Fall Semester
Contemporary Chinese Foreign Policy
The course’s objectives are:
- to understand the effective approaches and methods in CFP study and to obtain a historical understanding of the change and continuity of CFP since 1949.
- to find out China’s unique perceptions of particular international political, economic and security events, and its special behavior patterns/paradigms in negotiation, cooperation and deterrence as well as the variables that might affect it.
- to take an intensive look at some of the major problems that China confronts and its policy toward international regimes, its neighbors in the region and the big powers in the contemporary period.
Contemporary Chinese Society
- Market oriented reform from 1978 has changed Chinese society fundamentally. This course will explore various aspects of social life before and after the reform, focusing on the social stratification in both rural and urban societies, and change in gender, family relations and welfare system. First, some crucial aspects of Chinese history and culture are reviewed. Then the social structure in rural and urban societies are examined, paying attention to two systems that are essential to social stratification in China: the Hukou and work-unit. The course also examines how market transition transforms family life and women’s role in China.
- This course will provide a broad view of social issues in Chinese society. By the end of the course, students should be able to (1) understand the basic structure of Chinese society, and (2) critically think and discuss about the social causes and consequences of the reform/transition.
Key Issues and Institutions of Modern-Day China–Lecture Series & Visits
- This course is composed of a series of (given by experts and researchers from various institutions in China) and visits (to relevant institutions and sights). We invite speakers with different expertise to give you independent lectures with a total of no less than 4 lectures, and we arrange at least 2 visits. The lectures and visits cover a broad variety of topics and the exact lecture topics and visit themes depend on availability (and travel schedules) of invited speakers, who are usually not affiliated with Renmin University, as well as availability and access to institutions and sights.
- In the past, topics included lectures by leading researchers on China’s relations with various countries and regions of the world, as well as talks by diplomats and international relations experts. An outline of intended lectures is shared a few weeks into the semester, and individual lectures are scheduled and confirmed 2 to 4 weeks in advance.
Research Methods for Social Sciences
- This course is designed to give graduate students an overview of various research methods available to social scientists and enable students to plan and conduct their own research projects. The course will focus on the formulation of ideas about reality and designing and conducting social research projects. It will discuss the connections between theory, research questions, data collections, and interpretations as well as ethical issues relating to social research. Throughout the course, differences between qualitative and quantitative research methods will be discussed. Also, most major types of social research methodology will be reviewed, so that students will know how to and where to go for more information.
Methodologies in China Studies
- This course is designed to examine a variety of approaches to studies of contemporary China, mainly in the fields of Chinese politics and foreign relations. The approaches to the studies of contemporary China could not be discussed in isolation to the general approaches in social sciences and humanities.
- Beginning with the studies of Chinese history, we will explore Impact-Response and China-Centered Models in an effort to understand why history matters in the studies of Chinese politics and foreign relations. Based on the historical understanding, the course will examine some approaches to the studies of Chinese politics with a special attention given to the Faction Model. In the field of Chinese foreign relations, the course will investigate relations of general IR theories and their application to the studies of Chinese foreign policy as well as some approaches widely adopted by China watchers across the world.
- Students are required to do their reading assignments with caution and make aggressive critiques of the established models.
Asia-Pacific Energy Cooperation
- This course is an energy economics and politics course, not a general energy policy course. This course is also an area study course with focus on the Asia-Pacific region. It will cover a variety of theoretical and empirical topics related to energy demand, energy supply, energy prices, environmental consequences of energy consumption and production, and various domestic energy policies and international energy cooperation cases.
- As a compulsory course of the relatively new Double Master’s Program in Asian & European Affairs, it will have an experimental character to it. The course is based on a dynamic reading list which covers classical articles, reports and books in the sphere of energy political and economic science. Students will be expected to learn multidisciplinary analytical approaches, and practice them on individual cases in Asia-Pacific region.
Asian-Pacific Security and Strategy
The objectives of this course are:
- Outlining the evolution of modern Asia-Pacific international relations
- Understanding of the interactions among local, regional and global dynamics
- Analyzing current Asia-Pacific security challenges and response of major players
- Developing analytical skills in international history, international security and strategic studies
Investment in China
- The embracing of globalization in China has led to policy reform and the liberalization of the Chinese economy. The economic, financial and investment environment has changed dramatically as a result. China’s rising economic power and rapid development has attracted much attention and interest from around the world. It is an exciting time to witness the continuously changing and evolving landscape of investment in China.
- This course will explore the recent developments of China’s economic, industrial and investment trends and how they relate to the rest of the world.
Basic / Intermediate Chinese Language
Many international students would like to acquire and improve Chinese language skills while studying here, and our school provides two Chinese language courses:
- A core Chinese course in the first semester (beginner or intermediate level) with 2 sessions weekly, worth 4 credits, and
- An elective Chinese course in the second semester (intermediate or advanced level) with 1 session weekly, worth 2 credits.
