Welcome to one of the UK's most highly rated university departments for Asian Studies, ranked second in The Complete University Guide - Subject League Table 2025.

We teach undergraduate programmes in Chinese and Japanese, and offer a range of taught and research-led postgraduate programmes in Chinese, Japanese, Korean and East Asian Studies.

Choose from a range of four-year MA (Master of Arts) honours degrees in:

• Chinese
• Japanese

Single and joint honours combinations are available, with the opportunity to study abroad. 

Take a taught or research programme, with degrees ranging from a one-year masters in East Asian Studies to PhDs in Chinese, Japanese, Korean and East Asian Studies.

Open Language courses in Chinese, Business Chinese, Japanese and Korean are free to all University of Edinburgh students. You can take one at any stage of your undergraduate or postgraduate programme.

Each course lasts one semester and can be taken for 20 credits or for extra credit, depending on your other study commitments. Classes are suitable for complete beginners.

Find out more about Open Language courses