MSc China in Comparative Perspective

About the MSc programme

This programme is based in the Department of Anthropology |, however teaching contributions come from staff in a range of departments within LSE.  The programme provides an introduction to the study of China, drawing on a range of social science disciplines including anthropology, economic history, international history, sociology, government and international relations.

It offers the following benefits:

• Students are taught about China from a comparative social science perspective.
• The programme can accommodate those who have interests in specific disciplinary frameworks such as anthropology, government, international relations or international and economic history.
• Students benefit from LSE's considerable expertise in studies of China and of Asia more generally.
• The course is a good preparation for research work in an academic discipline, but is also appropriate for those with career interests related to China and East Asia (eg in business or government).

 

A key feature of the MSc is that China is always considered in a comparative and historical framework. So, for example, Chinese economic history might be contrasted with European or Indian economic history or Chinese governmental powers with those found in Europe.

The programme is built around a compulsory core course on China in Comparative Perspective, combining lectures, seminars and tutorial supervision. Additionally you take optional courses to the value of two units  and complete a dissertation to be submitted by early September.

Scheduled teaching normally includes three hours of lectures and three hours of seminars per week (depending on options selected), supplemented by fortnightly academic tutorials in groups of two or three students. During the Lent term there are additional one-hour seminars to prepare students for dissertation writing.

Compulsory courses

• China in Comparative Perspective
• Seminar for China in Comparative Perspective
• Tutorials for MSc China in Comparative Perspective
• Dissertation

Options

(* half unit)  

Choose courses to the value of two full units from:

• The Anthropology of Religion
• The Anthropology of Kinship, Sex and Gender  
• The Anthropology of Industrialisation and Industrial Life*
• The Anthropology of Development*
• Anthropology and Human Rights* 
• Anthropology of Politics* 
• Anthropology of Economy (1): Production and Exchange*
• Anthropology of Economy (2): Development, Transformation and Globalisation*
• Anthropology and Media*  
• The Anthropology of Post-soviet Eurasia*  
• China in Developmental Perspectives* 
• Economic Development in East and Southeast Asia*
• European Models of Capitalism*
• Government and Politics in China* 
• Local Power in an Era of Globalisation, Democratisation, and Decentralisation*
• East Asia in the Age of Imperialism, 1839-1945*
• Foreign Policy Analysis III 
• International Politics: Asia and the Pacific
• Introduction to International Political Theory*
• The International Political Theory of Humanitarian Intervention*
• The Politics of International Law* 
• The Governance of Welfare: The Nation State and the European Union*
• Contemporary Issues in European Social Policy*  
• NGO Management, Policy and Administration  
• Social Policy: Goals and Issues*
• Globalisation and Social Policy*
• Social Policy – Organisation and Innovation*
• Health and Population in Developing and Transitional Societies*
• Cities and Social Change in East Asia*
• The Anthropology of Schooling*

If you want to qualify for a research degree in Anthropology, Economic History or Government, your choice of two optional courses must include one core unit from the three below, and another unit from the same discipline:

• Anthropology: Theory and Ethnography
• Pre-modern Paths of Growth: East and West Compared, 1000-1800
• Democracy in East and South Asia* and Introduction to Comparative Politics*  

Please note that only a selection of the optional courses is run each year, and some options are only available with approval of the course leader. Other courses in related disciplines may be taken instead of the above subject to the approval of your supervisor and the course teacher(s).