The York Centre for Asian Research (YCAR) offers a Graduate Diploma in Asian Studies (GDAS) that is awarded concurrently with a Masters or Doctoral degree for which the student is registered.

GDAS answers the identified need among students who are looking for more Asian content in their studies, and to interest prospective employers who are looking for graduates with certifiable expertise in Asian Studies. It is an interdisciplinary programme that offers students a challenging graduate diploma degree with promising career opportunities in the broad area of Asian development.

Given the programme’s emphasis on non-spatially-contained definition of Asian studies, diaspora, identity, and transnationalism among immigrant communities in Canada, students will acquire a broad knowledge of contemporary Asian research and issues.

For more information, please visit us at 834 York Research Tower or email gdas@yorku.ca.

All candidates for GDAS must first be admitted to a graduate programme at York University. They may register for GDAS once their Masters or Doctoral programme of study has been clearly defined, normally before the course work has been completed.

The following York University programmes allow students to count the GDAS core course towards the diploma and towards their degree: Anthropology, Communication & Culture, Geography, Humanities and Sociology. The GDAS is also linked with the Faculty of Environmental Studies.

Diploma Requirements
GDAS is available to graduate students at York University who fulfill the following requirements:
1) Completion of the core course, The Making of Asian Studies: Critical Perspectives
2) Two research papers with clear Asian content
3) Demonstrated competency in an Asian language relevant to the candidate's research
4) Fieldwork or other experience in the geographic region of Asia or the Diaspora, to be assessed by the diploma committee.
A detailed explanation of the requirements is available here.


The Application Process
The initial steps for the application process are as follows:

1) Complete Section 1 of the GDAS Enrollment Form
>>Upon completion and submission of the GDAS application form, applicants will be contacted by the Diploma Coordinator to schedule a preliminary meeting. There is no annual deadline for enrolling, however students are encouraged show their interest in the programme as soon as possible by submitting the enrollment form to be sure all requirements can be completed. Once you are enrolled, be sure to inform you GPA that you have enrolled in the diploma programme.

2) Meet with the GDAS Diploma Coordinator to discuss programme requirements and enrollment plan for the core course.
>>The meeting is organized to discuss the student's research interests, diploma requirements, answer questions, direct students to resources and help them identify potential committee members.
Please email gdas@yorku.ca to make an appointment.

3) Approach two YCAR-affiliated graduate faculty members to be on your diploma committee
>>A committee of two graduate faculty members with YCAR affiliation will advise each GDAS student and certify to the Diploma Coordinator that all diploma requirements have been met. The committee members will guide students in finding research materials relevant to their programme of study as well as institutional affiliations in Asia.

To learn more about the research interests of YCAR-affiliated faculty members, you can refer to the Participating Faculty or Faculty Associates web page. Alternatively, you can refer to the Research section of the web site to learn more about which faculty members are doing research in your region or area of interest. 

4) Upon completion of these steps, your file will be processed at the YCAR office.

5) The Diploma is awarded upon completion of all programme requirements. The remaining two sections of the appplication form, Completion of Requirements and Notification of Completion, are available here and should be completed and signed by your committee members before being submitted to our offices to be approved by the Diploma Coordinator.

For More Information:
Administration
FAQs
Core Course
Requirements
Participating Faculty
YCAR Awards
Asia and Asian Diaspora Graduate Courses

Downloadable Forms:
Download GDAS Enrollment Form - Section I (Word)
Download GDAS Enrollment Form - Section I (PDF)  
Download GDAS Application Form, sections II and III - Completion of Requirements and Notification of Completion form (Word)
Download GDAS Application Form - sections II and II - Completion of Requirements and Notification of Completion form (PDF)