Admission to the Dual Degree Program

Students must apply to and be accepted by both the Department of Near Eastern Studies and the Department of Anthropology to qualify for the dual degree program.  Only students who have completed an MA in Anthropology, Near Eastern Studies, or a related field prior to enrollment in the NES/Anthropology dual degree program will be accepted.  Students need to demonstrate intermediate proficiency in one Middle Eastern language at the time of admission.

An interdepartmental committee from Near Eastern Studies and Anthropology will review and make a recommendation on any student who has been accepted to both departments and who has indicated that they wish to earn the dual degree.  For fall admission, this should occur in the spring before the April 15 deadline for student acceptance of admission offers.  

For details on how to apply, see admissions requirements.  All applicants should apply for NES financial aid.  U.S. citizens and permanent residents should also apply for Foreign Language Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships, which are administered through the Center for Middle Eastern Studies.  Students with appropriate interests should apply for the Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute Graduate Fellowship for Persian and Iranian Studies. Applicants are expected to make an effort to seek out all possible sources for graduate funding.

Specialization

The Dual Ph.D. Program in Near Eastern Studies and Anthropology at the University of Arizona will be the first program in the United States to provide a formal institutional setting for simultaneous doctoral training and professional certification in the two disciplines. The program will build on the long traditions of excellence and interdisciplinary dialogue that have energized both departments at the University of Arizona for decades. It will involve faculty from both departments, as well as affiliated professors in other departments on campus, who share a vision for interdisciplinary research focusing on Sociocultural or Linguistic Anthropology and Near Eastern Studies at the University of  Arizona.

A dual doctoral program in Anthropology and Near Eastern Studies will build upon the complimentarity and affinity of the two fields, and the University of Arizona's nationally recognized strength in both, to train and certify uniquely qualified scholars for a rapidly globalizing world in which complex inter-dependencies are redefining relations between the West and the Middle East. From Anthropology, students will gain a conceptual and analytical apparatus for studying the complexity and diversity of cultures.  They will also receive training in the theory and method of ethnographic field work and comparative research. From Near Eastern Studies, students will receive rigorous language training available in Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Turkish, and scholarly expertise in histories, literatures, religions, and the material and popular culture of Middle Eastern societies. This opportunity to combine comparative and theoretical breadth with linguistic and textual depth, and to develop research methods under the supervision of the core faculty, will attract the best students in both fields to the program.
 
Students will follow a curriculum of courses in each discipline that will provide first rate qualification in each discipline, while enjoying significant flexibility to develop innovative trans-disciplinary projects on the Middle East and world of Islam using a wide variety of research techniques and analytical approaches including fieldwork, textual analysis, and archival research.

Students and faculty will frequently participate in other interdisciplinary programs at the University of Arizona including those of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, the Ph.D. program in Middle Eastern Histories, the Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology, and the program in Women's Studies.  

General Requirements for the Dual Ph.D. in Anthropology and NES

Unit Requirements
A minimum of 81 units of coursework are required for the Ph.D.: 27 units in the
NES Graduate Program, 27 units in the Anthropology Program, and 27 units to be shared between the two disciplines.  In addition, a minimum of 24 units of dissertation credits are required and no more than 9 units of dissertation credit may be taken in any given semester.  Dissertation units are not included in the 81 units of required graduate course work. 

*3rd year Arabic MSA is worth 8 credits but 3rd year Persian, Turkish, and Hebrew are only 6 credits. Those pursuing the latter three languages will have to find two more units. Taking an additional 3-unit course will provide those two units and eliminate the need for
a one-unit independent study.

Transfer Credit
Graduate coursework in Near Eastern Studies earned at the University of Arizona as part of an MA, and up to 12 units earned in non-degree status, may be applied to the Ph.D. coursework requirement. 

Up to 33 units of graduate coursework may be transferred from another institution.  A request to transfer must be submitted to the Graduate College , in consultation with the Graduate Advisors of both departments, by the end of the first year.  Many of these transfer units may be applicable to requirements in either of the degree programs, or may count towards the additional 27 units required of the student.

Doctoral Plan of Study
In conjunction with his/her major professors or advisors, each student is responsible for developing a Plan of Study during their first year in residence, to be filed with the Graduate College no later than the student’s third semester in residence. The Plan of Study identifies (1) courses the student intends to transfer from other institutions; (2) courses already completed at The University of Arizona which the student intends to apply toward the graduate degree; and (3) additional course work to be completed in order to fulfill degree requirements. The Plan of Study must have the approval of the student’s major professor (Committee Chair) and department heads (or Directors of Graduate Studies) from both the Anthropology Department and from the Department of Near Eastern Studies before it is submitted to the Graduate College.

Languages
Students must achieve 3rd year language proficiency in Modern Standard Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish. Third-year language proficiency is achieved by successfully completing six semesters of the focus language. Second year (or intermediate) proficiency must be achieved in a second Near Eastern Language and reading proficiency is required in French, German, or a relevant European language.

Qualifying Examination
A qualifying examination or diagnostic evaluation may be required to demonstrate acceptability to pursue the doctorate as well as to determine areas of study where further course work is necessary.  The examination should be taken during the first semester of residence and preferably during the first two weeks of residence.

Comprehensive Examination
Comprehensive exams will be taken at the end of coursework.  The committee should include two tenured or tenure-track faculty from Anthropology and two from Near Eastern Studies. 

Dissertation
A total of 24 units of dissertation hours must be taken in addition to the 81 hours of coursework. The dissertation committee will be composed of at least two faculty from Anthropology and two from Near Eastern Studies and should include content from both fields.  A proposal must be approved by the student’s entire doctoral committee within six months of the completion of the Comprehensive Exams.

Funding
Students accepted into the program will be eligible for Teaching Assistantships for Near Eastern language and General Education courses, and Research Assistantships the departments of Anthropology and NES, as well as FLAS fellowships and Research Assistantships in the Center for Middle Eastern Studies.  Neither department, however, guarantees funding for students nor is there any obligation to match the funding provided by another department.

Residence
To meet the minimum Graduate College residence requirement, the student must complete a minimum of 34 units of graduate credit in residence at the University of Arizona , (24 units of dissertation plus 12 units of regular graded coursework taken The University of Arizona).  “In residence” is defined as units offered by The University of Arizona, whether or not they are offered on campus.

Time Limitation
All requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy must be completed within 5 years of passing the Comprehensive Exam. Should a student not finish within that time period, he or she may be allowed to re-take the Comprehensive Exam with permission of the program, and then proceed to complete other requirements, e.g., the dissertation.