KevinYoungX

MathCat - I've been doing a lot of research on graduate schools and have been talking about such with a lot of academics, yet never heard that. That's good advice - thanks!

Can't you just accept the first offer you get and then later turn it down if a better offer is later offered?

Right, but do they ever tend to be more conservative than other scholars? They will certainly be liberal - it's academia, after all. However, I have noticed that Jewish Studies scholars (at my university and at Israeli universities) tend to be pro-Zionist and interested in researching and combating radical ideologies like Islamic terrorism, while many scholars in the related discipline of Middle Eastern Studies tend to not be like that. Perhaps it is just isolated to my university or is more of an Israeli scholar phenomenon than a Jewish Studies scholar trend...

Tomasdavis - Have you decided where you're going yet?

I have noticed recently that most American universities apparently do not have Jewish Studies departments. I thought they all did, but apparently not... Then again, my university does not have a Department of Religious Studies, and I think most universities have that...

At my university, scholars in the Department of Jewish Studies tend to be waaaaaaaaaaaaaay more conservative than scholars in other Liberal Arts disciplines like Political Science, History, English, French, Arabic, and Literature. (And by conservative, I mean conservative for academia - so classical liberal, centre to centre-right, Zionist, anti-far left, anti-radical feminism, opposed to Edward Said, etc.) Is this how most Jewish Studies departments and scholars are? I wouldn't say the Jewish Studies scholars seem as right-wing as Economics or Business professors, but they are still pretty conservative compared to others in the Liberal Arts at my university. (I think this is a part of the reason I get along with some of them fairly well.) Or, is this an anomaly just limited to Jewish Studies scholars at my university? I did some research, and it appears that a lot of the professors at Tel Aviv University, Hebrew University, and Bar Ilan University are more conservative (as in conservative for academia) than many other universities' professors. They tend to use more traditional scholars like Fouad Ajami and Bernard Lewis, for instance. Perhaps the pattern is one of Israeli professors, rather than Jewish Studies professors? Many of the Jewish Studies professors at my university are Israelis. I asked one of the Jewish Studies professors at my university about this and he said it is a very common pattern of Jewish Studies professors, but I wanted others' thoughts on it too. He also has a very, very conservative educational background, so I am wondering if that has affected his thinking on the matter. A big part of the reason I ask this is because I don't want to go off to graduate school thinking most of the Israeli/ Jewish Studies professors will typically be a certain way, if they are all completely different than the ones at my undergraduate institution. It's not that I have anything against liberal professors, but I just think it would be interesting to see if this is a pattern among Jewish Studies professors, or just an anomaly that is occurring where I study. Thanks for your thoughts and I can't wait to hear what you have to say - l'chaim!

Well, it looks like not too many people on these forums are going to Tulane in the fall... But I think you'll like Tulane! Of course I'm biased, since I already go there.

Thanks for the information, everyone. I have a question about getting external funding for a graduate degree. For instance, one of the Masters degrees I am most interested in is the Middle Eastern Studies Masters degree at Tel Aviv University. What kind of external funding (meaning funds that are not from the university) can I apply for to cover the program's Cost of Attendance? Does a university have to be partnered with FLAS in order for one to apply for FLAS or can accepted students of any graduate degree program apply for FLAS funding? What other kinds of external funding out there exists for graduate school? I know many of these questions seem pretty basic, but my university does not have a Middle Eastern Studies program and thus few people I can talk to about these sorts of things. My university has a very strong Jewish Studies program and I have been talking with them more, but they only know so much about Middle Eastern Studies in general (except for the one person in the department who studies Islamic philosophy).

Right, that's my point. There is definitely a decent bit of funding out there for interdisciplinary MAs, but not History MAs. For instance, you got two offers in fully-funded Latin American Studies MAs, but if you wanted to get two offers of fully-funded Latin American History MAs, that would typically be much more difficult to obtain.

My stats are sour, so I am considering getting a Masters degree before applying to PhD programs. I have noticed that there is a decent bit of funding for Middle Eastern Studies Masters degrees, but is there any way one could get a fully-funded Masters in Middle Eastern History (or Middle Eastern Studies)? I appreciate any and all help. Thanks for your time.

Stephanie - that seems like a neat idea and I do those sorts of things a lot. This past winter, I was chosen for a leadership trip to Israel and got to meet a bunch of those sorts of communities (Druze, Bedouin, Palestinian, etc.). It is quite different, however, because I am in the safe premises of a Western country. The only problem, however, is that learning about different cultures in Western countries (say the US, Israel, France, Turkey, and others) only provides one with a piece of the picture.

Hey -vive2ladifference, thanks for your suggestion. It is a good question. There are many ways to answer that question, but probably the main reason is that politicians are stupid and I do not want to get involved with those governmental loonies. Also - I simply like learning. To work for the government, you have to make yourself stupider everyday to fit in. And by the way - I never said being gay was a big obstacle to learning foreign languages. I don't know where you got that from. I did, however, say that being gay in the Middle East is an issue. Anyone who studies the Middle East knows that being gay is either illegal in all of those countries (except Israel & Turkey) or pretty close to it.

Stephanie, I appreciate your thoughts on my situation. The idea of Cultural Studies has been something that has only briefly crossed my mind. As for the white male & traveling issue: I do not mind being a minority. After all, I am a gay white guy studying in a majority heterosexual/normative African American city. Nevertheless sitting around and enjoying an Arab country and their amazing food (I really love their food) is not an option when those same people nearly all of the time (according to polling) think you should be killed or at least imprisoned. Thanks for your time.

