StudyQA — Master: Korean Studies — University of Oxford

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Description Contents Requirements Funding

This course aims to build on a basic knowledge of modern Korean and classical Chinese or modern Japanese.

The MSt aims:

to build your capability in using at least modern Korean for research purposes;
to acquaint you with many of the most important classical texts from Korean history, in modern Korean translation or the original Classical Chinese or Old or Middle Korean;
to enable you to understand and use a range of classical references and historiographical and linguistic research methods for the treatment of primary sources; and
to allow you to engage in specialised study from a wide range of options and exercise your new skills.

Graduate destinations

Graduates from this degree have gone on to pursue DPhil and PhD degrees in Oxford and elsewhere and some now hold academic posts in leading universities in the UK, Europe and Korea.

Others have gone directly into business, finance, law, civil service, journalism, government, and industry.

You should expect to attend up to ten hours per week of tutorials and should expect to spend an additional thirty to forty hours a week, perhaps more, during each full term for preparation. In addition, you should expect to be set a considerable amount of work during the vacations.

Language instruction, the reading of prescribed texts, and bibliographic or methodological exercises are usually conducted in tutorials for which you are expected to prepare thoroughly in advance. Lectures are provided for instruction on general themes of Korean and East Asian history and critical issues in contemporary and classical Korean linguistics. You are advised to take advantage of public lectures offered on China and Japan, since they also supply historical context, comparative linguistic information, regional background, and comparative perspectives for work in tutorials.

Teaching takes place in tutorials. You are required to prepare thoroughly for whatever is required: language exercises, prescribed readings, essays, bibliographic or methodological exercises, and you should be able to present your preparation in finished form. Depending on the task, the finished form may be written language exercises, essays on linguistics, historical, literary, or cultural topics, or translation from Korean (or Chinese or Japanese) into English.

Outstanding students typically view themselves as ‘researchers in training’ and consciously set about building their competence in the body of secondary reference materials available (in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese) as an additional aspect of tutorial preparation.

All preparation is for a set of final examinations in the following three areas:

Prescribed texts
Either Modern Korean unprepared translation or Classical Chinese or Modern
Japanese*
Methodologies for Classical Koreanology or Korean Linguistics

* Candidates who already possess a sufficient knowledge of Modern Korean will be required to choose Classical Chinese or Modern Japanese.

Candidates are also required to submit a dissertation of not more than 15,000 words on a topic approved by the Board of the Faculty of Oriental Studies.

Aside from the dissertation, the course is examined by two, three-hour examinations to be sat at the end (eighth week) of the third term (Trinity) in June, and one examination to be completed in the Bodleian Library over the course of three and one-half days, also during eighth week at the end of the third term. The dissertation deadline is the end of the sixth week of the third term.

All examination papers and the dissertation will be reviewed by examiners, one of whom is from outside the University. The external examiner shall have the final decision as to whether to award the degree. You will be examined viva voce unless you have been individually excused by the examiners.

The examiners ordinarily award a pass/fail mark but may award a distinction grade for excellence in the whole examination. A distinction grade should be viewed as a strong recommendation to continue research at the DPhil level.

Applicants are normally expected to be predicted or have achieved a first-class or strong upper second-class undergraduate degree with honours (or equivalent international qualifications), as a minimum, in any subject.

For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA sought is 3.5 out of 4.0.

If you hold non-UK qualifications and wish to check how your qualifications match these requirements, you can contact the National Recognition Information Centre for the United Kingdom (UK NARIC).

No Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or GMAT scores are sought.

Applicants must be able to read modern Korean. Applicants must submit scores from the Standard Test of Proficiency in Korean (S-TOPIK) with a target level of 4.

Official transcript(s)
CV/résumé
Statement of purpose/personal statement: Up to three pages
Written work:Two essays of 2,000 words each
References/letters of recommendation:Three overall, generally academic

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS

Higher level

est	Standard level scores		Higher level scores
IELTS Academic Institution code: 0713	7.0	Minimum 6.5 per component	7.5	Minimum 7.0 per component
TOEFL iBT Institution code: 0490	100	Minimum component scores: Listening: 22 Reading: 24 Speaking: 25 Writing: 24	110	Minimum component scores: Listening: 22 Reading: 24 Speaking: 25 Writing: 24
Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE)	185	Minimum 176 per component	191	Minimum 185 per component
Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English (CAE)	185	Minimum 176 per component	191	Minimum 185 per component