Top Masters Programs in Near and Middle Eastern Studies

Over the last five years, since the beginning of the 2013, eighteen graduate students have completed their PhDs. Of these, three (16.7%) were hired to tenure-track jobs, seven (38.9%) accepted post-doctoral fellowships, 5 (27.8%) took non-tenure-track teaching jobs, one (5.6%) joined a think tank, one (5.6%) works for the UN, and one (5.6%) works in the private sector.

CMES graduate students (AM and PhD) are eligible to apply for CMES summer or winter funding. See elibility details and application requirements in CARAT.

Through this dual BA MA program, College students can earn a BA degree and also an MA degree in Middle Eastern Studies after only five years of study at the University of Chicago.

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(in the College and in CMES) beginning in the Autumn Quarter of their fourth year at the University. In other words, during their fourth year at the University of Chicago, students are simultaneously pursuing the requirements of the BA and the MA degree. Students will complete a BA thesis and will receive their BA degree at the end of year four.

The dual BA MA degree in Middle Eastern Studies requires students to take eighteen graduate courses in years four and five at the University of Chicago. Students may double count three graduate level courses taken in year four toward both their BA degree and their MA degree. Any graduate courses taken during the second or third year in the College may not be counted towards the BA MA in Middle Eastern Studies, though they may of course be counted toward the BA degree.

Per the College rules, students are not allowed to take 500 units except in limited situations during their final year of registration. This means that, in year four, applicants should anticipate taking a maximum of twelve courses, organized as follows: six courses counting towards the MA program only up to three courses counting towards both the BA and MA program and no than three courses counting towards the BA only. Exceptions to this rule are exceptional and should not be taken for granted when elaborating a course plan. During the second year of the MA program, students must follow MA rules, which restrict enrollment to three courses per quarter.

Eligible students apply for the BA MA program in Middle Eastern Studies in their junior year. We ask that following documents be submitted by February 1st of the third year in the College, though we have been able to offer some flexibility with this deadline in the past. BA MA students pay no application fee, and are not required to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE):.

The BA MA Worksheet, filled out and signed by the College adviser.

Speak with your College adviser in Spring Quarter to discuss your progress regarding general education and major requirements and options for BA MA study. Apply online to the MA program during Autumn Quarter. You may find the Humanities application here, and the Social Science application here. Begin taking graduate coursework. Complete your graduate coursework in the two-year MA program.

In their fifth year (the second year of the MA program), BA MA students are eligible for financial aid from the Social Sciences or Humanities Division, and students who maintain a 3.5 GPA or better during their first year in the MA program (year four) are likely to receive additional funding in their second year (year five), many at the full tuition level. Students in year five are also eligible to apply for Foreign Language and Areas Studies (FLAS) awards, which add a stipend.

In order to pursue biblical studies, prior knowledge of biblical Hebrew is required, and some command of Greek and Latin will be necessary. While always desirable, no prior knowledge is required for admittance to study the other ancient languages offered by the department.

Students will normally spend several years in coursework (see individual programs for timetable) before taking the comprehensive examinations in their major and minor areas of concentration.

The courses listed may be modified in particular years to suit the needs of students currently in residence.

Archaeology students may, with permission, do a minor in the history and archaeology of an area other than the major area of concentration (e.g., an Egyptian archaeologist could minor in Syro-Palestinian archaeology), or create a minor through a selection of courses from other departments (e.g., Classics, Materials Science, Art History).

The current Graduate Student Handbook is available here.

Duke Chapel Student Preacher Sermon March 5 to Focus on Rest in God.

AMES Postdoc Looks Beyond the Nation State to Underscore the Joint History of East Asia.

the Asian Middle Eastern Studies.

Providing advanced training in East Asian Cultural Studies and Critical Theory, our department offers a Master track in Critical Asian Humanities.

Our course curriculum of 9 Asian Middle Eastern languages help students fulfill their Duke University foreign language requirements.

Our department closely examines East Asia, South Asia and the Middle East by studying the languages, cultures, literature, religions, and that make this region unique. The intellectual focus of the department consists of 10 research fields, with many overlapping into one another.

Acting Chinese (An Intermediate-Advanced Course in Discourse and Behavioral Culture).

