Asian Studies

PhD Programme in Asian Studies (4 years)

General Introduction

The Department of Asian Studies at Palacký University Olomouc offers a PhD programme in Asian Studies (in English as well as in Czech) to students of humanities and social sciences specialising in Asia within the following broad themes:

  • Language structure, language use and its role in society
  • Quantitative linguistics, data mining, translation studies
  • Political change and ideology in Asia
  • Inter-cultural contacts between Europe and Asia
  • Cultural anthropology, ethnology and material culture
  • Social structure and social change in Asia
  • International relations in Asia
  • History of ideas and religion
  • Contemporary literature and culture (including visual representation and verbal art)
  • Modern and pre-modern Asian literature
  • Modern art and architecture
  • Language acquisition and teaching

The faculty consists of about two dozen specialists with diverse expertise (see Department Members).

The department offers language instruction in Cantonese, Chinese, Indonesian/Malay, Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese, Uzbek, Tajik Persian and Vietnamese in its BA and MA programs. Doctoral students are given opportunity to gain teaching experience in the BA program.

The department maintains an active research program, with regular events such as seminars, workshops, conferences, and summer schools. It offers a rich and stimulating environment to budding Asia experts. Doctoral students are encouraged to participate in Department research projects, such as the Sinophone Borderlands Project.

General profile of an applicant

  • An MA degree or equivalent in Asian studies or related field (Chinese philology, Japanese philology, Asian Studies, Cultural Anthropology, Sociology, Political Sciences, History of Art, a.o.)
  • Working proficiency in one language related to the region (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Indonesian, etc.)
  • Proficiency in English 
  • Knowledge of another language of the area is an advantage

Application Portfolio

The applicants should submit their portfolio, consisting of the following materials:

  1. Cover letter or Statement of Purpose (explaining applicants motivation to pursue graduate studies) 
  2. Application form (download the form here)
  3. Copy of proof of payment of the admission fee (see application form)
  4. Full CV (signed by the applicant)
  5. Transcript of academic record
  6. Research proposal (max 5. pages inc. bibliography)
  7. Two reference letters commenting on their aptitude for graduate work
  8. Copy of Diploma, a study certificate, or a similar document issued by the foreign higher education institution
  9. Language certificates such as TOEFL, IELTS, GRE is an advantage (but not mandatory) 

The portfolio should be mailed (by post or email) to Ms. Petra Karlová (petra.karlova@upol.cz) by the stipulated deadline.

The application should also be submitted online, using this link.

Portfolio submission period: 1 January – 30 April.

Admission Process

Selected applicants will be invited for an interview (video call with students not living abroad).

In addition to the above, the applicants are evaluated based on the following:

  1. the quality and feasibility of their research proposal (max. 5 pages incl. bibliography)
  2. their ability to present their research proposal
  3. their familiarity with the theoretical frameworks of their research
  4. their communication abilities in English and the language of the area
  5. their understanding of the chosen field
  6. their aptitude for graduate study (can be supported by 2 reference letters).

Selected applicants will be presented to the Scientific board for approval and if successful, informed without unnecessary delay.

Important Dates

  • Duration of application process: see the schedule of the academic year

!Important Notice!

In case you have not obtained your Master's degree in Czech Republic, it will be necessary to prove in the study enrollment that Palacký University has assessed and recognized the applicant's fulfillment of the condition of achieving university education. If you only want to apply for Asian Studies Ph.D. programme of Palacký University and not to other universities in Czech republic, please follow the instructions of the process on the second page of the manual, letter c), (disregard a) and b). For more on the process of confirming foreign university education, see this manual.

Study Structure and Completion

Students accepted to the doctoral program are offered a scholarship of a maximum of 4 years. During this period, tuition fees are waived. Students are subject to annual evaluation, based on their individual Study Plan by the Study Programme Committee upon recommendation of the Thesis Advisory Committee (TAC).

Students are expected to consult their research with their TAC regularly, actively participated in the academic life of the institution and fulfil their duties within the Department (such as tutoring, etc.).

In order to graduate, students have to collect 240 credits, with an annual minimum of 40 credits and present their dissertation thesis for examination. Upon recommendation of the TAC, the Study Program Committee selects internal and external examiners and sets a date for the final state exam and public defense, following procedures stipulated by the Czech law and internal regulations of the University.

Year 1

During their first year students refine their research proposal and defend its feasibility in the final year presentation to the Study Program Committee. To this end they are required to:

  • expand their research proposal and carry out an extensive literature review;
  • study Asian philosophical and religious traditions;
  • deepen their language proficiency of the chosen Asian language to be able to work with academic texts in the prospective language;
  • complete an Academic English course;
  • outline the theoretical aspects of their dissertation project and drafts the literature review and theoretical chapters of the dissertation.

At the end of the year, student present their research project to the Program and defend it to the Study Program Committee. The Committee can terminate unsuccessful projects at this stage.

Year 2

During their second year students focus on the methodological aspect of their research and start data collection. They are expected to:

  • outline the methodological aspects of their research and start data collection;
  • present their research to the scientific community (in reading groups, seminars, conferences);
  • systematically work on their thesis;
  • fulfil their duties within the Department. 

