Internship Opportunities
The Asian Studies Department has several organized internships for Asian Studies and Japanese majors. Students are also welcome to find their own internship opportunities in Asia, and are encouraged to check with the Piper Center for more information.
Scholarships for internships are currently available through the Piper Center, the Hayman Fund and the Henry Luce Foundation, which supports internships in language or research.
Internships in Japan
- Education First—Shibuya, Tokyo. This international company arranges in-country programs for high school and college students. Our student interns will be working as part of a marketing team to promote cross-cultural learning and study abroad programs to high school and college students. Interns may provide brush-up English lessons to returning students. They may be responsible for planning a cross-cultural event for college students. In the past, EF provided 40,000 yen (appx. $400) toward housing support, and work-related transportation costs, including between your apartment & EF Shibuya Office. (see: http://www.ef.com).
Personalities/attributes that they look for: Outgoing, independent, reliable, flexible, and organized students who can speak about study abroad experience positively; someone who can take care of oneself in living and working in Tokyo;
- The KIKAI institute for Coral Reef Sciences, Kikai Island. (6-8 weeks, ONE or TWO POSITIONS)
This very small coral island is located between Kyushu and Okinawa. The KIKAI institute for Coral Reef Sciences (https://kikaireefs.org/) conducts research and research activities in collaboration with governments, researchers, universities and corporations. Their activities include coral breeding, leaf checks for coral reef health checkups, and academic surveys. Our student interns can experience a variety of works, which includes, working as a research assistant, leading the Summer Coral Reef Science Camp (https://mail7806.wixsite.com/website-3) where you teach English to children and high school students, working in PR (writing articles in English for SNS, Website, flyers etc.), and other works such as assisting the management of the institute. This is an unpaid position. Accommodation will be provided with fee. (¥2000/day for private room; ¥1000/day for shared room. Example: if you stay for 6 weeks, it will cost approximately $420 for your accommodation.)
Personalities/attributes that they look for are: Tough, who can survive and appreciate the isolated small island, social, independent, reliable, flexible, able to swim (optional), curious and interested in science, nature, and Japanese culture. While researchers at the Institute speak English, very few islanders understand English. You should be able to do everyday conversation (to go shopping, use transportation, have a small talk etc.) in Japanese.
Internship in Taiwan
Taiwan Experience Education Program (TEEP)
Scholarship Opportunities
Gilman International Scholarship Program
https://www.gilmanscholarship.org
2,900 scholarships of up to $5,000 will be awarded this academic year for U.S.
citizen undergraduates to study or intern abroad. In addition, students who are studying a “Critical Need” language while abroad can apply for a supplemental award of up to $3,000.
Critical Need languages include:
Arabic | Indonesian | Russian |
Azerbaijani | Japanese | Swahili |
Bangla | Korean | Turkish |
Chinese | Persian | Urdu |
Hindi | Punjabi |
Blakemore Foundation
http://www.blakemorefoundation.org/
Blakemore Freeman Fellowships fund an academic year of advanced language study abroad in East or Southeast Asia for graduating seniors. To be eligible for a grant, an applicant must:
- Be pursuing an academic, professional, technical, or business career that involves the regular use of one of the below listed languages
- By the start of the grant, have a college undergraduate degree
- Be at or near an advanced level in the language: must have completed the equivalent of the third year of language classes at the college level
- Be able to devote oneself exclusively to language study during the term of the grant; grants are not made for part-time study or research
- Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident of the United States
Eligible languages include:
Burmese | Korean |
Chinese | Japanese |
Indonesian | Thai |
Khmer | Vietnamese |
Critical Language Scholarship
http://clscholarship.org/
Critical Language Scholarships allow U.S. citizen undergraduates and graduates to spend eight to ten weeks abroad studying one of fourteen critical languages.
Eligible languages include:
No previous study required | One year of previous study required | Two years of previous study required |
Azerbaijani | Arabic | Chinese |
Bangla | Persian | Japanese |
Hindi | Russian | |
Indonesian | ||
Korean | ||
Punjabi | ||
Swahili | ||
Turkish | ||
Urdu |
Boren Scholarship
https://www.borenawards.org/scholarships/program-basics/boren-scholarship-basics
Boren Scholarships provide funding for U.S. citizen undergraduates to study less commonly taught languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests. The program focuses on geographic areas, languages, and fields of study deemed critical to U.S. national security. In exchange for funding, Boren Scholars commit to working in the federal government for at least one year after graduation.
Maximum scholarship awards are:
- $8,000 for a summer program (STEM students only)
- $10,000 for one semester
- $20,000 for 6-12 months
Both Chinese and Japanese are listed as preferred languages for study. For a complete list of countries and languages, visit their website: https://www.borenawards.org/scholarships/thinking-applying/program-preferences/boren-scholarship-preferences