Ph.D. Degree Requirements

• a minimum of 30 hours of MELC courses;

• 9 hours of language seminars; 

• at least 3 hours of comprehensive exams;

• reading knowledge of French or German;

• mastery in a Middle Eastern language;

• at least 6 credit hours of dissertation coursework

Courses must include 12 hours of the Bible in Hebrew;

3 hours of Comparative Semitic Grammar;

12 hours in a Minor field;

12 hours of Near Eastern language work. 

Students are required to reach Advanced / Superior in the language of their research field.

A secondary research language may be substituted for French or German.

Coursework must include 3 hours of the following seminars: Trends in Islamic Studies; Theory and Method in Study of Religion; Supervised Teaching.

Students must also take 9 hours in the following fields: "Institutions and Traditions of Islam", "Thematic Approaches to Islam", a chosen Minor Area

Students are required to have four semesters of approved language coursework, two of which must be at an advanced/research level.

Students are required to choose a major field in either

1) literature/culture or

2) language/linguistics;

Students are required to choose two minor fields.

Courses must include 6 hours of literary theory/cultural studies;

Students are strongly encouraged to acquire a second Middle Eastern language.