Thank you for your interest in our programs. The Department of Asian Languages and Cultures (ALC) offers a graduate program in Asian Languages and Cultures, Chinese and Japanese.
We recently held an information session for prospective students, watch this recording for insights from faculty in each area of academic studies.
Prior to submitting application and materials, applicants should carefully review the information regarding the program of interest and the faculty’ expertise to determine the fit between their interest and the program. To this extent, prospective applicants may contact a specific faculty to discuss their research interest prior to submitting applications.
To apply to the Ph.D. program, you must either have already received your M.A. or expect to receive it before you enroll at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In any case, students with an M.A. from outside this department are required to pass a Ph.D. Qualifying Examination within one year of entering the program.
Applicants should also review the Graduate School’s admission process, Graduate School’s minimum requirements, and program requirements and information (see below) prior to submitting the online application and fee. The application fee cannot be waived or refunded.
Deadlines
We accept applications for the fall term only.
The priority deadline for admission is January 10.
To ensure full consideration for admission with Fellowships, Project Assistantships, and Teaching Assistantships, all application materials must be submitted by January 10.
Applications are accepted after this date on a rolling admission basis until April 15, but there is no guarantee that funding or space will be available.
Application Process
New applicants to UW-Madison apply to programs through the Graduate School application process. Complete the online Graduate application and select the Asian Languages and Cultures (major code 597) or Chinese (major code 171) or Japanese (major code 583) program.
Ccurrently enrolled UW-Madison graduate students also need to apply through the Graduate School application. The deadline for current UW–Madison graduate students to apply is January 10, and the applications will be reviewed together with new applications submitted.
Application Materials
Please upload documents in PDF format. All correspondence must be in English. Please note that if possible, it is best to upload all your documents at once. Once you submit your materials, you will not be able to upload additional materials, only edit the materials that you have already uploaded.
1. Graduate School Application and Application Fee. Our department only reviews completed applications submitted through the Graduate School online application process. The application fee is required and is non-refundable. If you previously applied in a prior academic year, you will need to resubmit your Graduate School application and pay the application fee again.
Included in the online application is the departmental supplemental application. Please indicate your degree option when filling out the supplemental application.
2. Reasons for Graduate Study or Statement of Purpose. While there is no required minimum or maximum word length, most applicants will write a personal statement of approximately 800-1000 words (3-4 double-spaced pages). Use your personal statement to address why you wish to pursue graduate study in Asian Languages and Cultures at UW-Madison, how your previous study and/or work experience prepares you for graduate study, and what you wish to gain as a scholar and/or practitioner from graduate study. Please upload (PDF document preferred) your statement of purpose to your online application.
3. Letters of Recommendation. The department requires three letters of recommendation for each applicant. Letters should be written in English by people qualified to judge the applicant’s academic ability. There are no special forms for this. It will be your responsibility to contact recommenders and ask them to submit the letters online at the Graduate School application website. If you are applying for Teaching Assistantship, please make sure that at least one of your letters of recommendation for your graduate school application address your experience teaching. If none of the three recommendations address this aspect of your abilities, you may upload one additional letter of recommendation that speaks to your teaching experience.
4. GRE Scores. GRE scores are not required for admissions into any ALC graduate program.
5. English Proficiency Test Scores. Applicants with a native language other than English must follow the Graduate School’s guidelines for proof of English proficiency. Although a waiver may be granted for applicants who meet the Graduate School’s English proficiency requirement, please note that many fellowships and scholarships require English proficiency test scores.
6. Academic Writing Sample. If applying to a Ph.D. program, an academic writing sample, or MA thesis, should be uploaded to the Graduate School on-line application. You may submit a seminar paper, thesis chapter, or journal article. There is no required minimum or maximum length, but most applicants submit a writing ample of approximately 15-30 double-spaced pages. In addition, applicants to MA programs in Chinese Literature and Japanese Literature Programs are required to submit a writing sample (it is optional for Chinese Linguistics and Japanese Linguistics). This paper should be in English, and may either be published or unpublished. For those applying to the Ph.D. program in Chinese, a thesis in Chinese of exceptional quality may be accepted with the approval of the department.
7. Transcripts. No official transcripts are required as part of the application. The Graduate School will send an instructional email request after the program has recommended admission. Unofficial transcripts can be scanned and uploaded with your supplemental application. International academic records must be in the original language accompanied by an official English translation.
8. CV or resume
9. Supplemental Materials. If you are applying for Teaching Assistantships in our language courses, you will be asked to submit the following additional materials, in the Supplemental App section:
- Written autobiography (1-2 pages). If you have any teaching experience (language or area studies), please discuss the experience as part of the autobiography.
- Optional: Please make sure that at least one of your letters of recommendation for your graduate school application addresses your experience teaching. If none of the three recommendations address this aspect of your abilities, you may upload one additional letter of recommendation that speaks to your teaching experience.
- Optional: If you have a video recording of your teaching, please provide a link to a video such as YouTube or some other online space.
Admissions Decisions
After the deadline, the Admissions Committee will review the materials submitted online and begin the deliberation process. After the initial screening, applicants may be contacted via email to arrange interviews via phone or video conferencing software. The deliberation process typically takes several weeks. While the department tries to communicate our decision as soon as possible, we thank you for your patience.