Arabic & Islamic Studies

Islamic Studies PhD

The Islamic Studies Ph.D. program at Georgetown seeks to advance knowledge and understanding of classical and modern Islamic religious thought and Islamic textual traditions, and to provide understanding of Islamic culture and intellectual history in the pre-modern and modern periods. The program offers undergraduate and graduate training in the study of the history, religion, culture, society, languages, literatures, and thought of the Islamic world, and introduces students to the traditional and modern scholarly approaches to the study of Islam.

Entering students must have at least two years of Arabic and are expected to enroll in advanced Arabic seminars. To upgrade their proficiency, students may be required to enroll in language classes concurrent with their graduate program.  However, Arabic language courses taken to enable students to reach the seminar level do not count towards the degree credits. Students already enrolled in the terminal Master’s program at Georgetown must apply again if they are interested in joining the Ph.D. program; these students are not guaranteed admission, and will be considered by the admissions committee along with other applicants from outside the department.

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