Year 3 & 4

Students are expected to:

  • regularly consult their work with TAC
  • participate in the academic life of the Department and scientific community
  • present their research (in presentations or writing)
  • systematically work on their thesis and lead it to a successful and timely conclusion.

Supervisors and Consultants

*Members of the Doctoral Board can also be supervisors.

  • Mgr. Dan Faltýnek, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (linguistics)
  • Mgr. Jakub Havlíček, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (religion studies)
  • Mgr. Kamila Hladíková, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (Chinese literature, film and TV production, pop culture, ideology and propaganda, censorship, Tibet, ethnic minorities in the PRC)
  • Mgr. et Mgr. Petra Karlová, PhD. et PhD., Palacký University Olomouc (Vietnamese studies, Japanese studies, history, academic writing)
  • František Kratochvíl, M.A., Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (general linguistics anthropological linguistics, linguistics of Southeast Asian languages)
  • Filip Kraus, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (social anthropology, Vietnamese social morality, sexuality, political system)
  • Mgr. Iveta Nakládalová, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc
  • Mag. Dr. Andreas Schirmer, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (Korean literature, translation, intercultural contacts between Korea and Europe)
  • Gyu-Ho Shin, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (language acquisition/development, corpus linguistics, Natural Language Processing, the Psychology of language, Korean linguistics)
  • Joanna Sio Ut-Seong, M.Phil., Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (Chinese linguistics, drama and communication)
  • Ing. Mgr. Richard Turcsányi Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc, Masaryk University Brno, Mendel University of Brno (Chinese foreign policy, Sino-European relations, international relations in East Asia)
  • Natalia Ryzhova, Ph.D. (Economic anthropology, border studies, environmental changes, Russian-Chinese border)
  • Rune Steenberg, Ph.D. (Kinship, border trade, marriage, economic transformation, customs, informality, re-education camps, state violence, formalization, commodification, propaganda, narrative strategies)
  • Mgr. Dana Healy, Ph.D., SOAS London (modern Vietnamese literature and cultural studies, history of society and culture of Vietnam)
  • PhDr. Tereza Hejzlarová Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (ethnology)
  • Mgr. Ondřej Kučera, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (lexicography, history and politics of modern China (including Taiwan)
  • Mgr. Sylva Martinásková, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (Japanese literature)
  • Mgr. Jiří Matela, Ph.D., Masaryk University Brno (Japanese linguistics)
  • Mgr. Tereza Slaměníková Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (modern Chinese grammatology, phonological system of Chinese, prosody of modern colloquial Chinese)
  • Prof. PhDr. Mgr. Naděžda Špatenková, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (applied psychology, gerontology, gerontagogy)
  • Mgr. Michaela Zahradníková, Ph.D., Palacký University Olomouc (applied linguistics, TCSL, Chinese linguistics)

Doctoral Board

Internal members

  • prof. RNDr. dr hab. Jan Andres, DSc., Palacký University in Olomouc (mathematical analysis, nonlinear differential equations and inclusions, dynamic systems, fractals)
  • prof. Julie Chen Yu-Wen, Ph.D., University of Helsinki (China's culture and society, China's international relations, comparative politics)
  • doc. Mag. Dr. Alfred Gerstl, MIR, Palacký University in Olomouc, (international relations of Southeast and East Asia)
  • doc. Mgr. Ivona Barešová, Ph.D., Palacký University in Olomouc (Japanese linguistics)
  • prof. prof. PhDr. Jiří Lach, M.A., Ph.D., Palacký University in Olomouc (history)
  • prof. prof. PhDr. Dušan Lužný, Dr., Palacký University in Olomouc, Masaryk University in Brno (sociology and anthropology of religion, new religious movements, sociological theory)
  • doc. prof. PhDr. Ludmila Veselovská, Ph.D., Palacký University in Olomouc (language universals, typology)

External members

  • doc. Olaf Günther, Ph.D., Universität Leipzig (ethnology)
  • doc. Pascal Bordeaux, Ph.D., École Pratique des Hautes Études, Paris
  • prof. Olga Dror, Ph.D., M.A., Texas A&M University (history)
  • prof. Duncan McCargo, Ph.D., School of Politics and International Studies, University of Leeds (political science)
  • doc. Ing. Jan Sýkora, M.A., Ph.D., Palacký University in Olomouc, FF UK Prague Institute of Far East (modern and contemporary history of Japan, economic and social history of Japan, intellectual history of Japan, contemporary Japanese society)

Students

Muhetaer Mukaidaisi, MA

Raasheed Mahmood, MA

Mgr. Žofia Zigová

Ahmed Sharif,MA

Niger Sultana, MA

Rumi Akter, MA

Shirin Naseer, MA

Le Van Tuyen, MA

Saglai Sandanchik, MA

Ing. Pham Thu Huong

 

Contact

Any queries may be addressed to: petra.karlova@upol.cz.

 

Projekt Asijská studia: podpora mladých talentů

reg. č. CZ.02.2.69/0.0/0.0/16_018/0002297