On successful completion of the MPhil program, graduates will be able to:

1. Specialize in one of the humanistic disciplines in the Division, either Anthropology, History, Linguistics, Literature, Philosophy or Religion, apart from cultivating knowledge and expertise in interdisciplinary dialogue and interaction;
2. Adopt a comparative and intercultural perspective to investigate into his/her specialized area, whether focusing on China or other parts of the world;
3. Identify important issues and topics, collect relevant primary sources and examine their values;
4. Familiarize with representative scholarly works in his/her field and the major narratives and interpretations ever produced;
5. Apply textual and/or contextual analysis to the study of his/her specialized subject and develop useful methodologies, techniques, and/or tools for his/her research; and
6. Through presentations, discussions and writing papers and the thesis, deliver his/her research findings in an effective and professional manner.

On successful completion of the PhD program, graduates will be able to:

1. Become a scholar in one of the humanistic disciplines in the Division, either Anthropology, History, Linguistics, Literature, Philosophy or Religion, apart from cultivating knowledge and expertise in interdisciplinary dialogue and interaction;
2. Adopt a comparative and intercultural perspective to investigate into his/her specialized area, whether focusing on China or other parts of the world;
3. Identify important issues and topics, command all the relevant primary sources and evaluate their values;
4. Become well versed in representative scholarly works in his/her field and examine critically major narratives, interpretations, themes and/or paradigms ever produced;
5. Apply textual and/or contextual analysis to the study of his/her specialized subject and design appropriate methodologies, techniques, tools and/or models for his/her research; and
6. Through presentations, discussions and writing papers and the thesis, deliver his/her research findings in a professional and proficient manner.

1. Minimum Credit Requirement

MPhil: 12 credits 
PhD: 21 credits 
 

2. Credit Transfer

Subject to the approval of the Division's PG Committee, PhD students may be granted credit transfer up to 9 credits on a case-by-case basis. 
 

3. Required Courses

MPhil:

A minimum of 12 credits of postgraduate courses in the Division of Humanities, preferably in their first year of study. The second year is normally devoted to the writing of the MPhil thesis.

PhD:

A minimum of 21 credits of postgraduate courses in the Division of Humanities, including HUMA 6200.
 

All new students must propose a course-taking plan for the first academic year in consultation with their advisors. The proposal, consisting of a list of couses to be taken in the first year and a study plan specifying the learning objectives and how these objectives can be achieved by the proposed list of courses, should be submitted to the Division's PG Committee for endorsement with prior approval of the advisor, no later than the end of the course add/drop period of the first regular term.
 

4. Graduate Teaching Assistant Training

All full-time RPg students are required to complete PDEV 6800. The course is composed of a 10-hour training offered by the Center for Education Innovation (CEI), and session(s) of instructional delivery to be assigned by the respective departments. Upon satisfactory completion of the training conducted by CEI, MPhil students are required to give at least one 30-minute session of instructional delivery in front of a group of students for one term. PhD students are required to give at least one such session each in two different terms. The instructional delivery will be formally assessed.
 

5. Professional Development Course Requirement

Students are required to complete PDEV 6770. The 1 credit earned from PDEV 6770 cannot be counted towards the credit requirements.
 

PhD students who are HKUST MPhil graduates and have completed PDEV 6770 or other professional development courses offered by the university before may be exempted from taking PDEV 6770, subject to prior approval of the School.

Students are required to complete HUMA 6300. The 1 credit earned from HUMA 6300 cannot be counted towards the credit requirements.

PhD students who are HKUST MPhil graduates in Humanities and have taken and passed HUMA 6300 may be exempted from taking HUMA 6300, subject to prior approval of the School.
 

