Australia is increasingly looking to Asia - strategically, economically, politically, and culturally - and all eyes are on the graduates of tomorrow to take us there.

With a Bachelor of Asian Studies you will master an Asian language, acquire in-depth contextual and regional knowledge, and graduate with the kind of Asian literacy that gets you noticed by employers.

Our community of scholars, policymakers, researchers and students is proudly interdisciplinary and interregional. Our teaching and research drives Australia’s engagement and understanding of its neighbouring regions. Majors and minors in the Bachelor of Asian Studies can be based on a language, a region or a discipline – for example, Modern Chinese Language, Asia-Pacific Politics, Japanese Studies and many others. We encourage students who begin the study of an Asian language at university to complete a full language major in order to graduate with the proficiency required to function as an Asia specialist in the increasingly competitive job market.

The Bachelor of Asian Studies (with Year in Asia) is the perfect degree to establish yourself as a future leader in the Asian Century. You will combine study at ANU with one year at a university in an Asian location like Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul or Bangkok.

Your Year in Asia will build on the strengths of your Bachelor degree. You will develop an advanced level of language proficiency and an exceptional capacity to understand the societies and cultures of our region. You will study with world-class teachers at ANU and then put your learning into practice on the ground in Asia.

Can you see yourself jet-setting the globe with a career in trade, foreign affairs, journalism, international business or research? You have found the right degree.

ANU is a leader in the field of International Relations.

Our program will introduce you to International Relations, initially via the broad historical and intellectual framework which has framed the modern world of states since the 17th century. It will then concentrate on the 20th century, the age of World Wars and the Cold War, before addressing contemporary issues, the age of global political economy, global culture and communication, global environmental concerns and post-Cold war political conflict, including the 'War on Terror'.

With our flexible program you can extend your chosen language subject into a major, and have the opportunity to go on exchange or an international/national internship.

Learning Outcomes

1. Critically apply theoretical frameworks and research techniques to understand the global significance of Asia as a region and as a composite of diverse societies and cultures;

2. Demonstrate an understanding of different disciplinary approaches and methods drawn from the humanities and social sciences, to synthesise knowledge about Asia, its regions, and its place in the world;

3. Demonstrate a nuanced understanding of the regional diversity of the societies and cultures that make up Asia;

4. Evaluate ideas and debate issues using academic and applied styles, in both English and an Asian language;

5. Exercise critical thinking and judgment in identifying and solving problems, individually and in groups.

6. Communicate in the target language with fluency and spontaneity making it possible for the student to interact with native speakers in the target language with minimum strain for either party.

7. Accurately understand and summarise the central ideas of texts on both concrete and abstract topics familiar to the student in the target language

8. Confidently discuss abstract and concrete issues related to their disciplinary focus in an academic setting in the target language

9. Identify, critically analyse and discuss diverse issues relevant to one's study and life with their classmates and beyond in their target language

1. identify the principal theoretical approaches to the study of international relations, and the relationships between them;

2. have a thorough understanding of the historical development of the global system;

3. demonstrate an understanding of the principal actors in contemporary global politics and the challenges they face;

4. understand the principal factors that determine the foreign policies of major powers and of Australia; and

5. reflect critically on the knowledge and skills developed in their study of International Relations.

Admission Requirements

Adjustment Factors

Adjustment factors are additional points added to an applicant's Selection Rank (for example an applicant's ATAR). ANU offers adjustment factors based on performance and equity principles, such as for high achievement in nationally strategic senior secondary subjects and for recognition of difficult circumstances that students face in their studies. 

Selection Rank adjustments are granted in accordance with the approved schedules, and no more than 15 (maximum 5 subject/performance-based adjustment factors and maximum 10 equity-based adjustment factors) can be awarded. 

You may be considered for adjustment factors if you have:

• applied for an eligible ANU Bachelor degree program
• undertaken Australian Year 12 or the International Baccalaureate
• achieved an ATAR or equivalent at or above 70
• not previously attempted tertiary study.

Please visit the ANU Adjustment Factors website for further information.

Scholarships

ANU offers a wide range of scholarships to students to assist with the cost of their studies.

Eligibility to apply for ANU scholarships varies depending on the specifics of the scholarship and can be categorised by the type of student you are.  Specific scholarship application process information is included in the relevant scholarship listing.

For further information see the Scholarships website.

Program Requirements

This double degree requires the completion of 192 units.

