<p>Middle eastern studies </p>
<hr>
<p>I was wondering if anyone had an idea about Universities with the Top Middle Eastern or Near Eastern Studies programs. I am planning to go into this field of study and have never seen any list or article that mentions Universities with the top departments in this subject. Any help would be appreciated.</p>
<p>I'm actually planning on doing either that, or majoring in Arabic.
Schools I'm applying too:
Dartmouth-offers an Arabic major, great language programs
Georgetown-I'm doing SFS, but their Arabic program is one of the best in the country
Chicago-nice Middle Eastern program
Michigan-Arabic, Middle Eastern programs
Columbia-good Middle Eastern and International Relations programs
Barnard-same as Columbia
Saint Louis in Madrid-Arabic is spoken a lot in Spain and they offer intensive Arabic courses
McGill-I know they have the major
American-good international programs</p>
<p>Pretty much, there's very little info on specifically Middle Eastern programs, so I tended to look for colleges with a good reputation in foreign language and international studies that had the major. Check out the American University in Cairo as well.</p>
<p>Nice list, dressagechick. The University of Texas-Austin also has a very strong program: <a href="http://www.utexas.edu/cola/depts/mes/%5B/url%5D">http://www.utexas.edu/cola/depts/mes/</a></p>
<p>Thanks alot for the Replies. I know Columbia has a good program, and Ive heard there is a school up in Vermont ( I forget the name, I think its private ) that has one of the best language programs in the country. What about Berkeley ? How is the Near Eastern studies program there?</p>
<p>Might want to check this out if you're looking at Columbia's ME program</p>
<p>I am not competent enough, (nor are most others), to say which schools are better than others for this field of study. But it is common sense to know that this field will be an important and well sought after major for a long time to come.</p>
<p>The school in Vermont you are probably referring to is Middlebury. Dickinson College in Pennsylvania is also strong in languages, not sure what they offer in middle eastern studies however.</p>
<p>Here's another link that might prove helpful - the Middle Eastern Studies Association. If you click on Directory of Programs, it lists all of the undergraduate and graduate ME programs in the US:</p>
<p><a href="http://fp.arizona.edu/mesassoc/%5B/url%5D">http://fp.arizona.edu/mesassoc/</a></p>
<p>Yeah, MIddlebury has GREAT language programs and I'm probably going to apply, but I noticed that they don't offer the Arabic major. However, their Arabic summer school is really famous so I would asume that they offer cources and maybe you could design your own major.</p>
<p>Dickinson is great for International Relations and stuff, but they have no Arabic/Middle Eastern major.</p>
<p>Michigan also has great programs, in both Arabic and ME studies.</p>
<p>Columbia University's Middle Eastern Studies program is nothing like what the NY Daily News says...it is one of the best in the country.</p>
<p>bump...any other suggestions for a possible middle eastern studies major??</p>
<p>From a December 18th Middlebury College press release:</p>
<p>A new program in Middle East studies joins four other areas of focus in
the international studies curriculum this year. Four new faculty members have
been recruited for the program, two in Arabic, the others in the history and the
politics of the Middle East, supplementing existing offerings in languages,
political science, history, religion, geography, and history of art and
architecture, which also support the program. Five students have declared
themselves international studies majors with a Middle East area focus.
In 2003-04 Arabic language was offered for the first time at Middlebury
as an undergraduate course. With the addition, this year, of a second faculty
member in Arabic language, students may now take Arabic language in three levels
of courses. Students in Middle East studies courses have also benefited from
public lectures and colloquia on Middle East topics, and a film series in Arabic
with English subtitles. The College plans eventually to establish an Arabic
house, and locations for a Middlebury study abroad program are being evaluated.</p>
<p>dressagechick: "Saint Louis in Madrid-Arabic is spoken a lot in Spain and they offer intensive Arabic courses"
I'm from Madrid and absolutely no one speaks Arabic. I have heard good things about Saint Louis, but I wouldn't count on hearing the language in the country.</p>
<p>I'm a freshman at Georgetown in the SFS. If you are interested in Middle Eastern studies we have so many different options.
1. You can be an Arabic major in the FLL (school of foreign language and linguistics)
These are all in the SFS so your proficiency language would be Arabic, which if you do for all four years the school says they can make you business proficient:
2. You can be an International Politics Major with a certificate (which is like half minor/ half emphasis) in Arab studies or Christian Muslim Understanding
3. You can be Culture and Politics major focusing in the Middle East
4. You can be a Regional Comparative Studies Major (like me) and choose the Middle East and another region (I'm doing the Middle East and Africa with a certificate in international development) </p>
<p>As far a study abroad, there are programs in Egypt, Morocco, and Qatar, (where Georgetown has a second campus). There is also a program in Turkey where Georgetown has villas, though it is not Arabic speaking. This summer I going to be doing an intensive year of Arabic in Alexandria, Egypt. </p>
<p>The other major selling point was having John Esposito as a full time professor on campus. He truly is a leader in his field.</p>
<p>Middle East Studies is an area that one must investigate VERY CAREFULLY. Sadly, many American universities (including some very prestigious ones) have programs that are highly ideological (very anti-western, anti-Israel and, sometimes anti-Semitic [using the term in it's proper sense of anti-Jewish] and of very questionable academic value. These programs are often modeled after the views of the late Columbia Professor Edward Said (who, ironically, was an English Professor)and most are very intolerant of opposing viewpoints. Before considering any program--find out where the funding comes from and determine if the department/program has faculty and students with divergent views. </p>
<p>There are some fine programs which are known for being balanced--Princeton, Johns Hopkins, Brandeis and George Washington are among those. Personally, I would avoid Columbia's program like the plague.</p>
<p>I have a friend who's majoring in this at Tufts U
Fares</a> Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies - Tufts University</p>
<p>The Tufts program is very well known.</p>