College of Arts and Sciences

Departmental E-mail: iujsp [at] indiana [dot] edu

Departmental URL: www.indiana.edu/~jsp

Departmental Phone: (812) 855-0453

Departmental Fax: (812) 855-4314

(Please note that when conferring University Graduate School degrees, minors, certificates, and sub-plans, The University Graduate School’s staff use those requirements contained only in The University Graduate School Bulletin.)

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Faculty

M.A. in Jewish Studies

The M.A. in Jewish Studies provides students with the advanced interdisciplinary study and the language background necessary to prepare them for doctoral programs in a disciplinary department or for nonacademic careers in the professional world and nonprofit sector. The program will normally take two years to complete. The program provides students with a working knowledge in one or more languages relevant to the study of Jewish culture (typically Modern Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew, and/or Yiddish), a broad exposure to the academic field of Jewish Studies in a number of different disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, and the analytical skills crucial for doctoral education related to Jewish Studies or employment in the professional world.

The M.A. in Jewish Studies can be combined with a certificate in nonprofit management from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA). [https://history.indiana.edu/graduate/masters.html].

Admission Requirements

Bachelor’s degree with evidence of superior ability and completion of the Graduate Record Examination. Second-year proficiency of Hebrew or another relevant language is desirable but not a requirement for admission.

Course Requirements

A total of 32 credit hours. Students are required to complete JSTU-H 520 (4 cr.); 16 credits (at least four courses) to be distributed among courses taught by Jewish Studies faculty; and 12 credits (at least three courses) of electives. Of the electives, 3 credits can be in JSTU-J 699 for research towards an M.A. thesis.

Grades

Only courses that receive a grade of B- or higher will count towards fulfillment of the course requirements. Students must retain an overall average in courses fulfilling the course requirements of B (3.0) or higher.

Language Requirement

Completion of the Jewish Studies M.A. requires second-year reading proficiency in a language relevant to the student’s research interest, normally Modern Hebrew, Biblical Hebrew, or Yiddish. First and second year (elementary and intermediate level) language courses in the first foreign language do not count towards the degree requirements but may be necessary to demonstrate proficiency. Up to 6 credits in a second relevant language may be counted towards the required 16 credits of courses taught by Jewish Studies faculty.

M.A. Thesis

To complete the M.A. in Jewish Studies, students will write an M.A. thesis (not to exceed 40 pages or 12,000 words). Students will register for 3 credits under JSTU-J 699 and will be examined on the thesis by a committee of three faculty members, at least two of whom must be Jewish Studies faculty.

Dual M.A. in Jewish Studies and History

The combined program will have a total of 52 credit hours, instead of the 62 hours required to attain the two degrees separately. Students will take 5 courses counting towards Jewish Studies and 5 courses counting towards History, as well as 12 credits of electives.

Admission Requirements

Bachelor’s degree with evidence of superior ability and completion of the Graduate Record Examination. Second-year proficiency of Hebrew or another relevant language is desirable but not a requirement for admission. Students will have to meet admission requirements in the Department of History (refer to the University Graduate School Bulletin).

Course Requirements

20 credit hours in Jewish Studies, including JSTU-H 520 (4 cr.) and 16 credits (at least four courses) taught by Jewish Studies faculty; 20 credit hours in History, including HIST-H 601 and 16 credits of course work in the Department of History, with a minimum of one seminar and two colloquia; 12 credits (at least three courses) of electives. Courses taken to fulfill requirements in the Department of History can include courses on Jewish history but cannot be identical with the courses counted towards fulfillment of the Jewish Studies requirements.

Grades

Only courses that receive a grade of B- or higher will count towards fulfillment of the course requirements. Students must retain an overall average in courses fulfilling the course requirements of B (3.0) or higher.

Language Requirement

Second-year reading proficiency in one language relevant to the student’s research interest, normally Modern Hebrew, Yiddish, or Biblical Hebrew, is required for completion of the degree. Language courses in a language relevant for the student’s research interest, normally Modern Hebrew, Yiddish, or Biblical Hebrew, can be counted to fulfill the elective credit requirement.

M.A. Thesis and History Field Review

To complete the Jewish Studies component of the dual M.A., students will write an M.A. thesis (not to exceed 40 pages or 12,000 words). Students will register for 3 credits under JSTU-J 699 and will complete an oral examination on the thesis by a committee of three faculty members, at least two of whom must be Jewish Studies faculty. In order to complete the History component of the M.A., students will undergo a field review in the Department of History, for which they will submit two papers written for a History course, at least one of which was written in a seminar. Field review papers may not be substantially similar to the thesis.

Ph.D. Minor in Jewish Studies

The Robert A. and Sandra S. Borns Jewish Studies Program supports the study of Jews and Judaism in all its forms from antiquity to the present. The program draws on disciplines including Anthropology, Comparative Literature, English, Germanic Studies, History, Musicology, Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, Political Science, and Religious Studies,. Because of the interdisciplinary nature of the Jewish Studies Program, students can structure course work individually, according to their specific areas of interest.

Course Requirements

15 hours of graduate credit in courses on Jewish Studies with a grade of B or higher. All students are required to take a core course, JSTU-H 520 Colloquium in Jewish Studies. No more than two courses may be taken in the student’s home department. No more than 6 credit hours of individualized readings can be applied to the minor. No more than 8 hours of transfer credit from another institution may be applied to the minor. Relevant graduate courses from any discipline may be counted toward the minor. Students may not count any courses in their major doctoral degree toward the minor and vice versa. With permission from a student’s home department, students may pursue an intensive minor in Jewish studies. The selection of courses must be approved by the Jewish Studies Director of Graduate Studies.

Note: Some departments offer concentrations in Jewish content within the department. For instance, doctoral students in History can major in Jewish History. Doctoral students in Religious Studies can focus on "Jewish Thought and Culture," "Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Religions," or "Religion in the Americas." 

Ph.D. Minor in Yiddish

Students may complete a Ph.D. minor in Yiddish through the Department of Germanic Studies. Requirements include 12 credits, consisting of GER Y502, GER Y503, GER Y504, 3 remain­ing credits to be chosen from GER Y505, GER Y506, GER Y815, and other courses focusing on non-language Yiddish topics.