144 units from courses required for the completion of the Bachelor of Asian Studies

The Bachelor of International Relations flexible double degree component requires completion of 96 units, of which:

A maximum of 36 units may come from completion of 1000-level courses

The 96 units must include:

24 units from completion of the following compulsory courses:

POLS1005 Introduction to International Relations: Foundations and Concepts

POLS1006 Introduction to International Relations: Contemporary Global Issues

POLS2094 Issues in International Political Economy

POLS3001 Foreign Policy Analysis

A minimum of 6 units from the following theory courses:

POLS2063 Contemporary Political Theory

POLS2102 Political Belief and Deceit

POLS2119 Ideas in Politics

POLS2120 Foundations of Political Theory

POLS3017 International Relations Theory

POLS3032 The Politics of Empire

A minimum of 6 units from the following methods courses:

POLS1009 Research and Writing in Political Science

POLS2044 Contemporary Political Analysis

POLS2125 Game Theory and Social Sciences

POLS2137 Meaning in Politics: Interpretation, Method and Critique

POLS3045 Qualitative Research Methods in Political Science Research

SOCY2043 Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods

A minimum of 12 units from the following area studies courses:

ASIA1035 Introduction to Asian Politics

ASIA1999 The Origins of Political Order in Asia

ASIA2109 Violence, Poverty, and Politics in India

EURO1004 Europe in the Modern Era

EURO2012 Uniting Europe: History, Politics, Theory

EURO3002 Comparative European Politics

INTR2010 International Relations in the Asia-Pacific

MEAS1001 Introduction to the Modern Middle East

MEAS2001 New States of Eurasia: Emerging Issues in Politics and Security

MEAS2105 The Political Economy of the Middle East

POLS2031 Politics in the Middle East

POLS2055 Pacific Politics

POLS2095 Politics in Latin America

POLS3040 Conflict and Change in Sub-Saharan Africa

A minimum of 12 units from the following security courses:

ASIA2111 Indonesian Foreign and Security Policy

INTR2012 Chinese Foreign and Security Policy

INTR2014 Indian Foreign and Security Policy

INTR2016 US Foreign and Security Policy in Asia

INTR2018 Japanese Foreign and Security Policy

INTR2020 (In)Stability on the Korean Peninsula

INTR2024 Nuclear Politics in Asia: Challenges and Opportunities

POLS2123 Peace and Conflict Studies

POLS2136 Power and Influence in World Politics

POLS3033 Environment, Human Security and Conflict

POLS3036 International Terrorism

STST1001 Introduction to International Security Studies

STST2001 Security Concepts in the Asia-Pacific

STST2124 Politics of Nuclear Weapons

STST2003 Australia and Security in the Pacific Islands

STST3002 Australia's Security in the Asian Century

A minimum of 6 units from the following global politics courses:

DEMO2003 Migration in the Modern World

DIPL2000 Leadership and Diplomacy

INTR3001 Humanitarianism: Principles, Politics and Practice

PHIL2113 Global Justice

POLS2011 Development and Change

POLS2100 Genocide in the Modern World

POLS2101 Refugee Politics: Displacement and Exclusion in the 20th and 21st Centuries

POLS2113 Human Rights

POLS2133 International Organisations in World Politics

POLS2135 Race, Ethnicity and Representation

POLS3004 Emotions in International Politics

POLS3035 The Politics of International Law

POLS3037 Globalisation: Communications, Culture and Democracy

SOCY2030 Social Inequalities and Development

A minimum of 6 units and a maximum of 12 units from the following cognate list:

DEMO1001 Global Population Challenges 

DEMO2003 Migration in the Modern World

HIST1209 Terror to Terrorism: A History

HIST2136 World at War, 1939-1945

HIST2141 The Cold War: 1945-1989*

HIST2214 The Great War, 1914-1918*

HIST2240 Democracy and Dissent: Europe Since 1945*

HIST2144 Australia in the World: An International History*

HIST2226 Nazi Germany*

HIST2242 The Soviet Union: From the Russian Revolution to the Collapse of Communism*

HIST2238 Human Rights in History*

*Please note that courses with asterisks are usually offered every second year.

A maximum of 12 units from the following internships and Vice-Chancellor's courses:

ANIP3003 Australian National Internships Program A

ANIP3005 Australian National Internships Program B

VCUG2002 Leadership and Influence in a Complex World

VCUG3001 Unravelling Complexity

A maximum of 24 units from courses in the following language minors:

Advanced Chinese Language 

Advanced French Studies

Advanced German Studies

Advanced Italian Studies

Advanced Japanese Language

Advanced Korean Language 

Advanced Spanish Studies

Arabic

Burmese Language

Chinese Language

French Language and Culture

German Language and Culture

Hindi Language

Indonesian Language

Italian Language and Culture

Japanese Language

Japanese Linguistics

Korean Language

Mongolian Language

Russian

Persian

Spanish

Tetum Language

Thai Language

Vietnamese Language

Minors

Bachelor of International Relations Minors