NES Undergraduate Studies

Introduction

Overview

Few other regions in the world are as complex and intriguing as the Near East; fewer still have had such an enduring impact on the world as this 'Cradle of Civilization'. Princeton University's Department of Near Eastern Studies, one of the oldest and best in the country, provides excellent opportunities to understand this impact by learning about the peoples of the Near East and their histories, languages, literatures, and religions. The Near East Program is also one of the dozen federally designated National Resource Centers on the Near East, with consistent top marks. "Near East" at Princeton is pretty much the same as the "Middle East", that is to say, it includes Turkey, Iran, all the Arab countries of the region, and Israel, plus North Africa, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. In addition, one faculty member is a specialist on Islamic Africa south of the Sahara. The approach to the study of this region is multifaceted: while it can start with Biblical times, concentration and current strength is in Islamic societies and their cultures in the historical and contemporary framework.

Princeton offers language instruction in the four major languages of the 'Near East': Arabic, (including colloquial dialects such as Egyptian or Levantine), Hebrew, Persian (Modern and Classical), and Turkish (Modern and Ottoman Turkish). 'Near East', however, is a rather arbitrary appellation considering that these languages will also open doors in North Africa, Tajikistan, Baku, or Sinkiang. The population in the Near East may be just under 300 million, but the languages of the region are used by millions more around the globe thanks to the influence of Near Eastern religion and culture on the wider world.

Concentrators in Near Eastern studies have been able to apply their learning directly in careers in international business, banking, investment, consulting, the media, law, insurance, the state department, and, with further graduate work, teaching and research. At the same time, an undergraduate concentration in Near Eastern studies is an appropriate liberal arts field within the broader area of the humanities and social sciences for those considering entirely different occupations. Our students receive an unusual amount of personal attention and a great many of them become recipients of honors and prizes.


The Learning Environment

We are a small department with a long and distinguished tradition at Princeton. We have a small but growing body of undergraduate concentrators, and our students receive close attention, both in courses, and in independent work. There are few other departments where interaction with established faculty is more intensive or direct. Flexibility in planning programs is the hallmark of the department, and cognate courses from a wide variety of other departments are regularly accepted as departmentals.


Course of Study

Departmental Concentrator
Concentrators are free to study a wide variety of topics in their courses and independent work, and individual study plans are encouraged. In addition to the language requirement and independent work, the concentrators have to take eight departmental or cognate courses.

Language and Culture Program
Students who do not wish to major in the department but want to take language and culture courses for interdisciplinary purposes, or to satisfy their personal curiosity, can do so by opting to earn a Certificate in Language and Culture , perhaps also fulfilling the Writing Requirement, or some of the other General Education Requirements in the process.

Program in Near Eastern Studies
Undergraduates who wish to concentrate in the modern and contemporary Middle East within the context of one of the social sciences have the option to enroll in the Program in Near Eastern Studies for a Certificate of Proficiency in the field, while choosing as their home department either Near Eastern Studies or one of the other participating social science departments in the University.


Requirements

Language Requirement
Students interested in majoring in the department should begin to study their Near Eastern language as soon as possible, but in any case no later than their junior year. Some pursue intensive summer study in language programs abroad or in the United States, such as at Middlebury for Arabic, and at the Eastern Summer Consortium for Persian and Turkish offered at Ohio State, either before or after their junior year, in order to complete the language requirement by the end of the senior year. A semester's study abroad in selected Middle Eastern countries is also frequently chosen as part of the program of concentration.

Because of the comprehensive nature of its program, the department is able to accommodate the needs of students who come to us with some prior exposure to a Near Eastern language. The program also promotes links to other fields such as comparative literature, history, anthropology, or women's studies.

Independent Work
For junior independent work and senior theses students have an infinite variety of topics for research projects. Often the student will be doing truly original work which may be considered for publication. One recent junior paper consisted of a joint departmental-Creative Writing project translating poetry; this was subsequently published. A current sampling of student projects includes the study of Ethiopian Jews in Israel, modern Islamic political movements in Afghanistan, and Cypriot Turkish leaders.


Resources

The Near Eastern collections in the library are second to none, so that authentic sources--whether for language learning or research--are close at hand. Our resources can be in the form of an ancient manuscript, or in 'virtual' form, for example, visually depicting a pilgrimage to Mecca on the World Wide Web.

There is a broad selection of activities outside of the classroom, including film series, with or without subtitles, and language tables meeting for lunch or dinner, where students converse informally in their chosen language. There are lectures given by visitors, in English or Near Eastern languages. Weekly faculty-student brown bag lunches expose students to different aspects of the Near East, usually in a semi-formal setting which promotes participation in the discussions.


Study Abroad

Study abroad is very much encouraged, and a number of study abroad programs are available in the Near East. Princeton students concentrating in Arabic have participated in programs in Morocco, Syria, Jordan and Egypt. The majority study at the American University in Cairo because of its fine reputation in Arabic teaching, either for a summer, a semester, or a full year with a select group of teachers and tutors.Students wishing to develop their knowledge of Hebrew further are able to benefit from various programs in Israel during the summer or during a semester (or year) in one of the Israeli universities, such as the Hebrew University, or Tel Aviv University.For students concentrating in Turkish, there are several intensive summer language programs, such as the courses offered by Bogaziçi University, and Ankara University's certificate program in various locations in Turkey. All-year or one-semester Study Abroad programs have also been arranged with Bogaziçi University in Istanbul. Often, internships with scientific projects, business, the media, or the Foundation for Women's Study in Istanbul, can be arranged for a total immersion into the culture.


More Information

If you would like more information about the department and the different programs, please call or write to Jim LaRegina, Near Eastern Studies, 110 Jones Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544-1008; (609) 258-4281, or send a message to laregina@princeton.edu.


Overview: Undergraduates in NES

Departmental Majors