GRADUATE SCHOOL OF AMERICAN STUDIES
| American Studies at Doshisha
With the establishment of the Graduate School of American Studies in 1991, Doshisha entered a new era in this continuous international exchange. Drawing upon the extensive library holdings of the Center for American Studies, this independent graduate school was the first of its kind in Asia. Its multinational faculty and student body examine a wide range of subjects and utilize numerous scholarly tools to fashion a broad, holistic understanding of the United States. Consequently, the Graduate School’s M.A. and Ph.D. students, as well as the interdisciplinary faculty that advise them, provide a sophisticated perspective on America and its global impact. Over the past decade, the Graduate School of American Studies has emerged as one of the foremost institutions in Japan for the academic study of the United States. With a permanent faculty of five professors, as well as many guest lecturers and longer-term visiting professors, the Graduate School fosters research and teaching in a wide range of areas. In recent years, faculty members have published with major university presses, including Stanford, Cornell, and the University of North Carolina, as well as in numerous scholarly journals. The faculty's published works have spanned such diverse topics as religious history, feminism, economic policy, art and literature, cultural analysis, racial identity, and American politics. In conjunction with the Center for American Studies, the faculty also plays a major role in publishing Doshisha American Studies, a peer-reviewed academic journal accepting articles in both English and Japanese. The Graduate School is unusual as well in the breadth, duration, and intensity of its interaction with the north American academic community, a tradition that enables the program to serve as a distinctive meeting place between Japanese and American scholars.
The Need for American Studies We live in a time of rapid change. Since the 1970s technological innovations such as computers, telecommunications, and the Internet have made the world so small that we can no longer afford to let minor misunderstandings grow into major conflicts. As the process of globalization intensifies, the cultural and economic impact of the United States is strongly felt throughout Asia, and vice versa. At the same time, the United States is also a vital partner for the political stability and development of the region. Developing a better understanding of the US could be a key factor in maintaining a peaceful world in the increasingly tumultuous post-Cold War environment. For all these reasons, the integrated study of the United States will surely become more significant in the future. Understanding the United States requires one to move beyond the narrow confines of compartmentalized disciplines and adopt a comprehensive approach. The Doshisha Graduate School of American Studies makes every effort to introduce just such an approach in our program. Our Graduates The Graduate School seeks to develop people with a profound knowledge of America and an appreciation of the need for international understanding. Our graduates may become scholars, educators, business people or journalists, but they will all contribute to the formation of the international community.
Guidelines for the skills GSAS provides MA and Ph.D. graduates Graduate education at GSAS provides training to enable MA students : 1) to have comprehensive expect knowledge about history, society, culture, politics, and economics of the United States of America; 2) to have analytical ability to understand the U. S. in relation to Japan and the world; 3) to use such expertise to take an active role in international society, not only in academia but also in international business and organizations, and mass media; 4) to have the English ability that enables them to give graduate-level presesntations in the manner accepted by the international academic community; 5) to be independent researchers who initiate their own research project, collect and analyze their own data, and develop creative and meaningful arguments; 6) to be knowledgeable teachers about the United States who contribute their international perspectives in Japanese secondary education. Ph.D. training enables doctoral students: 1) to have superior research ability that can produce a Ph.D. dissertation at a standard accepted by the international academic community; 2) to have high linguistic and communicative fluency to give presentations in academid conferences outside of Japan; 3) to have internationally informed creativity to initiate and execute collaborative projects with scholars outside of Japan; 4) to be innovative teachers who can give American-style participatory classes as practiced in GSAS; 5) to be educators who take assert leadership in developing an understanding of American society and culture in Japanese higher education.
Characteristics of the Program Understanding a country like the United States demands an interdisciplinary approach. The courses offered in the program cover a wide range of interests. Professors from widely varied disciplines develop and lead the seminars, allowing for spirited exchanges among scholars and students with different but complementary scholarly concerns.
Multinational Faculty and Student Body The Doshisha program has attracted several distinguished foreign faculty members. Some of the courses are taught in English, so that foreign students without Japanese can fully participate in the program. Japanese faculty members are all proficient in English. Use of Research Materials from the Center for American Studies The Center is an active research institution housing the largest collection of American Studies research materials outside the United States. Graduate Students may use the Center's extensive library, participate in the Center's research projects, and attend seminars and conferences sponsored by the Center. Open Program The Doshisha program is open not only to graduates of four year colleges, but also to students who have completed three years in a Japanese university, to non-Japanese students from different institutions, to junior executives, and to all qualified applicants who wish to engage in an integrated American Studies program at the graduate level.
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Regardless
of war or peace, the United States and Japan have eyed each other
across the Pacific with endless fascination. For more than a century,
Doshisha University has lent a scholarly perspective to this mutual
interest, aiming to replace suspicion and isolation with peace and
cooperation. Doshisha has been an active proponent of the study
of American since the university was founded in 1875 by Joseph Hardy
Neesima, who fled feudal Japan in 1864 to study in the United States.
Over the years many Americans have joined the Doshisha faculty.
The founding of the 
