Japan and Korea Section, Department of East Asian Languages and Culture

SOAS to celebrate impact of 100 years of Japanese Studies

Teaching and Learning Japanese at SOAS - Past, Present, Future: Celebrating 100 years of Japanese language pedagogy (and 20 of pedagogues' training).

Our Head of Department says:

"The cultures of both Japan & Korea have become increasingly familiar to Western audiences over the course of the twentieth century. Manga and anime, K- and J-pop, TV shows and film, food, fashion and computer games have become a fascinating part of global popular culture. Many also continue to be drawn to the rich diversity and dynamism of the two countries’ pre-modern literary, religious, artistic and philosophical cultures. Yet, despite such increasing familiarity, many stereotypes remain about Japanese and Korean cultures and their languages, which are often thought to be “inaccessible” and “obscure”. Our degrees aim to shatter these stereotypes, to allow you to master the languages, and to gain a deep and comprehensive understanding of the historical development of the cultures of Japan and Korea and their place in the modern world."

Japan and Korea Degree Programmes

Facts and figures

2nd: ranked for overall satisfaction in the UK in the NSS 2016

Research

The SOAS Library has extensive collections covering Japan and Korea
Staff research interests include literature, drama, language, contemporary culture, history, media, cinema, linguistics and applied linguistics
80% research output judged to have ‘outstanding’ and ‘very considerable’ impact (REF2014)
Ranked 1^st in the UK in the Times and Sunday Times University League Table 2015 for Research Quality (East and South Asian Studies)
SOAS has the Japan Research Centre (JRC),Centre for Korean Studies, Centre for the Study of Japanese Religions and shares the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC) with the UEA.

Teaching

We rank 5th for teaching quality in the UK in the Times & Sunday Times University League Table 2016
6th in the Complete University Guide 2018 (East & South East Asia)
21st in the Guardian 2015 Guide (Languages and Linguistics combined)
86% satisfaction for teaching and 86% for learning resources in the NSS 2016
NSS - Asian Studies departments ranked 2nd in UK
Number of Staff: 9 academic, 6 teaching and scholarship, 12 teaching and scholarship (fractional)
Eight undergraduate Japanese and Korean degrees(single or joint), with or without periods of study abroad
Six postgraduate degrees, most of which with a flexible structure, offering a broad range of disciplinary choices
Rigorous language training accompanies the study of the cultures of the region, and in the more intensive programmes constitutes the very foundation for the study of all other disciplines
One of two only universities in the UK to offer a BA degree in Korean
SOAS joining the global elite for Modern Languages in the recent QS World University Rankings by Subject, where it has been ranked sixth in the UK and 32nd internationally

Alumni and student stories

Rosamund Graham BA Japanese

"Not only does SOAS have a great reputation for its Japanese department and Japanese library collection, but I also believe that for language students, there’s no better city to live and study in than London"

Not only does SOAS have a great reputation for its Japanese department and Japanese library collection, but I also believe that for language students, there’s no better city to live and study in than London
Ana Luiza Olanescu BA Japanese and Geography

"SOAS is a unique institution not only through its degrees, but also through the diversity of people that you meet here. "

SOAS is a unique institution not only through its degrees, but also through the diversity of people that you meet here. My department is more like a family, the teachers are warm and caring, and they know how to maintain our curiosity for learning new things.
Antoni Slodkowski BA Japanese

"The cultural diversity is something rare in the UK and what makes the university experience so much more than studying."

It’s a melting pot of languages and cultures where your eyes open to new things you might have never heard about on a daily basis.
Alice Yuen BA Chinese and Korean

"Here you’re not only intrigued by the lectures but also by the people around you."

The best thing about my time here is that there has been a huge improvement in my language skills and I have become more aware of people from various backgrounds.
Hannah Kang, Georgetown University Study Year Abroad

"Lots of students often bypass a chance to study in the UK because they assume it won’t be a culturally “exotic” experience... Think again!"

Being a city girl, I thought life in London wouldn’t be too much of a culture shock but it actually was! London is very different from cities like New York or Tokyo. It really is one of a kind.
Fiorella Cerbasio, Istituto Universitario Orientale Di Napoli Erasmus Programme

"London is amazing. It is a big city, there is always something going on, always something interesting to do."

London is amazing. It is a big city, there is always something going on, always something interesting to do. Also, you can move around easily and fast. It is a frenetic life, but it is just part of the fun. If you want you can also relax in a park. I particularly love parks as there are not many in my city. You can enjoy art, nature and everything else in the same city. I really think it is amazing!
Sara Iannone, Università degli Studi di Napoli “L’Orientale” Erasmus Programme

"London is really a city for young people and sometimes you get lost in the sea of possibilities that it offers... I enjoyed living in London, it was magical. "

My advice would be: go for it! Especially if you are thinking about studying at SOAS because it is a great experience, not only for your CV but for yourself as well because [the] SOAS environment is really as great as the leaflets or the website tell you.
Katarina Starcevic, Georgetown University Study Abroad Programme

"Everyone has an amazing story to tell and SOAS creates an open and engaging environment in which to hear from everyone."

I really enjoyed the intimate atmosphere of SOAS and the chance to learn just as much from my fellow students as from my lecturers. I also really enjoyed how open and helpful the lecturers were, and was grateful to learn that they honestly cared about my progress in their course. I always felt supported during my time at SOAS.

Our publications

'Teaching' and 'Learning' (Im)politeness

Pizziconi, Barbara and Locher, Miriam, eds. (2015)

Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Shunga: Sex and Pleasure in Japanese Art

Gerstle, Andrew and Clark, T. and Ishigami, A. and Yano, Akiko, eds. (2013)

London: British Museum Press.
Contemporary Sino-Japanese Relations on Screen, A History, 1989-2005

Kirsch, Griseldis (2015)

London: Bloomsbury. (SOAS Studies in Modern and Contemporary Japan)
Speed Up Your Korean: Strategies to Avoid Common Errors

Brown, Lucien and Yeon, Jaehoon (2016)

Abingdon; New York: Routledge. (Speed Up Your Language Skills)
Korean History in Maps: From Prehistory to the Twenty-First Century

Shin, Michael (ed.) and Injae, Lee and Miller, Owen and Jinhoon, Park (2014)

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
The Youth of Things: Life and Death in the Age of Kajii Motojiro

Dodd, Stephen (2014)

Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.