Anti-Japan: The Politics of Sentiment in Postcolonial East Asia.

The Middle Eastern Studies (MES) Program brings together scholars from across a wide range of disciplines to teach and research the great civilizations, societies, and cultures of the Middle East and North Africa.

Note: Students must be enrolled in 9 graduate credits each semester to retain full-time status. As students complete their course work, if enrolled in fewer than 9 graduate credits, they must enroll in a specific Arts Sciences graduate course that will show 0 units but does count as full-time status. Students should connect with their department to ensure proper enrollment prior to Add Drop.

Master of Arts in Islamic and Near Eastern Studies.

The AM in Islamic and Near Eastern Studies offers students an opportunity for dedicated interdisciplinary study of the history, literatures and cultures of the Middle East from the Middle Ages to the present. It is designed for students who ideally have some college-level preparation in the field and who wish to deepen their expertise in preparation for a PhD program. It is also well-suited for those planning on professional careers in education, law, publishing, business, government and private agencies whose work touches upon some aspect of Islamic and Near Eastern Studies. Admission to the AM program normally requires Arabic language proficiency equivalent to one year of college-level study. After a typical two years of courses and prior to receiving the AM degree, students will be expected to have successfully completed third-year Arabic.

Students may elect to graduate with or without writing a master thesis. The master thesis, which is usually 80 to 100 pages long, represents original work of highly polished quality and is significantly substantive than a research paper.

Master students planning to graduate with a thesis:.

End of March to early April: Oral defense.

Master students planning to graduate without a thesis:.

A minimum of 36 credits from graduate-level courses, which may include up to 6 units transferred from another institution (Note: First or second-year language classes do not count toward these 36 credits.).

At the end of their program of study, the successful completion of an oral examination, lasting no than one hour, based on either the two research papers submitted (and revised) for this purpose or the master thesis.

The graduate program in Near Eastern studies emphasizes the languages, literatures, history, and cultures of the Near East. It is designed to help students acquaint themselves with the fundamental elements of these cultures, and also to acquire a high degree of specialization in one or of the following areas: ancient Near Eastern studies (including archaeology) Arabic literature biblical studies early Christianity Hebrew literature Islamic studies Judaic studies and the modern Middle East.

Candidates for the Ph.D. degree are expected to demonstrate mastery in the language or languages of the main texts that are directly related to the topic of their dissertations.

Candidates for the master degree must demonstrate competence in one of those languages at least one term before the degree is awarded.

All Graduate School Requirements, including the English Language Proficiency Requirement for all applicants.

At least two years of study in one Near Eastern language.

An academic statement of purpose and a required personal statement.

The Graduate Field of Near Eastern studies emphasizes the languages, literatures, history, cultures and societies of the Near East. It is designed to help doctoral students acquaint themselves with the fundamental elements of these cultures and societies, and also to acquire a high degree of specialization in one or of the following areas: the ancient Near East archaeology Arabic literature biblical studies early Christianity Hebrew literature Islamic studies Judaic studies and the modern Middle East. Candidates for the Ph.D. degree are expected to demonstrate mastery in the language or languages of the main texts that are directly related to the topic of their dissertations.

Upon completion of the doctoral program, we expect a Near Eastern Studies Ph.D. ideally to be able to:.

Graduate Degrees Administered by Colleges Other Than the Graduate School.

Cornell Tech (NYC) Distance, Hybrid, or Online Option Geneva Ithaca.

The Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies department offers courses in three major cultural areas: African Studies, Arab Studies, and South Asian Studies, as well as in Armenian, Hebrew, Persian, and Islamic Studies. A student may specialize in a variety of subfields decided in conjunction with his or her advisor and the academic affairs committee of the department.

Graduate programs leading to the PhD degree are offered in Arabic, Hebrew, and Persian Languages and Literatures Near Eastern Art and Archaeology Cuneiform Hebrew Bible Biblical and Judaic Studies Egyptology and Islamic Studies. Degree requirements should be completed according to the University normative time standards. Normative time for an advanced degree in the department is seven years for the MA plus PhD, and five years for those entering with an MA. Students are urged to complete the MA requirements in two years, and the PhD requirements in an additional five years.