Middle East Institute Certificate
The Middle East Institute offers a Certificate program that students pursue in conjunction with graduate-degree programs in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the School of International and Public Affairs and other professional schools at Columbia University.
The Institute Certificate attests to specialized knowledge and substantial work on the the Middle East within a student’s graduate studies.
Requirements
To satisfy the requirements for the certificate, the candidate must select a program of study that provides a broad knowledge of the Middle East, together with a specialized knowledge of a sub-cultural area (the Arab states, Armenia, Central Asia, Iran, Israel, or Turkey) and its principal language.
Students must complete the following requirement:
Advanced Language Proficiency in one Middle Eastern Language equivalent to three years of university. (16 credits) *
Two Regional studies courses, either lecture or colloquium, including one in history and one in political science (6 credits)
Four Lecture/Colloquium credits taken from three different disciplines (12 credits)
Two Seminar/Colloquium credits (6 credits)
All courses must be approved by the MEI Program Director. Graduate-level courses in any Columbia department or school may qualify. Courses not specifically on the Middle East may qualify with a final project on a Middle East topic. Independent research courses may qualify. Click here for a list of pre-approved courses.
Students must be enrolled in a Columbia graduate program to pursue the certificate; it is not a stand-alone program. Students in all disciplines are welcome to apply.
*A certificate candidate who comes equipped with proficiency in one of the major languages is encouraged to study a second. Native speakers of one Middle Eastern language must take at least one year of a second area language or demonstrate equivalent proficiency.
Program Deadlines
Certificates are awarded three times a year: October, February, and May.
Students are highly encouraged to consult with the MEI Associate Director Astrid Benedek as early as possible in order to declare their intent to pursue the Certificate.
Students who have completed the requirements for the Middle East Certificate must submit the Middle East Institute Certificate Checklist Form for approval to Astrid Benedek (amb49@columbia.edu). All students must also submit a separate Application for Certificate to the Registrar's Office.
Deadlines for submission of the Certificate Checklist Form:
September 1, for degrees conferred in October
November 1, for degrees conferred in February
December 1, for degrees conferred in May