Course description

The four-semester master’s programme in China Studies is aimed at graduates of undergraduate degree programmes from China studies as well as from other cultural studies-based and philosophical disciplines such as literature and media studies or art, provided that the student has sufficient knowledge of China and corresponding language skills.

There are also places available to students for one- and two-semester study visits and research opportunities for short-term projects (such as in preparation for the master thesis) at partner institutes in China. These are offered, in particular, by the Faculties of Chinese Language and Literature at Fudan University in Shanghai and Sun Yatsen University in Guangzhou.

Students of China studies in Cologne are offered in-depth critical knowledge and scientific expertise in the field of philosophy as well as the culture, media, literature and art of modern China and its historical derivations, taking into account their own cultural and epistemological starting point for research.

Supported by specialised language courses to increase reading skills in modern and pre-modern Chinese and the students’ ability to express themselves in written and oral Chinese, the degree programme includes the two sinological modules “Media, Literature and Art of China” and “Philosophy and Discursive Practices in China”. They are supplemented by modules in the field of China studies and methodological cultural studies.

In addition, students are offered a scientific colloquium to provide support and discussion on their own research and reflect on new research, which represents the end of this degree programme and qualifies students to continue on to a doctorate.

Main fields of study:

• Deepening of Chinese language skills – Practising a vocabulary of cultural studies, drafting texts in Chinese, participating in verbal discussions in Chinese, confident handling of sources written both in modern and classical written language
• Acquisition of knowledge in the field of the philosophies of modern China and its historical derivations within the framework of their global and local interweaving
• Critical as well as self-referential examination of thinking and knowledge models including a comparative reflection on methods within philosophy and cultural studies
• Teaching of advanced skills in the examination of the literature, art and technical media of China in the context of their media, social and natural environments
• Expansion of the expertise acquired within China studies through supplementary areas and topics within the subject area of China research and through theoretical and methodological courses within cultural studies, media studies, literary studies, art and philosophy at the University of Cologne
• Epistemological and ontological critical thinking