Master's in East Asian Economy and Society

The master's programme in East Asian Economy and Society (EcoS) is a multidisciplinary programme dealing with contemporary societal, political and economic aspects of the East Asian region as a whole. It is offered at the Department of East Asian Studies of the University of Vienna in English language.We regard East Asia as more than just the sum of countries in that region. Rather than offering "light-versions" of Chinese, Japanese or Korean Studies, we focus on current transnational and regional issues as well as on comparative approaches. Reflecting the common traditions as well as the growing interrelation between Northeast Asia (China, Japan and the two Koreas) and Southeast Asia, we expanded our regular activities in research and teaching to include the ASEAN countries.We believe that it is impossible to achieve a proper understanding of regional and country-specific issues without a solid foundation in established theories and methods of social science. Acquiring and utilising such methodology is therefore a core characteristic of our programme. However, even the best methodological skills are unlikely to produce optimal results if they are applied out of context. Historical and cultural tradition, customs, and values limit the number of actually available options and influence choices in East Asian societies just as anywhere else. It is therefore no coincidence that our programme is based at an area studies department.The objective of the programme is to train experts in social science methods who apply their methodological skills to the East Asian region using a multidisciplinary approach. Accordingly, emphasis is put on transnational and regional issues and on comparative analyses.