International Relations and Japanese
The relationship between international relations and Japanese language and culture is a particularly rich one. Japan occupies a central position in East Asian geopolitics, is one of the world's largest economies, and has a distinctive diplomatic tradition shaped by its geography, history and post-war constitutional framework. Japanese is also one of the most structurally different languages from English that a British student is likely to encounter, requiring genuine commitment and sustained study to reach functional fluency.
Combining the analytical frameworks of international relations with serious language study produces graduates who can engage with Japan and the wider Asia-Pacific region at a depth that neither discipline alone could offer.
At the School of Oriental and African Studies, one of the world's leading centres for the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East, you will study both disciplines across four years of full-time study. A foundation year opens the programme, preparing you for the academic and linguistic demands ahead. International relations at SOAS is taught with a particular emphasis on the Global South and on perspectives beyond the traditional Western canon, giving your analytical framework a genuinely comparative scope.
Your Japanese studies will take you from foundational language skills through to engagement with literature, politics and contemporary society.
Graduates combining international relations and Japanese are well placed for careers in diplomacy and foreign affairs, international trade and investment, journalism, business development, academia and international organisations with a focus on Asia. The analytical and linguistic combination is valued by government departments, global companies with Japanese operations, think tanks and NGOs working on Asia-Pacific issues. Many graduates also pursue postgraduate study in Asian studies, international law or security studies, taking their language skills into specialist research careers.