August,
2007
Dear
Graduate Students, Near Eastern Studies:
Greetings
and welcome to the Department, or welcome back to the Department!
This Handbook for the Master of Arts in
NES is being
provided to you to help you towards a most successful graduate experience at the
During
2007-2008 the Director of Graduate Studies in NES is Professor Leila Hudson,
whose office is Marshall
447. Dr. Hudson is a key person in
planning your program. Please feel
free to contact her at lhudson@email.arizona.edu.
Please also get to know our Graduate Coordinator, Kathleen Landeen klandeen@email.arizona.edu,
626-8731. She can assist you in preparing paperwork, including your financial aid
application- and will keep you abreast of important deadlines.
Get
ready for a very full and productive year; with the rigors and commitments
graduate school entails. We are here to support your academic endeavors.
Whether it means navigating you through paperwork, or providing advice
regarding your course selections, never hesitate to let us know what you need.
I urge you also to see the Director of Graduate Studies each semester.
Again,
welcome to the Department of Near Eastern Studies.
Best Wishes for a successful year!
Professor
& Head
Planning
Your Program
As
members of the scholarly profession whose purpose is to contribute to the
advancement of knowledge and as experts qualified to teach at the graduate
level, university professors normally engage in research and writing in their
field of specialty. Before choosing
your fields of concentration and your Committee Chair, you should
familiarize yourself with the work of the various members of the Department.
See the NES Faculty Directory and
their CV's (linked to their picture or name in the NES directory).
You may want to ask faculty about their research, read their published
works and/or enroll in one of their seminars.
Professional
responsibilities limit the number of courses University professors are able to
teach, so that occasionally they are not available to teach a particular course
when you may want to take it. We try
to plan ahead to ensure a balanced program.
You should keep in contact with the Director of Graduate Studies and with
individual professors to find out when professors may be going on leave and what
courses are planned for future semesters.
Read
the Near Eastern Studies Master of Arts requirements in addition to the
Graduate College Catalog carefully for degree requirements and list of courses.
The
European
Language Proficiency
Students must demonstrate reading
proficiency in either French or German.
I.
Reading
Proficiency is considered complete if you have completed Intermediate college
level French or German (equaling a second year reading proficiency). Transcripts
required.
II.
You
may take the following courses to achieve Language Proficiency:
GER
500 -- Intensive Reading German for
the Sciences and Humanities (4 units)
Description: Rapid acquisition of reading proficiency in German. No prior
knowledge of German is necessary. Proficiency certification obtained from this
course fulfills graduate foreign language requirement is some departments
(consult department for information).
Grading: Regular
grades are awarded for this course: A B C D E.
Usually offered: Spring, Summer.
FREN 500
-- French for Reading (1 unit)
Description: A one-semester course that permits rapid acquisition of
reading skills. Even with no prior study of French, students by the end of a
semester are able to read and understand materials written in French in the
standard literature and professional journals of their field of interest. This
course cannot count toward any graduate program of study.
Grading: Regular
grades are awarded for this course: A B C D E.
Usually offered: Spring.
Near
Eastern Studies Mentor Program
The purpose of the NES
Mentor program is to provide a link between each incoming graduate student and a
professor in the NES department. Students
are encouraged to meet with their mentors at their convenience and are under no obligation to include them on their MA committees, which are assembled in the
second semester of the program. Students
are also expected to communicate with the Graduate Advisor
(Dr. Leila Hudson) each
semester to discuss the Master Plan of Study.
All incoming students are assigned a
Appointment
of a Graduate Committee
During the 2nd semester, in
conjunction with the Director of Graduate Studies, students must choose a Committee
for the Thesis or Departmental Paper. Committee
Members include three members of the faculty (one Chairperson and two members)
selected from NES and possibly other departments. An
example of the Appointment form is attached.
Master Plan of Study
In conjunction with the
Director of Graduate Studies, each student is responsible for developing a Master
Plan of Study as early as possible, but no later than April of the year
following admission to the program. The
form is completed online, saved, printed and submitted to the NES Director of
Graduate Studies, Leila Hudson (lhudson@email.arizona.edu)
in residence, to be submitted to the
NOTE: Provisional Graduate Status
must be converted to Regular Graduate Status and all deficiencies must be
satisfied before the Plan of Study is approved.
