Notable Alumni

Jonathan DeHart (Asian Studies major, 2004)

Jonathan DeHart with an asian lantern

Jonathan DeHart majored in Asian Studies and graduated with high honors in 2004. During his senior year, he studied Japanese in Tokyo, Japan for three months.

His first job after graduating was working for a year as an assistant language teacher for the public-school system in the rural town of Suzuka, in Mie Prefecture.

Currently, he is a writer and editor in Tokyo, focused primarily on travel, culture and society around Asia. He is an editor for a global financial news service in his day job, alongside being the author of a first-edition Japan guidebook for Moon Travel Guides. As a journalist, he has more than 500 published articles. His work has been selected for various "best of" lists by The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Huffington Post, Foreign Policy and Real Clear World. He has also worked as an editor for webzines, including The Diplomat, newswires and a monthly print magazine. He previously worked for both print and online media in Shanghai. Beyond his work as a writer and editor, he interprets trends in Asia for leading behavioral insights and cultural consulting agencies.

Visit his online writing portfolio.

His first book, Moon Japan: Plan Your Trip, Avoid the Crowds, and Experience the Real Japan, can be purchased here.

Aisling O’Sullivan (Asian Studies major and Chinese Language and Culture Certificate, 2018)

Aisling O'Sullivan with a french horn

Aisling O’Sullivan majored in Asian Studies and French Horn Performance (CCM) and graduated in 2018. She also earned the Certificate in Chinese Language and Culture. She studied abroad in Beijing, China the summer after her sophomore year. Aisling recently graduated from the University of Minnesota with her Master’s degree in French Horn Performance. While working on this degree, Aisling worked as a Chinese teacher at a Chinese immersion Montessori school. Now that she has graduated, she plans to continue sharing her passion for the Chinese language with young Chinese learners, and take auditions for professional orchestras in order to fulfill her dream of playing horn professionally.