6. English Language Requirement

Full-time RPg students are required to take an English Language Proficiency Assessment (ELPA) Speaking Test administered by the Center for Language Education before the start of their first term of study. Students whose ELPA Speaking Test score is below Level 4, or who failed to take the test in their first term of study, are required to take LANG 5000 until they pass the course by attaining at least Level 4 in the ELPA Speaking Test before graduation. The 1 credit earned from LANG 5000 cannot be counted toward the credit requirements.
 

Students are required to complete LANG 5005 and advised to complete it in the first year of study. The 1 credit earned from LANG 5005 cannot be counted toward the program credit requirements. Students may be considered for exemption from this course, subject to the approval of their department.
 

7. PhD Third Language Requirement

For PhD students, the study of a foreign language may be an important part of their preparation for research and teaching. A third language (normally Japanese, French or German), other than English and Chinese, is optional, but according to specific needs of the thesis research, the supervisor has the authority to require a student to take one and decide what level of proficiency should be achieved before graduation. The level of competence in a third language can be demonstrated either through satisfactory completion of a second-year language course taken within the last five years or through acceptable performance in a standardized examination. The third language, if required, must be fulfilled no later than the term in which the student completes the qualifying examination.

8.  PhD Qualifying Examination

To become a doctoral candidate, a PhD student must pass a written qualifying examination. The qualifying examination should be completed no later than the third regular term of study for full-time students, or the fifth regular term for part-time students. For details of the qualifying examination, please refer to the Division’s website.

9. Thesis Research

MPhil:

1. Registration in HUMA 6990; and
2. Presentation and oral defense of the MPhil thesis.

PhD:

1. Registration in HUMA 7990; and
2. Presentation and oral defense of the PhD thesis.
    

The thesis must be based on original research. It should demonstrate an awareness of the conceptual and methodological problems related to the chosen topic and a solid command of bibliographical materials in the field of study. The format of the thesis should conform to the guidelines outlined in the Handbook for Research Postgraduate Studies and also to the requirements listed in the Division’s website.

The thesis is normally written in English. If a student wishes to use Chinese as the thesis language, prior approval must be obtained. For details, please refer to the Division’s website.

A student submitting a thesis will need to defend it before the Thesis Examination Committee. For details of thesis examinations, please visit Handbook for Research Postgraduate Studies and the Division’s website.

Last Update: 1 June 2023

MPhil:

Students may opt for one of the four areas of concentration. To opt for an area of concentration, at least 6 credits of postgraduate coursework must be taken from the chosen concentration.
 

PhD:

Students are required to focus their research on one of the four areas of concentration. For all areas of concentration, at least 9 credits of the required coursework must be taken in the student’s chosen concentration.
 

Before the commencement of each academic year, the Division will provide students with a list of courses to be offered in each area of concentration.

1. Linguistics Concentration

Students will focus their research on Chinese linguistics, including phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and dialectology, or Sino-Tibetan linguistics from a historical perspective.
 

2. Literature Concentration

Students will focus primarily on Chinese literature from comparative, interdisciplinary, and theoretical perspectives.
 

3. History and Anthropology Concentration

Students will have the option of choosing one of the following two areas:
 

Area A – Chinese History and World History
This area focuses on the history of China with emphasis on the period from early China to the People’s Republic, whereas World History focuses on European and/or American history. Approaches to the subject can be economic, social, political, cultural, intellectual, or comparative.
 

Area B – Cultural Anthropology and Social History
This area focuses primarily on South China. Research areas include not only Guangdong and Fujian, but also regions extending from Taiwan through Hong Kong and Macao to Hainan. Other possible subjects of study are overseas Chinese (in Southeast Asia, Japan, North America, and Europe) and the ethnic groups of southern and southwestern China (She, Yao, Dan, etc.).
 

4. Philosophy and Religion Concentration

Students will focus their research on at least one of the following areas: Chinese, Asian, Western, and comparative philosophy and/or religion. 

Last Update: 31 July 2019

To qualify for admission, applicants must meet all of the following requirements. Admission is selective and meeting these minimum requirements does not guarantee admission.