Major and Minor in Modern Middle Eastern Studies

There has rarely been a time in which an in-depth understanding of the languages, cultures, history, and politics of the contemporary Middle East has been more important.  This new interdisciplinary degree is designed to allow students to specialize in the Middle East as a region of the world and human experience by combining course work using both social scientific and humanistic approaches, underpinned by relevant language skills. Students will work with faculty committed to supporting interdisciplinary, applied, research-oriented advanced study. The major gives students opportunities to work on problems of politics, policy, history, ideology, social thought, economic development, and international relations. Note: We currently do not offer graduate degree programs.

The Major

The major will consist of at least twelve course units to be distributed as follows:

(1) Disciplinary distribution:  A selection of three courses that must include both the Social Sciences (including history) and the Humanities – three course units.

(2) Language:  Four course units in one Middle Eastern language (for example, Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish), including at least two course units at the intermediate (second year) level or above.

(3) Regional coverage:  Three course units.  Students must take at least one of the list of foundational courses in Modern Middle Eastern Studies approved by the associated faculty (below).  At least one course should be centered on a culture other than that associated with the language selected in (2).  One or two of these may also be courses about the Middle East region in general.

(4) Two seminar courses requiring significant research papers.

The Honors Program

Honors in Modern Middle Eastern Studies requires a thesis in addition to the basic requirements listed above.  The honors thesis will be written over the course of the senior year under the supervision of an advisor selected from the Modern Middle Eastern Studies standing faculty.  At the end of the first semester, S (satisfactory) or U (unsatisfactory) grade will be given, which will be replaced upon the completion of the thesis at the end of the senior year.  Depending on the student's focus, this may involve the application of language skills acquired in the first three years.  The thesis must receive a grade no lower than “A-” for the student to receive honors.

The Minor

At least six courses units on the Middle East, to be chosen from the published list of relevant courses, and including the following:

(1) Two courses from the Humanities
(2) Two courses from the Social Sciences
(3) Two elective courses (which may include two language courses in a single language)

Transfer Credit

For the Major Program up to four courses may be transferred from other institutions (including Study Abroad courses), subject to approval.  For the Minor, two courses may be transferred.  Language credits may only be transferred upon successful completion of a Penn-administered proficiency test.

Double Majors and Minors

For double majors the number of course units for the major remains at twelve.  A maximum of four course units may be double-counted towards this major and another.

For double-minors the number of course units remains six.  Two course units may be double-counted.

Advising

The advisor for the Major and Minor in Modern Middle Eastern Studies is Professor Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet, Director of the Middle East Center and Associate Professor of History: fks@sas.upenn.edu.  Affiliated faculty also play a vital role in advising students on coursework, independent studies, and the completion of an honors thesis. 

Declaring a Major or a Minor

In order to declare the major or minor, fill out this form, and bring it to the Middle East Center. For further information, please contact Mehmet Darakcioglu: mehmetd@sas.upenn.edu.

Courses That Qualify As Foundational Courses In Modern Middle Eastern Studies

(Check course availability on the Registrar's website. A preliminary list of all courses approved for the major and minor may be found here)

Art History

ARTH 217 – Islamic Civilization & Its Visual Culture

History

HIST 081 – The Modern Middle East Since 1800
HIST 084 – From Oil Fields to Soccer Fields
HIST 371 – Africa and the Middle East

Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations

NELC 102 – Introduction to the Middle East

Political Science

PSCI 211 – Politics in the Contemporary Middle East
PSCI 253 – International Relations of the Middle East

Religious Studies

RELS 143 – Islam in the Modern World
RELS 145 – Introduction to Islamic Religion