Middle Eastern Studies Graduate Certificate

The graduate certificate in Middle Eastern Studies Students offers students a multi-disciplinary course of study that will provide them with in-depth training in a special area that may be particularly useful as they pursue careers in such fields as Academia, Law, Public History, Education, Business, and even Medicine, where they will practice their profession abroad or use their international experience to expand their understandings of these regions as they work with topics on or populations from diverse societies in the Middle East. The certificate complements any graduate major in the university and is also appropriate for students with a graduate degree who might like to return to the university for mid-career training.

Requirements

Two years of a Middle Eastern language (or equivalent), which serve as the program’s core requirement, plus a minimum of 15 credits of approved electives.

A minimum of a 3.0 GPA in the courses that will fulfill the certificate. The student must be in good standing in his/her major department, if enrolled in a degree program.

Language Core

Two years of a Middle-Eastern language offered by the University of Akron or any other accredited institution. Students may also fulfill the language requirement by demonstrating competency in the equivalent of a fourth-semester-level of his/her chosen language at the FS-1 level (U.S. Dept. of State) or equivalent level. Currently, the University of Akron offers Arabic:

3500 101 Beginning Arabic (4 credits)
3500 102 Beginning Arabic 2 (4 credits)
3500 201 Intermediate Arabic (3 credits)
3500 202 Intermediate Arabic 2 (credits)

Multi-Disciplinary Electives

Students must complete four of the following courses (3-4 credits each). At least one course must be outside the student’s major department. Exceptions or substitutions are only made with the director’s approval. Credits will be provided with the director’s approval for study and certain experiences abroad in Middle-Eastern countries.

3200 501 Egyptology I*(3 credits)
3230 572 Selected Topics**(3 credits)
3400 589 Ottoman State and Society, 1300-1922 (3 credits)
3400 599 Women and Gender in the Middle East (3 credits)
3400 598 Race, Nation, and Class in the Middle East (3 credits)
3400 596 Selected studies [in the Middle East] (3 credits)
3400 612 Graduate Reading Seminar: The Middle East (4 credits)
3700 505 Politics in the Middle East (3 credits)

*Only one ancient world course will count towards the certificate.

**Recent 500-level selected topics in Classical Studies, Anthropology and Archaeology have included “Cultures of the Arab World.”

Courses with comparative content are encouraged. Any course that has significant Middle-Eastern content (and for which the student has presented substantial written work on a Middle Eastern topic) may count as an elective with the director’s approval. Students should consult with the director for help planning an appropriate course of study.