Alumni Profiles

I was drawn to Asian Studies because of the deep impact Asian countries have had around in the world's history and I wanted to explore how those historical roots expanded into modern day life.

The history of western interference in Asia was particularly interesting to me.

The course Asian Civilization: Modern History dived into the this topic extensively that helped guide me to reading about this topic on my own.

The most memorable part of my time as an Asian Studies major was meeting new professors and students who were also deeply engaged in Asian Studies.

Let yourself explore and try not to limit what topic you want to focus on because you may discover a passion for a new topic in Asian Studies you have never thought of before.

I am using my knowledge of Asian Studies to assist the Marriott Library in ordering items for Special Collections and from sellers around the globe.

I was drawn to Asian Studies while a Japanese major and became interested in the link between my Peruvian background and Japanese history.

The question that I was most interested in as an undergraduate student is "How do minority groups within Japan navigate its racial landscape?"

To help me in better understanding this topic, the course "Race in Japan: Black, White, and "Other" was offered.

While living at the Humanities Global Citizenship House, one of my housemates also studied Asian Studies, and we became great friends discussing coursework, career goals, and we both studied abroad in Osaka, Japan.

My advice for future students is to actively get in touch with your International & Area Studies Advisor as well as your Career Coach at the Career & Professional Development Center.

Now, I am currently starting my Masters in International Education at the School for International Training (SIT) Graduate Institute and working with international students as an advisor with Utah Global.

I chose Asian Studies based on my fascination from childhood with different cultures. After studying abroad in Europe in high school, I began taking Asian history classes at the U. I fell in love with the complexity and intricacy of the subject. When I learned I had the opportunity to pursue a degree specializing in the region, I knew I wanted to pursue it.

History and language

The outstanding Korean professors helped me every step of the way. From providing me with detailed and excellent instruction to giving me the opportunity to be a T.A. for the Korean language department—they opened countless doors for me and enabled me to deepen my understanding of the language, culture, and history of Korea.

I studied abroad three times in South Korea during my time at the U. During my study abroad experiences, I was welcomed into a different culture, made life-changing memories, and developed global friendships.

Pursue your passion. Undergrad is an amazing opportunity to build the foundation for the rest of your life. Do something that you are interested in, that you want to spend your time and effort on, and that you are genuinely excited about.

I just graduated with my juris doctorate from NYU School of Law, where I served as the Editor in Chief for the N.Y.U. Journal of International Law & Politics. I am currently studying for the bar and will begin work at a Manhattan law firm this fall.

I wanted to pursue Japanese at a university level since a young age, and Asian Studies happened to overlap with my International Studies major so I double dipped!

I really loved learning about Japanese politics during my exchange at Waseda University. It involved two of my favorite topics: international government and Japanese.

The exchange program set up between the U and Waseda University gave me the chance to experience Japanese at an immersive level. Japanese Politics also wasn't offered at the U and learning about Japan's government from Japanese professors in Japan was incredible. My study abroad advisor at the time (Maxine Marshall) was an incredible help—she helped me with all my application forms, visa forms, international health insurance and answered my long list of questions. The Asia Center were also very helpful and gave me information on the Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Scholarship, which ultimately funded my study abroad trip. Without the scholarship, I wouldn't have been able to go.

Definitely my exchange program to Waseda University. I highly recommend to any student from Asian Studies (or any background!) to study abroad. There's lots of scholarships out there like the Benjamin A. Gilman scholarship and FLAS. And if you go on an exchange program like I did, you can even use your financial aid to pay for your U of U tuition as usual.

There's such a variety of courses and resources available through the Asia Center. Don't be shy—walk in sometime and ask for help!

Ironically, I met my partner on my exchange program in Tokyo and now live with them in their hometown in Dublin, Ireland. I currently work as Lead Designer for a business innovation company called Lean Disruptor. Learning about such diverse cultures and meeting people from all different backgrounds has helped me empathize with clients and better understand their needs. I've also become an expert on how to recover and adapt from culture shock!

I earned my Asian Studies degree along with a degree in History, focusing on Chinese history. After two years of missionary service in Taiwan, I felt that the Asian Studies degree would complement my study of history.

I was interested in breaking out of a Eurocentric view of history, particularly focusing on modern Chinese history.

Professor Theiss was an excellent adviser and resource.

The Exploring Asia and the Environmental History of China were both great courses. Additionally, I was able to shadow a state representative who I was connected to, as he was also an Asian Studies major.

Take a course regarding an area or subject outside of your area of focus. I took a course in Modern Southeast Asia—it was fascinating.

I recently finished my JD from Temple Law School and am enrolled in a Tax LLM program at Loyola Law School.

I was always interested in focusing in my art history studies to East Asia and thought that Asian Studies would be a good addition to further contextualize my subject.

I was and am still interested in the representation of culture through space and architecture. I am intrigued by the way that architecture reveals not only the history of a culture and its individuals, but also the new changes and transformations that that culture has taken on in the present times.

Courses in Asian history and art history as well as the final capstone course for Asian Studies were really beneficial. Even if the topics did not directly relate to my field, they gave me insight into the broader implications of cultural representation and understanding. My undergraduate (and MA) thesis committee chair was Prof. Winston Kyan, and he provided me with consistent support and feedback on how to dig deeper into my field of Asian art history.

I would say the most memorable part was working on my thesis at the end of my undergraduate career after absorbing all that I could through the courses. The final paper was something that I could pinpoint my interests and exert all of my energy and knowledge in to one specific topic, which was challenging and fulfilling.

