not feeling exhausted from my studies, since becoming a scholar is a lifelong process. My goal for...
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May 8, 2015
It was around the beginning of April that I received an email from the Canadian Ambassador to Burma, congratulating me on being selected for the Embassy’s Summer Political Internship position. My name is Alice Niu and I am currently in...
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March 24, 2015
If there is anything that I have learned in my time as an Asian Institute work-study student, it’s that it’s that virtually every issue can be reduced to politics. I know that this may sound like a gross exaggeration. Not...
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