The Master of Arts in Middle Eastern Classics is a 34-credit hour program designed to be completed in three consecutive semesters, starting with the fall term.
The program includes:
A breakdown of the class credits and enrollment timeline can be found below.
All classes are 20 or fewer students in order to nurture a collaborative learning environment, creating space for every voice around the table to listen and be heard.
The heart of the curriculum is the seminar, in which a group of students engages in a discussion initiated by a tutor’s opening question about the assigned reading. In the fall, students read and discuss books of the Hebrew Bible alongside essential works of Islamic philosophy and poetry. The spring semester delves into great works of Persian poetry while introducing Jewish and Muslim criticisms of the Aristotelian tradition. Finally, in the summer session, students will deepen their familiarity with Persian literature, encounter Jewish mysticism, and read the pivotal historical work of Ibn Khaldūn, Substantial papers are required for the fall and spring semesters.
In the fall and spring, students undertake an intensive study of either Classical Hebrew or Classical Arabic. The goal is not mastery, but to enable students to gain sufficient familiarity with the elements of the language to be able to translate selected short passages from texts. There is no expectation of previous experience with the language prior to enrollment.
The ambitious reach of the seminar is complemented by smaller classes called preceptorials. In these classes, students study 1-4 works for an eight-week period, not only allowing for more profound inquiry into the preceptorial texts but also reinforcing or challenging the readings in the seminar. Students will be expected to write papers for each of the five preceptorials needed to graduate. Preceptorials typically include works by Plato, Aristotle, and Plotinus in the first fall section and the Qur’ān and Life of Muhammad in the second, followed by the writings of al-Fārābī and Maimonides in the first half of spring and Ibn al-‘Arabī’s Ringstones of Wisdom and select works of Rūmī in the second half. During the eight-week summer term students will have electives to choose from.
Students who would like to engage in a substantial piece of writing in addition to program requirements may petition the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs for permission to write an optional Master’s essay. The essay can only be written in addition to the full program. The content and goal of the Master’s essay should be the thoughtful examination of a text or several texts. The essay is not intended to be a piece of specialized research, but rather a sustained performance in the program. Essays are evaluated by a specially selected committee of three college tutors, including a committee chairperson appointed by the Associate Dean. A public oral examination is scheduled at the time the committee approves the essay. Essays are graded satisfactory or unsatisfactory; oral examinations are graded pass with honors, pass, or fail.
