The International Master Program in Buddhist Studies is aimed at students with a solid background in one of the five regional specializations: India, Tibet, China, Japan and Thailand. We consider language competence in one of these regions a crucial factor. Most of our courses are based on primary sources and philological training is required in order to be able to follow the classes.
Our program runs for four semesters. The first year you will stay in Hamburg and participate in the classes of your regional specialization. In each semester of your first year you will further join the class topics in Buddhist Studies, whose focus lies on themes spreading across cultural and regional differences, particularly important for Buddhist Studies as a discipline. This course regularly brings together graduate students in Buddhist Studies from all different regional specializations at the Asia-Afrika-Institut. Topics of this course can deal with Buddhist modernity such as socially engaged Buddhism, Buddhist stands on environmentalism and animal rights or Buddhism's contribution to the dialogue with other religions. On the other hand the course can take up topics with a more comparative nature such as the question whether Buddhist hagiographies cross-culturally have common elements or how different Buddhist traditions dealt and deal with questions of gender and sexuality.
Your third semester you will spend at one of our partner universities abroad which offer Buddhist Studies courses. In the fourth semester you will write your M.A. thesis.
