Study Opportunities
Students wishing to expand their cultural borders by studying and traveling in Asia are urged to check out the programs mentioned below. The leadership of the Coleman Foundation has worked closely with these programs. They are outstanding and highly recommended.
Study in China
The China Studies Institute, affiliated with the History Department of Peking University, is a welcoming institution that offers many stimulating experiences including Chinese language immersion classes; classes in history, culture, and business; Chinese cultural study trips; and a variety of internships. For western students wishing an introduction or immersion into Chinese language, history, and culture, the China Studies Institute located in the dynamic capital city of Beijing is outstanding. Student housing on campus is available.
For further information, contact Dr. Youli Sun, Director at: youlisun@yahoo.com or Dr. Li Hong, Associate Director : elanhonglee@163.com Visit the Institute’s website at: http://www.china-studies.net/index.html
Study in Japan
The Asian Studies Program of Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan offers one-year or one-semester programs for students wishing to pursue Japanese language and Japanese/Asian studies. While the university is home to about 10,000 students, the Asian Studies Program currently enrolls over 600 students from about 40 different countries. Courses offered include Japanese and Asian business, history, culture, art, and economics. Cultural study trips are also an essential component to the program. Japanese language courses range from the introductory through the advanced levels. Previous Japanese language training is not required.
Learn more from the Kansai Gaidai Asian Studies Program website at: http://www.kansaigaidai.ac.jp/asp/
Confucius Institutes
The Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China through the Confucius Institute Headquarters (Hanban) has established Confucius Institutes throughout the world. These institutes promote the study of Chinese history, culture, and language as well as cultural exchanges. Over 70 Confucius Institutes have been established in the United States and all are associated with universities and colleges. A quick Google search will reveal their locations. The Institutes are excellent resources for anyone interested in learning about China. Dr. Mingzhou Qin directs the Confucius Institute associated with the University of Akron in Ohio. The Institute’s website can be found at: https://www.uakron.edu/ci/ Dr. Qin can be reached at: mqin1@uakron.edu
Recommended readings focusing on Asian history and culture.
Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
Weatherford, Jack
Broadway Books, 2005
China Shakes the World
Kynge, James
Houghton Mifflin, 2006
Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu
Bergreen, Laurence
Vintage Books, 2007
The Last Days of Old Beijing: Life in the Vanishing Backstreets of a City Transformed
Meyer, Michael
Walker and Co., 2009
Red China Blues: My Long March From Mao to Now
Wong, Jan
Doubleday/Anchor, 1996
Travelers’ Tales China
O’Reilly, James
Travelers’ Tales, 2004
Shadow of the Silk Road
Thubron, Colin
Harper Perennial, 2008
China Watcher: Confessions of a Peking Tom
Baum, Richard
University of Washington Press, 2010
When China Rules the World: The End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order
Martin Jacques
Penguin Books, 2012
China Road: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power
Gifford, Rob
Random House, 2008
China: Fragile Superpower: How China’s Internal Politics Could Derail Its Peaceful Rise
Shirk, Susan L.
Oxford University Press, 2007
China’s Brave New World: And Other Tales for Global Times
Wasserstrom, Jeffrey N.
Indiana University Press, 2007
Postcards from Tomorrow Square: Reports from China
Fallows, James
Vintage, 2008
China Airborne
Fallows, James
Vintage Press, 2013
Lost on Planet China: The Strange and True Story of One Man’s Attempt to Understand the World’s Most Mystifying Nation
Troost, J. Maarten
Broadway Books, 2009
China in the 21st Century
Wasserstrom, Jeffrey N.
Oxford University Press, 2013
Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China
Chang, Leslie T.
Spiegel & Grau; Reprint edition, 2009
Oracle Bones: A Journey Between China’s Past and Present
Hessler, Peter
Harper, 2006
Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory
Hessler, Peter
Harper Perennial, 2011
River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze
Hessler, Peter
Harper Perennial, 2006
Strange Stones: Dispatches from East and West
Hessler, Peter
Harper Perennial, 2013
Out of Mao’s Shadow: the Struggle for the Soul of a New China
Pan, Philip P.
Simon and Schuster 2008
Restless Empire: China and the World Since 1750
Westad, Odd A.
Basic Books, 2012
Bitter Winds: A Memoir of My Years in China’s Gulag
Wu, Harry
John Wiley & Sons, 1994
Red Azalea
Min, Anchee
Anchor Books, 2006
On China
Henry Kissinger
Penguin Press, 2011
Tiger Writing: Art, Culture and the Interdependent Self
Jen, Gish
Harvard University Press, 2013
The Party: the Secret World of China’s Communist Ruler
McGregor, Richard
Harper, 2010