The Department offers a Ph.D. program in East Asian Studies, with specializations in Chinese, Japanese, and East Asian Cultural Studies. The M.A. may be awarded to Ph.D. students in progress toward the doctoral degree.<br><br>The graduate program emphasizes rigorous training in language and textual analysis, with equal attention given to the historical, social, and cultural dimensions of literary study. In addition to more traditional vocabularies of criticism and theory, the curriculum encourages exploration of recent challenges to established conceptual and methodological frameworks. The program builds on the foundation of a faculty whose research interests engage major issues in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean literature and culture, while developing connections with the larger community of scholarship at UCI.<br><br>The Department of Gender & Sexuality Studies, which houses this emphasis, stresses interdisciplinary, multicultural scholarship and includes coursework in feminist theories, the cultural roles of women, women's socioeconomic condition, women's history, women's literature in a cross-cultural frame, women's images in fine arts and film, women of color, and lesbian and gay studies. Currently enrolled graduate students, as well as newly admitted students, may apply for admission. Applicants are advised to apply early in their academic career in order best to integrate the Feminist Emphasis with their departmental plan of study. The student who satisfactorily completes the emphasis will be given a letter of certification from the Chair of the Department of Gender & Sexuality Studies.