The Plan of Study identifies (1) courses the student intends to transfer from
other institutions; (2) courses already completed at The University of Arizona
which the student intends to apply toward the graduate degree; and (3)
additional course work to be completed to fulfill degree requirements. The Plan
of Study must have the approval of the student's Committee Chair person,
Director of Graduate Studies, and Department Head before it is submitted to the
Completion
of Master's Requirements
When the student's
department determines that the student has completed all degree requirements, a Completion
of Master's Degree Requirements form, signed by the three faculty members of
the student's committee (two of whom must be tenure-track faculty members in the
major field) will be submitted to the
For dates by which
requirements must be met to graduate in a particular semester, refer to the
Deadline Sheets, available in departments, in the Graduate Degree Certification
Office, and online at the Graduate
College website: http://www.grad.arizona.edu. Modifications in the
Plan of Study may be made on the Completion of Degree Requirement form or on the
Changes in Student's Records form. Modifications may consist of changes in
coursework, changes in addresses, or changes in names. Name changes also require
that an official name change be filed with the Registrar's Office. All
outstanding fees must be cleared before the final completion date. Any financial
encumbrances will delay mailing of the diploma and transcripts. Contact the
Bursar's office, Room 114,
Publication
of Thesis
Submission of the thesis to
the Graduate Degree Certification Office, for publication by University
Microfilms, Inc. and inclusion in The University of Arizona Library archives, is
optional. There is a fee for microfilming and for copyrighting should a student choose those options. For
more information consult the Manual for Theses and Dissertations available online and from the Graduate Degree Certification Office.
Publication by microfilm does not preclude publication by other methods.
Successful master's candidates are encouraged to submit thesis material for
publication in scholarly or professional journals. Suitable acknowledgment must
indicate the publication to be a thesis, or portion of a thesis, submitted in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for a master's degree at The University
of Arizona.
If the thesis is not to be microfilmed and placed in the
Submitting
Thesis to NES Department:
You are required to submit a bound Thesis to the Department of Near Eastern Studies preceding graduation. For questions on binding, contact the NES Graduate Coordinator at 621-8013.
List
of Master’s NES paperwork due to Department
in NES (i.e. “M.A. forms”):
you may access all
II.
“Master
Plan of Study,” due no later than the second semester of graduate study.
III.
“Completion
of Degree Requirements,” due before Thesis defense.
Must be signed by Committee after your defense; give to the NES Graduate Coordinator.
Near
Eastern Studies Department Information
CatCard
& Keys
All
NES graduate students have access to computers and the NES Commons area.
In order to access the building after hours, please make a copy of your
CatCard, and the Graduate Coordinator will activate your card.
The
department issues cabinet keys to graduate students who are Teaching Assistants
or graders. Keys for cubicle
cabinets require a $5 deposit, which is refundable after key is returned.
See the Graduate Coordinator for key issue. Others
who are not TAs, RAs or graders may also request a cubicle cabinet (which may be
shared).
E-Mail Account
Every
student should have an e-mail account on file with the Department so that we can
send you notices via our NES_Grad_Students@listserv.arizona.edu
listserv. ANY graduate student can
send mail to this address and reach our Near Eastern Studies Graduate Student
body. We encourage you to utilize
this as a tool for communication and to create a sense of community for the
graduate students.
Mailboxes
All graduate students will be assigned a mailbox. Graduate students who receive Teaching Assistantships will be assigned a mailbox in the copier room. All other graduate students will have mailboxes in the hallway (the brown cubbies) near the Graduate Student cubicle area. The University does not authorize private mail be sent to the department.
The
Center for Middle Eastern Studies
The
Center for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) at the
CMES
regularly organizes scholarly conferences and workshops, and a lecture series.
The Center is active in bringing
The
graduate students in Near Eastern Studies established the MENA (Middle East
& North Africa) graduate organization. The
President(s) will notify students regarding any upcoming meetings, dinners,
parties, etc. Please support your
fellow students and get involved.
Middle
East
Studies Association
The
national headquarters of Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA)
is located at the
Resident
Status Documentation
Specific information and guidelines for establishing residency is available from the Residency Classification Office. University residency requirements to obtain in-state registration rates may be found at http://www.admissions.arizona.edu/resident.html
The Center for Computing Information Technology (CCIT)
The
Center for Computing Information Technology (CCIT) is ready to help answer many
of your computing and telecommunications questions.
Call the help line for any number of computing questions at 621-4357
(621-HELP). CCIT offers classes,
computing services, consulting services, and much more.
CCIT is located in the
Middle
Eastern Collection, UofA Library
Dr.
Midhat
Abraham is the Middle Eastern Collection librarian at the
Useful
Middle Eastern Studies websites:
The
Center for Middle Eastern Studies: http://www.cmes.arizona.edu/
Middle
Eastern Studies Association: http://fp.arizona.edu/mesassoc/
MENIC:
The Middle East Network
Near
Eastern Studies Commons
NES
Commons is the Student/Faculty lounge located in the NES Main office near the
Faculty offices. The Commons is
specifically used for the exchange of ideas and is a quiet space work area.
Near
Eastern Studies Graduate Student Computer Area
The
NES Graduate Student Computers are located near NES Commons and are available
for NES Graduate Students, NES TA’s and RA’s.
Computer/Desk areas are assigned to students each semester.
Copier and Fax
Machine
The
fax machine can be used only under special circumstances; TA’s may request a
copier code from the NES Business Manager, Beth Marlatt, for Teaching materials
and class assignments.