Students are required to take a total of 33 credits (not including the thesis), including 13 credits of required courses and 20 credits of elective courses; draft a research plan and elect to write a masters thesis.

The core of this institute is Taiwanese aboriginal development. By means of extension education and summer tribal education classes in the Aboriginal Research and Training Centre, as well as in combining theory and practice, students will develop abilities in evaluation, planning and administration. In order to develop the students' international perspectives and react to future needs, there will be a secondary emphasis on global and Austronesian ethnic questions.

In order to build up the professional abilities of the students, in addition to required courses, elective courses will be divided into the clusters of Ethnic Law and Administration, Ethnic Economics, and Educational Culture. Graduate students should elect three or more classes in any one cluster. With permission, they may take elective courses in other institutes, to a maximum of 9 credits.

• Theory and methods cluster: Development Theory, Research Methods, Ethnic Relations, Policy Analysis and Planning, etc.
• Ethnic Law and Administration: Ethnic Political Science, Political Anthropology, Special Topics in Ethnic Questions, Ethnic Conflict, etc.
• Ethnic Economics and Society: Ethnic Economics, Economic Anthropology, conomic Development, Sociology of Ethnicity, Taiwanese Aboriginal Ethnography,Austronesian Research, etc.
• Educational Culture: Ethnic Education, Educational Anthropology, Special Topics in Aboriginal Art, Aboriginal Literature, etc.