Minor in Middle East Studies
Study the historical experiences, cultural traditions and innovations of the people in this vibrant and critical region of the world.
Program Overview
The Middle East studies minor compliments majors in all disciplines, including the sciences, humanities, business and engineering by providing an interdisciplinary study of a vibrant and critical region.
You’ll gain an in-depth understanding of the region, its languages, peoples, histories and cultures. The minor enhances your employment opportunities in both public and private sectors. It also facilitates the development of skills necessary to work and live successfully in the Middle East.
Requirements
- Complete 15 credit hours focused on the Middle East. This includes the 201-level Middle Eastern language requirement (3 credit hours).
- You may count two courses (six credits) from this minor toward both your minor and major requirements.
- You can count a maximum of six transfer credit hours toward the minor.
- We require a grade of C- or better in all courses.
- You cannot take courses in this minor for S/U credit.
Required Language Course
One of the following 201-level Middle Eastern language courses must be completed:
- FLA 201: Intermediate Arabic I
- PER 201: Intermediate Persian I
- Demonstrated 201 equivalency in Turkish or Hebrew (not currently taught at NCSU, but transfer credit and/or proficiency may be applied as determined by the Middle East studies minor advisor.)
Important notes regarding the required language course:
- Most students will need to take the 101 / 102 series of language courses prior to their enrollment in the required 201 course, and should plan their schedules accordingly.
- The student may waive the Language Course requirement by showing proficiency at the 201 level in a Middle Eastern language. Please contact the Middle East studies minor advisor to make an appointment for the proficiency test.
- Related language courses taken at NC State above the 201 level may be counted as elective courses for the Middle East studies minor.
Elective Courses (12 credit hours)
Elective Courses must be from 2 or more different departments. For example, if you want to focus on history, you may take three history courses, but the fourth elective course must be from another discipline (i.e. religion, foreign language, political science, etc.).
- ANT 395: Anthropology of the Middle East
- HI 207: Ancient World to 180 AD
- HI 270: Modern Middle East
- HI 370: Modern Egypt
- HI 400: Civilizations of the Ancient Near East
- HI 407: IIslamic Hisory to 1798
- HI 408: Islam in the Modern World
- HI 419: Modern European Imperialism
- HI 465: Oil and Crisis in the Gulf
- HI 466: History of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
- HI 477: Women in the Middle East
- HI 454/554: History of U.S. Foreign Relations, 1900-Present
- HI 491: Senior seminar on topics related to the Middle East (topic must be related to Middle East and approved by Program Administrator)
- HI 498: Independent Study in History (topic must be related to Middle East and approved by Program Administrator)
- FLA 202: Intermediate Arabic II
- FLA 301: Advanced Intermediate Arabic I
- FLA 330: Media Arabic
- FLF 425: Literature, Cinema and Culture of the Francophone World
- FL 295, FL 495 and FL 498: Special Topics in Foreign Languages and/or Literatures (appropriate Middle East offerings per approval of the minor advisor.)
- PER 202: Intermediate Persian II
- PS 345: Governments and Politics in the Middle East
- REL 300: Religious Traditions of the World
- REL 311: Introduction to Old Testament
- REL 340: Islam
- REL 350: Introduction to Judaism
- REL 407: Islamic History to 1798
- REL 408: Islam in the Modern World
- REL 482: Religion and Conflict
- REL 498: Special Topics in Religion (topic must be related to Middle East and approved by the Minor Advisor)
- STUDY ABROAD courses offered during the NCSU Egypt Summer Study Abroad program may all be counted as electives.
Language Courses which may be counted as electives:
- FLA 202: Intermediate Arabic II
- FLA 301: Advanced Intermediate Arabic I
- FLA 330: Media Arabic
- PER 202: Intermediate Persian II
- FL 295 and FL 495: Special Topics in Foreign Languages and/or Literatures (appropriate language offerings per approval of the minor advisor)
- FL 498: Special Topics in Foreign Languages and Literatures (topic must be related to Middle East and approved by the Minor Advisor)
As part of the minor, you will be strongly encouraged to participate in a study abroad program in the Middle East; however, this is not required.
Admission
Students can apply for admission to the Middle East studies minor program in MyPack Portal. Admission will be based on the student’s academic record, and in most cases no longer requires departmental review.
Certification
The minor must be completed no later than the semester in which the student expects to graduate from his or her degree program. Students can monitor their progress toward completing the minor by viewing their Minor Degree Audit online, anytime, in MyPack Portal.
Please note that the minor degree audit does not track whether students are in compliance with double-counting limitations between major requirements and minor requirements. Therefore, students should not rely solely on the minor degree audit. They should refer to the detailed requirements outlined on the official university minors website for guidance and reach out to the minor advisor listed there to discuss course plans and ensure they’re on track.