Major in Modern Jewish Studies or minor in Jewish Studies

The academic study of Jewish society and culture, texts and ideas, is a platform upon which to develop unique perspectives out onto the world in which we live. Courses explore literature, thought & culture, gender, politics & society, Israel & the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, history, Hebrew, the Holocaust, anti-Semitism, art, architecture, visual culture, Judaism, Bible, and textual tradition.

[1] A double major in Modern Jewish Studies or a Minor in Jewish Studies is based in critical skills and human intelligence essential for work across the professions (law, medicine, media and journalism, the arts, business and finance, government and politics, tech) and work in the Jewish community (federation work, the rabbinate, museums, social services, Jewish education, non-profit work, Israel advocacy, etc.).

[2] As part of a double major or a minor, Jewish Studies open out alternative points of view to larger programs of study and traditional majors such as in American Studies, Art History, Communications, English and Textual Studies, History, International Relations, Middle Eastern Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Religion, Sociology, Visual and Performing Arts, Women and Gender Studies, or the Writing Program. Work in Jewish Studies makes more complex your study in other fields.

[3] Study and learning for its own sake, a major in Modern Jewish Studies or a Minor in Jewish Studies provides opportunities for students to explore universal human questions relating to culture, ethics, identity, and meaning. You don’t have to be Jewish and it doesn’t matter what you believe or don’t believe; we only want you to think and write, clearly and critically, about the things most important to you.

For more information, please feel free to contact:

Professor Zachary Braiterman (Jewish Studies Program, Director), zbraiter@syr.edu

[an electronic copy]