Shalom, Salaam, Welcome

     A dynamic program in Judaic & Near Eastern Studies affords an exceptional and unusual educational opportunity for students. The University of Massachusetts Amherst is the only public institution of higher learning in New England – and one of the few nationwide – with a department wholly dedicated to cultivating an appreciation of the historic role played by Jewish culture in the development of human civilization.

     Students from both Jewish and non-Jewish backgrounds are attracted to the Department of Judaic & Near Eastern Studies for

• academic rigor and dedication to intellectual training of the highest order.
  
• a curriculum constantly invigorated by interdisciplinary perspectives.
  
• a disciplined major or minor – preparation for seminary or a career working with Jewish youth, or an exciting liberal arts field in itself.
  
• enrichment of other majors – English, psychology, or history – with courses such as Literature of the Holocaust, Biblical Archeology, European Jewish History, or Modern German and Jewish Literature.
  
• a better understanding of the political landscape of the contemporary Middle East, its people, cultures, and languages.