The Southeast Asian Studies certificate meets the needs of students choosing to focus on the Southeast Asia region—Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar/Burma, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam—but not wishing to commit to the more rigorous language and area studies courses required for the Asian Languages and Cultures major. Students select classes reflecting their interests offered through many university departments and can work toward a variety of undergraduate majors. The certificate is of value to students wishing to demonstrate their knowledge of the Southeast Asian region either to potential employers or to graduate schools.
Students interested in more specialized study of the languages and literature of East Asia, South Asia, or Southeast Asia can consider the Asian Languages and Cultures major, the East Asian Studies certificate, or the South Asian Studies certificate.
Those interested in the study of languages and cultures of Central Asia can consider the Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies certificate.
How to Get in
Students interested in declaring the certificate in Southeast Asian studies should contact the program advisor.
Students declared in the Asian Languages and Cultures: Southeast Asian Studies BA/BS/MAJ are not eligible to declare the Southeast Asian Studies certificate.
Requirements
Complete 15 credits, as follows:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 6 credits of Language may count: | 0-6 | |
| Third Semester Filipino | ||
| Fourth Semester Filipino | ||
| Third Semester Hmong | ||
| Fourth Semester Hmong | ||
| Third Semester Indonesian | ||
| Fourth Semester Indonesian | ||
| Third Semester Thai | ||
| Fourth Semester Thai | ||
| Third Semester Vietnamese | ||
| Fourth Semester Vietnamese | ||
ASIALANG 243 | ||
ASIALANG 244 | ||
ASIALANG 245 | ||
ASIALANG 246 | ||
| Fifth Semester Filipino | ||
| Sixth Semester Filipino | ||
| Fifth Semester Hmong | ||
| Sixth Semester Hmong | ||
| Sixth Semester Indonesian | ||
| Fifth Semester Thai | ||
| Sixth Semester Thai | ||
| Fifth Semester Vietnamese | ||
| Sixth Semester Vietnamese | ||
ASIALANG 343 | ||
ASIALANG 344 | ||
ASIALANG 345 | ||
ASIALANG 346 | ||
| Fifth Semester Indonesian | ||
| Third Semester Southeast Asian Language | ||
| Fourth Semester Southeast Asian Language | ||
| Fifth Semester Southeast Asian Language | ||
| Sixth Semester Southeast Asian Language | ||
| Seventh Semester Southeast Asian Language | ||
| Eighth Semester Southeast Asian Language | ||
| Core courses: | 9-15 | |
| Globalization, Poverty and Development | ||
| The Origins of Civilization | ||
| Archaeology of Warfare and Human Nature | ||
| Cities of Asia | ||
| Topics in Asian American Studies | ||
| Advanced Topics in Asian Translation | ||
| The Qur'an: Religious Scripture & Literature | ||
| Southeast Asian Literature | ||
ASIAN 444 | ||
| Topics in Rhetoric and Communication Science | ||
| Contemporary Political Discourse | ||
| Introduction to Southeast Asia: Vietnam to the Philippines | ||
| World Regions in Global Context | ||
| Human Geography of Southeast Asia | ||
| Development and Environment in Southeast Asia | ||
| Southeast Asian Refugees of the "Cold" War | ||
HISTORY 267 | ||
| Introduction to Buddhism | ||
| The Vietnam Wars | ||
| The Cold War - From World War II to End of Soviet Empire | ||
| History of Southeast Asia Since 1800 | ||
| Advanced Seminar in History | ||
| International Business | ||
| The Environment: Religion & Ethics | ||
| Islam: Religion and Culture | ||
| Total Credits | 15 | |
Residence and Quality of Work
- Minimum 2.000 GPA on all certificate courses
- At least 8 certificate credits must be completed in residence
Certificate Completion Requirement
This undergraduate certificate must be completed concurrently with the student’s undergraduate degree. Students cannot delay degree completion to complete the certificate.
Learning Outcomes
- (Historical and Cultural Grounding) understanding the historical political and cultural forces and conditions that have given rise to the unity and diversity in the region today.
- (Multi-disciplinarity) analyzing contemporary political, economic, and cultural realities in the region from at least two disciplinary perspectives, ideally including humanities, social sciences and sometimes natural science approaches.
- (Depth of Knowledge) mastering at the undergraduate generalist level a particular facet of life in the region by taking courses on a particular sub-region or country or by studying a regional language or by taking at least two courses on the region in one discipline.
Advising and Careers
All students interested in this certificate are encouraged to take HISTORY/ASIAN/GEOG/POLI SCI/SOC 244 Introduction to Southeast Asia: Vietnam to the Philippines.
Southeast Asian language courses are taught in the academic year—Filipino, Hmong, Indonesian, Thai, and Vietnamese. These and Burmese, Khmer, and Lao can be taken at UW–Madison’s summer program, the Southeast Asian Studies Summer Institute.
Students interested in the certificate in Southeast Asian Studies should contact the program advisor Michael Cullinane, mmcullin@wisc.edu.
SuccessWorks
SuccessWorks at the College of Letters & Science helps you turn the academic skills learned in your classes into a fulfilling life, guiding you every step of the way to securing jobs, internships, or admission to graduate school.
Through one-on-one career advising, events, and resources, you can explore career options, build valuable internship and research experience, and connect with supportive alumni and employers who open doors of opportunity.
- What you can do with your major (Major Skills & Outcomes Sheets)
- Make a career advising appointment
- Learn about internships and internship funding
- Try “Jobs, Internships, & How to Get Them,” an interactive guide in Canvas for enrolled UW–Madison students
Wisconsin Experience
As a regional center within the Institute for Regional and International Studies, we support and enhance international and global awareness in our student communities and inspire informed thinking about the complexities of our world. We encourage our students to connect to international networks and our regional communities through our program’s lecture series, film screenings, and varied outreach events and activities. We encourage our students to study abroad, do international internships, learn foreign languages, and expect them to gain an interdisciplinary grounding in global and regional affairs. We provide resources and expertise on our world area to students and prospective students, and more broadly to K-12 teachers and students, postsecondary educators and graduate students, businesses, the media, the military, the community at large, and anyone else who wants it.
Resources and Scholarships
Information about resources, scholarships, and funding through the Center for Southeast Asian Studies is available on our website. We also encourage our students to explore funding options available through the Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS) Awards Office.