Overview

NES majors must achieve proficiency through at least the 107-level in a Near Eastern language (Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish) and must take eight NES departmental courses. Students write one Junior Paper over the course of their junior year and a Senior Thesis their senior year.

Language 

Students must complete or pass out of four terms (i.e., through the 107 level) of Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish. Students are encouraged, albeit not required, to continue language study at the advanced level and to use their chosen Near Eastern language for senior thesis research.

Departmentals

NES majors take eight departmental courses in Near Eastern Studies:

1. NES 300 (the Seminar in Research Methods, usually taken fall of junior year)
    
2. Seven other deparmentals that fulfill the following distribution requirements in historical periods, regions, and disciplines:
    
   1. Historical periods: At least one course focused on the pre-modern Near East (before 1800) and at least one course focused on the modern Near East.
       
   2. Regions: At least two regionally specific courses. Each must focus on one of the following six sub-regions of the Near East. They may not focus on the same region:
       
      1. Egypt, North Africa, and Andalusia
      2. The Levant, Iraq, and the Arabian peninsula
      3. Ottoman empire/Turkey
      4. Iran
      5. Muslim South and Central Asia
      6. Diasporic communities
          
   3. Disciplines: At least one course in two of the following four disciplines:
      1. History
      2. Literature
      3. Social sciences
      4. Religion

• A single course may satisfy multiple distribution requirements across these domains. For example, a course focusing on 20th century Turkish literature may count as modern (Historical Periods), Ottoman Empire/Turkey (Regions), and literature (Disciplines). 
• A single course may not, however, satisfy more than one distribution requirement within a single domain; a course on Arabic literature that spans the pre-modern and modern periods would thus not satisfy both the pre-modern and modern Historical Periods requirements.
• At least five departmentals must be NES-prefix or language courses. Up to three may be cognate courses (courses in other departments not cross-listed with NES that focus on the Near East), on the approval of the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
• Language courses beyond the 107 level count as departmentals, as does elementary and intermediate study of a second Near Eastern language.  

Independent Work

• See information about the Junior Paper 
• See information about the Senior Thesis

Senior Departmental Examination

The comprehensive examination in the department consists of an oral examination based on the senior thesis. One week prior to the beginning of the oral exams, the student will submit a “comprehensive statement.” The statement on the first page should list the student’s eight departmental courses, language courses taken, independent work completed, and any other courses or experience that might be relevant, such as study-abroad or internships related to the Near East. On the succeeding pages, the student should write an essay of between approximately 750 and 1,500 words that discusses the student’s scholarly life in the department. The essay should be reflective in nature. It is intended to provide you the opportunity to ponder your time in the department and your course of study. There is no set format to the exercise, but you should seek to describe the development of your interests and focus in the field of Near Eastern Studies in the context of the courses you have taken, including perhaps courses outside the Department, and the independent research you have conducted. Questions that you might address include: what led you to choose NES as a major? What guided you in your course selection? What courses made the most impact?  How did you choose your independent research topics? Can you identify any unifying themes in your coursework and research? If you studied abroad, what if any lessons did you learn? Has the study of the Near East changed the way you perceive the world around you?

You will not be graded for your skill in selecting courses and research topics such that they coalesced in such a way as to reveal to you the meaning of life and the world. Honest reflection is all that is required.  Accordingly, expression of disappointment or regrets about course selection or research topics is wholly admissible.  See details and comprehensive exam form.