NU-Q is now officially offering a Middle East Studies (MES) minor to students who complete six specialized courses on the region, divided into core and elective options.
The MES minor provides students with a critical understanding of the region’s cultures, histories, societies, politics, intellectual contributions, and mediated representations. The repertoire of courses offered cover foundational literacy of developments affecting the Middle East. Courses will also address global issues that are essential for understanding the region, such a decolonization, orientalism, gender, or religious revival, as well as themes and issues related to the Eurocentric mapping of the Middle Eastern countries.
To qualify for the minor, students must take three core courses, which offer a broad introduction to the Middle East, as well as three electives, which will address specific themes and policies in the region. At least half of the courses must be taken at a 300 level.
Students are also expected to complete a final program to receive their minor.
Some of the core courses include; Introduction to Middle East Anthropology, History of the Modern Middle East, Modern Middle East Literature, and Contemporary Arab Thought.
The MES committee plans to organize discussion sessions with two specialists each academic year. The sessions will address prevalent topics, as well as specifics related to some of the core offerings of the minor program. US scholar and Islamic law expert, Asifa Quarishi-Landes, is their first official speaker.
The MES is the second minor to be offered at NU-Q. Students are also eligible to receive a minor in media and politics, as well as a certificate in strategic communication.
