MA/MS in Asian Studies: South Asian Studies (60EC)

The MA South Asian Studies at Leiden University is designed for students with an interest in studying South Asia from a range of perspectives including its history, literature, art, media, culture, religions, philosophy and philology. This one-year master's in South Asian Studies offers you a world-class qualification that combines a comparative and global approach with specialised and in-depth expertise. You will learn about the countries or regions of South Asia from the perspective of a wide range of complementary disciplines including history, literature, art history, media and cultural studies, religious studies, philosophy and philology.

Customise your degree

A flexible degree format allows you to tailor your degree to reflect your interests or specific career goals. Choose from a broad range of electives, select your own area of research for your MA thesis, and focus your studies on a language and a single country, or on a specific discipline and region.

Learn a language

Knowledge of an Asian language is not required for this master’s programme, You do have the option of taking an intensive Hindi, Sanskrit or Tibetan language courses. These courses are taken instead of an elective in both the first and second semesters.