I would say that I am very glad that I supplemented my art history major with Asian Studies. It gave me the opportunity to focus on Asia but also study aspects of Asia that I was unfamiliar with previously and see new connections.

I finished my MA program in art history at the University of Utah in the fall and am about to go on to a Japanese language program in Yokohama for one year. After that, I hope to pursue a PhD program in Japanese art history.

I was studying Linguistics as my major and taking Japanese classes as a minor. I was informed that I could easily double major, based on all the language and culture classes I had been taking already. I ended up loving my Asian Studies classes. One of my favorite classes while I was at The U was a requirement for the major, Religions of the World.

Languages and culture. I was eager to learn as much as I could about both things and Asian Studies really helped me do that.

The professors in this major are really wonderful. They provided a wide array of background experience and focuses. Also, it was really enjoyable to take classes with students with different country focuses than my own. I was able to learn a lot in each class.

As I said before, my favorite class was Religions of the World. The professor at the time was an incredible lecturer, and the students interested in that class were very diverse. It was nice to be around people of different backgrounds and beliefs, especially in Utah.

Learn as much as you can about multiple countries and their historical and diplomatic relationships to each other. This will help you with any faux pas while you travel and work abroad. Even though my focus was on Japan, I ended up first in Thailand for a year. Luckily, I had learned a thing or two while at The U that helped me be prepared for the cultural differences.

I've completed a Master in TESOL (Teacher of English to Speakers of Other Languages) and am currently working in Yokohama, Japan at a middle/high school. I impress my coworkers with my Japanese ability (albeit as rudimentary and out of practice as it is), and I know I have my time at the U to thank for that.

I was already studying Political Science and International Studies, and I thought there was a lot of overlap between the disciplines so I wanted also learn more about Asian Studies. I was especially interested in Asian Studies, because I was already taking Chinese classes at the U and was planning to study abroad in Taiwan my sophomore year of college. I thought that adding on this major was not only convenient considering the classes I was already taking, but would be conducive to the other areas of my studies as well. This major also helped me open my eyes to other countries and cultures, and further encouraged me to explore work in Asian countries such as China and South Korea post-graduation.

I was most interested in China and its relationship with Taiwan as well as the clash of a "Chinese" and "Taiwanese" identity. This was also the focus of my Political Science honors thesis. Currently, I am more interested in the rise of China and their obstruction of human rights, lack of international overview, and increasingly authoritarian rule under President Xi Jinping. Currently, Chinese growth and development comes at the cost of the environment, free speech, religious freedom, and other essential human rights—and in the case of the religious persecutions in Xinjiang, actual lives.

During my study abroad in Taiwan, I came to be aware of the growing political tensions between Taiwan and Mainland China through personal observation and conversation. Coincidentally, the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong also happened during my studies, so I became increasingly aware of China's power specifically in relation to Hong Kong and Taiwan. My Taiwanese, Hong Kong, and Mainland Chinese friends also gave me a more personal insight on a local's perspective from each of the respective areas. My love for Chinese and Taiwan motivated me to learn more about this issue; I even went to Hong Kong and Mainland China (8 different cities) by myself the following summer to learn more about China and what it was really like. I realized I had a huge gap in my knowledge about China, and found that a lot of what I thought I "knew" was just from the media and material from classes. I actually had no idea what China was like, how Chinese people lived, and what they actually thought about. It wasn't until I made Mainland Chinese friends during my study abroad and traveled did I have a better understanding. Even now, after working in China two years later, I have a more comprehensive understanding than I did when I traveled by myself at 19. I also relied on my Asian Studies adviser (and former Study Abroad Coordinator) Ashley Glenn a lot to help me organize my classes and figure out which faculty member would be the best option to become my thesis supervisor.

Definitely studying abroad at National Taiwan University in Taipei! This helped open so many doors for me, allowed me to meet so many different people from around the world, and overall, helped me gain a more rounded, global perspective. By having the opportunity to study Chinese in a foreign country with all these other students from around the world was an extremely special experience; it helped me realize that even though we were all different (in age, nationality, country, life prospects), we all came together at the same point in time to study Chinese in Taiwan. It made me feel comforted to know that there was not just one life path we needed to take, that I could also try something new, try for a more unconventional lifestyle, and know that I would still be okay. 

For any students considering Asian Studies, I would recommend studying abroad--100%. A summer is okay, a semester is better, a year would be even better. Challenge yourself to learn a new language, immerse yourself in a new environment, and try to really understand what it means to live in a country you've only studied about on paper. What you learn in class, what you hear from others, is never, never going to help you understand a country and its issues in its entirety (and arguably, you never will be able to--but that's a different conversation). It is such a rewarding experience to try to live your life in a place that isn't your home, and then to make it your home and have a tangible experience connected to your studies...that's so undeniably rewarding. I don't exaggerate when I say it changes your life. Don't study abroad to just travel, study abroad to try and live. Learn a new language. Learning a new language opens so many doors; jobs, yes, but more importantly, it opens up an entire culture to you. You learn how a culture thinks, how they process ideas, how they see the world, and you get to communicate with that. Please, try and learn a new language. Challenge yourself!!

I am currently in South Korea teaching at three different public elementary schools (K, 3-6) in Gongju, South Korea. Gongju is in the countryside and was the old Korean capital during the Baekjae Dynasty. Last year, I was working in Ningbo, China, at the University of Nottingham. It was a crazy experience working in British University with both Chinese and international studies under the surveillance of Communist China. Looking back on my work in China and my study abroad in Taiwan, I really can't even begin to appreciate the strange, nuanced experiences I've had and the knowledge I've gained.