Asia Institute
Faculty of Arts
The Asia Institute is the University of Melbourne’s key centre for studies in Asian languages, cultures and societies. Asia Institute academic staff have an array of research interests and specialisations, and strive to provide leadership in the study of the intellectual, legal, politico-economic, cultural and religious traditions and transformations of Asia and the Islamic world. The Institute is committed to community engagement and offers a dynamic program of academic and community-focused events and cultural exchanges that aim to promote dialogue and debate.
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Asian Studies
The countries of Asia are Australia’s largest trading partners and are of vital importance to Australia’s economic growth and security. For Australians, Asia increasingly defines who we are and our place in the world.
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Arabic Studies
Arabic is the fifth most commonly spoken native language in the world, with about 230 million people speaking it as their first language. Arabic studies students at the Asia Institute will learn not only about reading, writing and speaking in Arabic, but also living and interacting in the ‘Arab way’.
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Chinese Studies
China is a ‘rising power’ in the Western Pacific region whose future importance for Australia is hard to over-estimate. China’s current levels of investment in research and development and in the tertiary sector indicate that China is poised to make a very rapid transition to a ‘knowledge economy’.
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Gender Studies
Our program explores the significance of gender and sexuality on a range of discourses embedded within culture, identity and global history.
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Indonesian language and studies
Indonesia’s geographic proximity and strategic importance to Australia make it vital to understand its peoples, politics, history, languages and cultures.
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Islamic Studies
The Islamic studies program at the University of Melbourne provides students with the opportunity to study the development of Islamic thought and Muslim societies from a broad multidisciplinary perspective.
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Japanese language and studies
The study of Japanese language and culture gives the individual insight not only into a deep and diverse culture but also provides important contrasts when considering various nations’ roles in the Asia Pacific region.
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Korean Studies
Studying the Korean language as well as its contemporary history, politics, security, economy and society provides students with a deeper understanding of the issues pertaining to the Korean peninsula and its neighbours.
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Language Other Than English (LOTE) accreditation exams
The Asia Institute holds up to three examinations for LOTE accreditation for prospective teachers of Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian and Japanese each year.
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Asian Civil Society
This research cluster employs an interdisciplinary approach to analyse the dynamically expanding role of civil society in contemporary Asia.
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Asian Governance Transformations
How is governance in Asia changing? What is driving change and how is it being contested? What are the implications for human rights, democracy, social welfare, and foreign relations?
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Gender, Environment and Migration
Researchers in this cluster investigate migration in Asia and Australia from gender, environmental, and policy perspectives.
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Language Dynamics in the Asia Pacific
This research cluster explores the diverse languages of the Asia-Pacific region – their structures, pragmatics of usage, roles within society, and how they are taught and acquired.
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Islam and Politics in Contemporary Asia and the Middle East
This research cluster investigates how Islam plays a significant role in affecting political and social change today.
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Research projects
Asia Institute’s research projects involve aspects of four target areas (Arabic and Islamic Studies, China, Indonesia, Japan) and also Australia’s relationship to Asia.
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Publications
Academic staff make significant contributions to the understanding of Asian languages and societies, publishing in English and other languages.
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Centre for Contemporary Chinese Studies (CCCS)
CCCS plays a vital role in shaping an Australian approach to the study of contemporary China.
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National Centre for Contemporary Islamic Studies (NCCIS)
NCCIS provides outstanding higher education level programs in Islamic studies.
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Korean Studies Research Hub
The KSRH is an inter-disciplinary virtual hub for collaborative research on Korean Studies at the University of Melbourne.
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Undergraduate
Information about enrolments, placement tests, submissions and extensions. -
Honours, Graduate Diploma (Advanced), and Masters by coursework
Information about course requirements, compulsory subjects, supervision, thesis submissions, extensions, plagiarism and contacts. -
Graduate coursework
Information about student services, course requirements, submissions, extensions, academic honesty and more. -
Graduate research
Information about facilities, thesis submission and extensions, research administration, student services, handbooks and more. -
Future students
Information for future students wishing to undertake an undergraduate, graduate coursework or graduate research degree. -
Language placement tests
Take a Language placement test to determine what level of language studies you should be starting at.
The health, safety and wellbeing of our community is our number one priority. Our events program is now online. Find out more about the University’s COVID-19 response.
Ear to Asia is a podcast series produced by Asia Institute.
From Japan to Turkey, from China to Indonesia, and to many places in between, Ear to Asia talks with our researchers who focus on Asia – in all its diversity of peoples, societies and histories. If you’d like to feast your ears on in-depth conversations about the world’s most populous and dynamic region, we encourage you to subscribe to Ear to Asia.
You can find all episodes and subscribe on whooshkaa, Soundcloud, iTunes, Stitcher , or other podcast apps.
Episodes
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Asia Institute videos
Learn more about the Asia Institute through videos of recent events, seminars and workshops.
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Talking Indonesia
The Talking Indonesia podcast presents an interview with experts on Indonesian politics, foreign policy, culture, language and more.
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Language Other Than English (LOTE) accreditation exams
The Asia Institute holds up to three examinations for LOTE accreditation for prospective teachers of Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian and Japanese each year.
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Blogs
Learn more about the Asia Institute's research hubs and affiliated organisations.
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Engaging with South East Asia
Seminar series: Engaging with South East Asia: anxious nation and fundamentalist states of mind.
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Art and Activism in Asia
The work of Indonesian artist Arahmaiani.