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The Department of
Asian Studies

Professor sitting on desk speaking with students in class

Immersion and Study Abroad

Immersion Is… an opportunity to learn through experience and to follow your curiosity in a creative and unique way. Many of our students complete Immersion experiences through travel abroad, allowing them to explore Asia in person.

Study Abroad

An international learning experience can be foundational to learning, broadening your understanding of the world. The Global Education Office has a wide variety of program opportunities to investigate and is a good place to start your study abroad journey.

Current Opportunities

Spring Break in India

ASIA 3363: Field Investigations: The Linguistic Landscape of India’s Golden Triangle

This course immerses students in the lives of Asian populations domestically and abroad. The course contains a 20-hour practicum in which students observe and engage in research alongside the course instructor situated among Asian populations. Topics and locations vary. Course is typically offered in the spring with travel occurring during Spring Break.

“The Linguistic Landscape of India’s Golden Triangle” introduces students to an important intersection between the fields of socio-linguistics and cultural geography. No prior language or linguistic knowledge is necessary for students to learn the methods of observing and recording the different types of language used, along with locations and materials, in the pluri-linguistic setting of India’s most prominent tourist route. Students will gather, organize, and analyze thematic visual language elements to uncover patterns of usage and construct hypotheses related to social meaning in these environments.

Maymester in Korea

Asia 1480: Discover Korea

This course focuses on economic transformation and the rise of Korean popular culture and how that impacts the politics South Korea and the US. It presents Korean language education via cultural and business excursions.

Immersion Stories

Jenny Yang, BA’26

“For my Immersion Vanderbilt project, I embarked on a meaningful exploration of my family’s roots and transnational ties. In the United States, it is not uncommon for first-generation Chinese immigrants and their children to lose touch with the cities and regions they originated from. As a result, they may have limited knowledge of the people, dialects, history and culture of these places.”

Senior lecturer in Asian Studies, Pengfei Li, received funding from a provost’s faculty grant to mentor students who conducted projects that explored their family history and cultural heritage within the context of larger global forces and historical structures. The grant enabled Jenny and a group of Vanderbilt students to travel to Flushing, New York, a city often referred to as “the China of America,” Li said. Read the full story here.