Career Opportunities
Many graduates of the Asian Studies Program who go on to complete their degree in Asian Studies at university find employment in Asian countries, in government, or in local firms dealing with Asia.
Some students have returned from extensive travel or employment in Asia and need deeper background to understand the beliefs and practices they have experienced. After these students return to Asia with the Asian Studies Diploma, Associate of Arts Degree or a Bachelor’s degree from a local university, they take up their former roles with enhanced abilities, opportunities, and recognition.
The ideal goal of Asian Studies program graduates is employment in the federal government’s Department of Foreign Affairs, Industry and Trade. Other governmental positions also require a degree and/or experience in Asia, as do several positions in the BC government.
Some graduates report that after they gained employment at a local BC company, they were selected to deal with visiting Asian businesspeople, and this kind of opportunity led to promotions.
Another ultimate goal for Asian Studies graduates is in the field of education itself. The Asian Studies Diploma or Associate of Arts Degree can lead to a position teaching about Asia at the elementary, secondary and post-secondary levels.
Objectives
Asian Studies students will gain a considerable depth of knowledge of the histories, cultures, social evolution, economic practices and international relations of the major Asia-Pacific societies.
They will be well prepared for further study in university programs dealing with the Asia Pacific. Their range of experiences gained in the program will support their interaction with Asia-Pacific people in both the workplace and in social settings.
Outcomes
Asian Studies graduates will go to Asia (or return there) with a deeper appreciation of local cultures and a broader familiarity with the range of these cultures, leading to stronger bonds of respect, friendship and collegiality, and reducing the negative effects of cross-cultural misunderstanding.
They will develop a deep (or deeper) empathy for one or more Asian cultures. They will be more open to Asian employment practice -- such as depending on loyalty more than a contract -- and become more comfortable with these practices, and more successful as employees, managers and employers.
They will be very well prepared for university-transfer, and do well in their upper level studies in university.
Students often continue their studies in universities such as: