Arabic & Islamic Studies

Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degree


This program allows qualified undergraduate Arabic majors to earn A.B. and M.A. degrees at an accelerated pace within five years. The undergraduate and graduate degrees are awarded sequentially, with the A.B. in Arabic awarded at the end of the senior year, and the M.A. awarded separately at the end of the fifth year or upon completion of all requirements for the M.A. degree.

This is an honors program. Students with a minimum cumulative average of 3.5 in the major are eligible to apply for the program during their junior year. An application form is available in the department office. Students who plan to spend their junior year abroad are advised to file for A.B./M.A. status prior to departure.

The program allows undergraduates to have two graduate level courses in their major (i.e., courses numbered 350 and above) credited toward both their undergraduate and graduate degrees. In addition, an undergraduate who takes extra graduate-level courses as an undergraduate senior – up to 6 credits or 2 courses – may count those courses toward the Master’s in Arabic. This totals four graduate level courses, two counted towards both degrees and two only for the master's.

Deadline for withdrawal from the program is the last day of classes of the senior year. This request must be submitted in writing to the department Chair and to Dean Anne Sullivan in the College Dean’s office. 

Procedures:

  1. Students should discuss their eligibility with their faculty adviser and complete the departmental application form no later than the end of the junior year. The application form needs to be approved by the College Dean’s office. Students should then submit the application and three letters of recommendation to the Graduate School, which forwards the file to the department.
  2. The department reviews the application and sends its decision to the Graduate School. Applications are reviewed in the same fashion as all graduate applications.
  3. The Graduate School gives final approval and notifies the student of the decision.

Departmental requirements:
The Department of Arabic & Islamic Studies requires coursework in both a major (Arabic) and a minor (Linguistics or Islamic Studies). Course distribution consists of: 7 courses in the major and 5 courses in the minor.

In addition to the coursework, a research paper is required, related to the work of a particular course in the major and takes the place of any term paper required for that course.

Grade average required in major and minor courses:
An overall grade average of at least an A- must be maintained and no single grade below a B.

Other requirements include an Arabic proficiency examination and a written comprehensive examination. Please see Arabic Department Master’s program guidelines for further details.

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