Farsoodgee - I have to disagree with you there. Israel is 20% Arab and I will be studying Arabic at the best university in the Middle East. (Also, East Jerusalem is mostly Arab, although that should have no effect on the quality of the program). But if you really feel that way, could you try to give some suggestions for where in the Middle East a gay guy like myself should study Arabic?

To clarify: I will study abroad in Jerusalem, then visit Jordan, West Bank, and maybe Saudi Arabia or Egypt (while studying in Jerusalem).

No worries - thanks for your thoughts!

Aubstopper - I know that I can't go to Saudi Arabia (or many Islamic countries) with an Israeli stamp. However, Israel stopped stamping passports (at least they haven't stamped mine).

Aubstopper - thank you for your advice and just generally responding to my prompt. My plan when I visit Israel is to visit the West Bank and Jordan (and maybe Egypt or Saudi Arabia too, if money permits). I just do not feel safe living in those Islamic countries given my background. You are also right to suggest that I agree with a lot of Israeli academics and I am considering applying to a PhD program at Tel Aviv University. The only thing that concerns me is that there programs are not as well-ranked as most American PhD programs. And just to clarify - I do not mind taking politics out of academia. If you look at my first posts in this threat, there is nothing political about my posts. However, I am routinely dragged into political discussions and am not willing to lie about my views to please some anti-Western students or scholars.

General note to everyone: If you are not going to post a relevant comment to the discussion or you are simply going to attack me, do not post on this thread. Such comments are not welcomed. Thank you for your understanding.

Tachiyaku - I think you should not be studying any of the liberal arts if you are going to allow political correctness to affect your conclusions. I did not say that all Jews or Arabs can be recognized on sight. Of course not. However, many obviously can be. I reject your notion that I have "disdain" for people just because I point out facts. Most of the time you can tell a person has African ancestry is black because of their skin tone. Most of the time you can tell a guy is gay by how they dress. Of course, there are many exceptions but exceptions do not mean the general rule of thumb is cast out. Nevertheless, none of what you said actually rebukes any of what I said. Furthermore, it has nothing to do with my original post. If you are going to comment here, I am going to expect you to do one of two things: post something that attempts to somehow answer my original post OR post something that attempts to somehow respond to one of the claims I make in the succeeding posts If you do neither of those things, your post in no way adds to any discussion and I will be left with no choice but to mark down your comment and report it as spam. Thank you and have a nice day.

Victorydance - Here is the part of the issue: in a sense, I prefer how historians study - but, at the same time, I really like WHAT (not how) Political Scientists study.

Bluenebraska - Thanks for your opinions. I am not changing my mind about Jordan or Morocco. After all, Morocco was just internationally shamed for arresting a gay man and Jordan regularly arrests gay men too. There is no such thing as a progressive Islamic country, only Islamic countries which are less regressive (especially Turkey and - if they ever gain freedom - Kurdistan). And I am very well aware of Said. I don't think one can read anything about the Middle East and not be aware of the Lewis vs. Said debates. Needless to say, I think Said is a complete disgrace to Western academia and is a complete joke. And just for the record: I have visited the West Bank and will be living/ studying abroad in Jerusalem soon, where I will spend some time visiting Amman, Nazareth, and Ramallah. I do not mind visiting these Islamic countries, my only problem is with living there. As for languages, I am studying English, French, Arabic, and Hebrew. As a gay white American Zionist, I should not be expected to change my lifestyle to visit countries that the West funds with foreign aid. After all, these Muslims do not take off their headscarves or start eating pork when they move to France or the United States. If a particular country is so intolerant of someone for being gay or Jewish, for instance, that particular country should not seriously expect the respect of those people they are demonizing and literally killing. (And btw, if you think gay people cannot be recognized on sight like whites, Jews, or Arabs... have you met many gay men? We sure do stick out - almost as much as lesbians.)

Thanks for your thoughts, everyone. Victorydance - This is where my issue comes into play: should I become a Political Scientist or a Historian? I do not know *pulls hair out* OneLove21 - Do you know anything about the importance of studying abroad for admissions? Being a gay white American Zionist, visiting most of the Middle East has not been a safe option for me, so I will have studied abroad in Israel and France, but not any places like Jordan or Morocco. I just really do not want to be penalized for not traveling to places where the people want to kill me...

I have known a lot of people with your interests. While I completely understand the importance of studying Middle Eastern Security, I just think it is important to point out that there are other parts to the region as well. Every time I mention I study the Middle East, people respond "oh, so you study and hate terrorism and want to work for the government?" to which I reply "I do hate terrorism and even study it a bit, but that's not what I want to do with my life when I mention the Middle East." Just wondering - I notice you are starting Arabic but do not have it fully down. Do you think that will hurt you a lot/ at all in terms of admissions for graduate programs? By the time I apply to graduate programs, I will have English, French, Arabic, and Hebrew down and am just wondering if that will help in terms of PhD admissions (or Master's admissions) at all...

I have a friend who is studying the connection between Hezbollah and Iran at Tel Aviv University as part of his research for for PhD in Middle Eastern History. He says his work is really contemporary. So, did you ever decide where to go?