Undergraduate Minor
An opportunity to gain interdisciplinary perspectives on the diversity of Asian American and Pacific Islander histories, cultures and contemporary experiences, the course of study focuses on the formative emergence of this pan-ethnic group in the United States. It also highlights Asian America’s transnational connections and contexts, including the dynamics of globalization, migration, imperialism and post-coloniality.
Readings in recent Program in Asian American Studies courses include, clockwise from top left: Bengali Harlem by Vivek Bald, Insurrecto by Gina Apostol, Tripmaster Monkey by Maxine Hong Kingston, Personal Days by Ed Park, The Asian American Achievement Paradox by Jennifer Lee and Min Zhou, Orientalism by Edward W. Said, How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Mohsin Hamid, Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu, Subverting Exclusion by Andrea Geiger, Fresh off the Boat by Eddie Huang.
Join the Program
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Admission
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The program is open to students from all departments. Students may enroll in the Asian American studies certificate program at any time, including the first year. There are no prerequisites, and courses taken prior to enrollment may count towards the certificate requirements. Students may take the gateway course AMS 101 at any time during their studies, including after enrollment in the certificate program. To enroll in the program, students should complete the online enrollment form. Students should plan to meet with the associate director or program coordinator before the end of their first year of enrollment, to review their plans for fulfilling the certificate requirements.
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Program of Study
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Students may earn a certificate in Asian American studies by successfully completing the following requirements, consisting of five courses:
- AMS 101: America Then and Now
- Three courses in Asian American studies (ASA), either originating in the program or cross-listed, and preferably representing disciplinary breadth in the social sciences, arts, and humanities. No more than one course taken in fulfillment of the student’s concentration may be counted toward the certificate. With the approval of the associate director, a student may substitute a comparative race and ethnicity course that contains substantial Asian American studies content for one of these courses.
- An advanced seminar in American studies, preferably taken in the senior year.
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Certificate of Proficiency
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Students who fulfill all the requirements of the program will receive a certificate in Asian American studies upon graduation.
Fall 2023 Courses
This course surveys critical themes in the interdisciplinary field of Asian American studies, including perspectives from history, literature, sociology, and gender and sexuality studies. It develops an account of Asian racialization beyond the black-white binary in the context of US war and empire in Asia and the Pacific Islands, settler colonialism, globalization, migration, and popular culture. Who or what is an "Asian American"? How have conceptions of Asian America changed over time? How do cultural forms such as literature and film add to an understanding of Asian American identity as a historically dynamic process and social relation?
This course addresses inequality in the context of sustainability, focusing on India with comparison to the USA and global trajectories. Students will explore social inequality and inequality in access to basic services; exposure to environmental pollution and climate risks; participation in governance; and, overall outcomes of sustainability, health and wellbeing. They will learn key theoretical frameworks underpinning inequality and equity, measurement approaches, and explore emerging strategies for designing equitable sustainability transitions, drawing upon engineering, spatial planning, public health, and policy perspectives.
This course introduces students to the multiple and varied experiences of people of Asian heritage in the United States from the 19th century to the present day. It focuses on three major questions: (1) What brought Asians to the United States? (2) How did Asian Americans come to be viewed as a race? (3) How does Asian American experience transform our understanding of U.S. history? Using newspapers, novels, government reports, and films, this course will cover major topics in Asian American history, including Chinese Exclusion, Japanese internment, transnational adoption, and the model minority stereotype.
Community and Conversations
In the course “The Asian American Family,” students created a zine with original works including poems, paintings, cartoons and creative nonfiction that explore Asian American kinship. Photo by Sarah Malone