Minor Description

The Minor in Global Middle Eastern and North African Studies (MENA) allows students to explore and better understand the complex dynamics of the regions stretching from North Africa to the Middle East, including diasporic populations from these regions, and to acquire a deep insight into the global concerns stemming from and relating to these regions. This knowledge builds on the arts, cultures, economies, governments, histories, languages, politics, religions, and societies of the Middle East and North Africa both in the region and globally. The minor’s interdisciplinary curriculum expands and builds upon Wesleyan’s course offerings in Middle Eastern and North African studies across divisions at the university. Currently, there is a minimum of five (5) courses to fulfill the requirements. Two (2) courses must be in a language such as Hebrew, Modern Standard Arabic, or another regionally relevant language, and three (3) must be spread across the program's three (3) areas of concentration. Students must take one (1) course in each of the areas. The concentration areas are: Historical Perspectives on the Middle East and North Africa; Contemporary Perspectives on the Middle East and North Africa; Socio-cultural Perspectives on the Middle East and North Africa.

Admission to the Minor

Students may declare the minor at any point in their undergraduate career at Wesleyan by submitting the minor declaration form in Wesportal. For tracking, advising, and co-curricular purposes, they are encouraged to sign on early. Students should contact the Program Director to discuss their path through the program prior to declaring the Minor. 

Minor Requirements

Requirements for Global Middle Eastern and North African Studies Minor (5 courses required)

The Minor requires 5 courses overall - 2 language credits and 3 electives

Language Courses - 2 credits required

• All students must meet with the director of the minor in order to plan their language course of study and have it approved. Students who are already fluent in a regional language are encouraged to take either advanced language courses, or to study another language from the region. The program strongly encourages the study of Arabic or Hebrew but will also consider other relevant languages from the region or any other relevant languages from the region. This includes both those taught at Wesleyan as well as other less commonly taught languages available via petition through the Alternative Language Study option at the Fries Center for Global Studies. The director of the minor will consider these requests through individual consultations with students and consideration of their broader academic plan with relationship to Global Middle Eastern and North African Studies.

Electives - 3 courses required (Electives should be from at least 2 different disciplines and 1 should count for each of the following concentration areas: Historical Perspectives on the Middle East and North Africa; Contemporary Perspectives on the Middle East and North Africa; Socio-cultural Perspectives on the Middle East and North Africa.)

• Three concentration courses from at least two different disciplines, one in each concentration area. The combination of concentration courses must also demonstrate regional diversity and cannot, for example, all focus exclusively on one country.
• With the approval of the director of the minor, one relevant tutorial and two relevant study-abroad courses may count toward the minor. Normally, no more than one course may count towards another minor (this does not apply to language courses).

Contact: The current director of the program is Prof. A. George Bajalia. He can be reached at abajalia@wesleyan.edu.