BA MENAS Degree Requirements

Overview

  • 120 total units to complete the degree
  • 35 units in the major; 18 of which are upper-division
  • 42 of upper-division units total
  • Minor (or dual-major) required
  • Elective credit to reach 120/42 may be required
  • Maximum of 6 units of independent study courses can be used toward the major

Printable Checklist

Contact an Advisor

Foundations

  • 1st Year English or equivalent
  • Math: PHIL 110, LING 123, MATH 105, 107, 112 or higher
  • 4th semester second language proficiency

General Education

  • UNIV 101: Introduction to General Education
  • Exploring Perspectives: Artist
  • Exploring Perspectives: Humanist
  • Exploring Perspectives: Social Scientist
  • Exploring Perspectives: Natural Scientist
  • Building Connections
  • Building Connections
  • Building Connections
  • UNIV 301: Portfolio

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS) Core Series

SBS majors who start their coursework in Fall 2024 will also be required to complete a total of nine (9) units in the SBS Core Series, three (3) units in each category. Click each category to see a list of eligible courses:

Minor

18 units in a minor or a double-major are required.

Introductory Courses

Complete all the following courses (9 units):

  • MENA 277A: History of the Middle East: 600-1453
  • MENA 277B: A People's History of the Modern Middle East
  • MENA 334: Islamic Thought

Senior Capstone

Complete MENA 498: Senior Capstone (1 unit)

Language Tracks

Complete one of the following language tracks (10 units):

Arabic

  • ARB 401: Intermediate Arabic I
  • ARB 402: Intermediate Arabic II

Hebrew

  • JUS 203A: Intermediate Modern Hebrew
  • JUS 203B: Intermediate Modern Hebrew

Persian

  • PRS 401: Intermediate Persian I
  • PRS 402: Intermediate Persian II

Turkish

  • TURK 401: Intermediate Turkish I
  • TURK 402: Intermediate Turkish II

Major Electives

Complete 2 of the following courses (6 units):

  • ARB 426: Introduction to Arabic Linguistics
  • ARB 448: Arabic Literature in English Translation
  • ARB 496M: Special Topics in Arabic Linguistics
  • LING 454: Structure of a Middle Eastern Language
  • MENA 160A1: The Religion of Islam
  • MENA 160A2: Middle East Humanities
  • MENA 330: Languages and Societies of the Middle East
  • MENA 337: Language and Power in the Middle East and North Africa
  • MENA 353: Islamic Spirituality through the Poetry of Rumi
  • MENA 354: Food Traditions of the Middle East and North Africa
  • MENA 365: Muslim Views of the West
  • MENA 379: The Ottoman Turkish Empire
  • MENA 385: Introduction to Political Islam
  • MENA 430A: Language and Society in the Middle East
  • MENA 422: Human Rights in the Middle East and North Africa
  • MENA 432: Iranian Culture and Society
  • MENA 436: Love, Sex and Desire in the Islamicate Imaginary
  • MENA 459A: Turkey: Culture, Power and History
  • MENAS 463: Gender Issues and Women's Literature in the Middle East
  • MENA 466: The Middle Eastern City and Islamic Urbanism
  • MENA 471: Iranian Cinema, Gender Issues, and Social Change
  • MENA 485A: History of the Iranian Plateau, 600-1501
  • MENA 485G: Modern Arabia and the Gulf
  • MENA 485P: Palestinian Culture and Society, 1900-Present
  • MENA 496C: The Literature of Identity in the Modern Middle East
  • MENA 496D: The Late Ottoman Empire
  • MENA 496E: Marxism and the Middle East
  • PRS 496A: Topics in Classical and Ancient Persian Literature and Culture
  • PRS 496B: Topics in Modern Persian Literature and Iranian Culture
  • TURK 410: Topics in Turkish Language, Literature, Culture, History & Society

Writing Emphasis

Complete one of the following courses (3 units):

  • MENA 342: Persian World
  • MENA 344: Genealogies of ISIS
  • MENA 365: Muslim Views of the West
  • MENA 375: Ethnography of the Middle East
  • MENA 380: The Middle East and North Africa Since the "Arab Spring"
  • MENA 389: Middle Eastern Ethnic and Religious Minorities
  • MENA 403: Art and Architecture of the Islamic World
  • MENA 408A: Islamic Movements in the Contemporary Muslim World
  • MENA 417A: North African Societies: History, Culture and Politics
  • MENA 430A: Language and Society in the Middle East
  • MENA 444: Islamic Mysticism
  • MENA 451: Gender and Violence in the Middle East
  • MENA 456: Jews of the Islamic World in the Modern Period (1840-Present)
  • MENA 463: Gender Issues and Women's Literature in the Middle East
  • MENA 471: Iranian Cinema, Gender Issues, and Social Change
  • MENA 480: The Middle East in the Twentieth Century
  • MENA 484: History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, 1800 to Present
  • MENA 490: Women in Middle Eastern Society
  • MENA 496B: Special Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Studies
  • MENA 496G: Islamic Law and Society
  • MENA 496S: Colonialism and the Critique of Modernity
  • PRS 496A: Topics in Classical and Ancient Persian Literature and Culture
  • PRS 496B: Topics in Modern Persian Literature and Iranian Culture

Additional Courses

Complete 2 additional courses (6 units).

A comprehensive list of MENA courses can be found in the Course Catalog under MENA - Middle Eastern & North African Studies