Murklins

Does anyone have any insight on NYU's near eastern studies MA or Chicago's middle east studies MA? I was accepted into both programs and am having a hard time choosing between them. I'm really interested in modern Arabic literature as well as Arabic dialect studies and at this time I'm not thinking about pursuing a career in academia.

Omaha is a great city. There is always a ton of stuff going on around here. I can't give recommendations on specific rental agencies or apartments, but I will say that the area around UNO is quite nice actually, not sketchy. There are a lot of shops and restaurants nearby and downtown is pretty close. If you have a specific location in mind, I can give you more details about it. As much as I love this city, Omaha's public transportation kind of sucks. If you don't have a car, you will have to use the buses to get everywhere. It's not impossible, it will just be kind of inconvenient. As long as you live close(ish) to the university, and not in some far-out suburb, you should be fine. You can check out this site www.ometro.com to get an idea about what kind of bus routes are available. I'm from Omaha, so if you have more questions let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.

I've been accepted to CMES as well! I only applied to MA programs so I don't have personal experience with it, but I've heard of people being offered an MA in lieu of a PhD quite a bit.

Hey! So I'm from Omaha, not Lincoln, and thus will probably be of little help to you. A quick glance at housing on Craigslist for the Lincoln area shows several houses/duplexes available for rent within that $600-$700 price range, so it definitely seems doable. http://lincoln.craigslist.org/apa/

Do you know if Austin has interviews for MA candidates as well?

I wish I could tell you--I'm in the same boat! So far, I'm recycling bits and pieces of my SOP, but I'm mainly trying to focus on my experience with the language and how I will use it in the future. There's actually not *too* much overlap for me. Which language are you applying for?

If I were you, I would contact the program and explain everything. Then, ask them what they prefer. I'm guessing that they will ask for the language reference, even if he isn't a professor.

I used Princeton Review in September and really liked it. I think they had four paper tests in the book and then 2 or 3 more practice tests online. I went through every section about 6 weeks before I took the test and highlighted everything I didn't know or was unsure about. Since quant was my weak point, I spent a good chunk of the time brushing up on all the math concepts. I did all the math practice problems and then I went back and reviewed (multiple times) all the ones I'd gotten wrong. I did the same thing with all the practice tests. It was a lot of effort, but it really paid off. I think I improved my math score by at least 10 points.

Anyone else here interested in the modern Middle East?

MajorityMinority--that pdf was really helpful to me. Thanks for posting!!

That's fantastic, congrats!!

I just got the word that I'm going to Morocco! Did any of you other alternates get any good news?

Hey muffinintherough, I'm an alternate for intermediate arabic. I got that same email last week, but I haven't heard anything since. I don't know if they've selected alternates for any of the arabic sites yet, but some of the other langauges (like Russian) have had alternates chosen. I feel you on the waiting. It's been almost three months now. I was ready to give up until we got that placement test email from Andrea. EDIT: So I found this response on the CLS facebook page, after someone asked about Arabic alternates: "While we hope to make an announcement to alternates soon, we may notify students as late as early June if slots become available. We will keep you posted!"

Actually, I heard (on ExchangesConnect) that at least one of the Russian alternates is now going to be joining the program this summer. So it seems to be on a case-by-case basis. It's exciting that the Arabic placements have finally been announced, thanks for letting us know. I imagine it'll still be a while before Arabic alternates can expect to hear anything though. Does anyone know when the Arabic participants have to accept/decline by?

I received this email from CLS: We are writing with an update regarding your status as a CLS Program alternate for the Arabic institutes this summer. The CLS Program will not be holding institutes in Egypt this summer. As the situation in the Middle East and North Africa continues to remain fluid and unpredictable, we are working to identify options for the CLS Arabic institutes. The U.S. Department of State continues to monitor the events closely, and is working with its U.S. Embassies overseas to determine which countries will host CLS Arabic students this summer. Because we do not have final site placements for the CLS Arabic institutes, we have had to extend the deadline to March 31st for Arabic finalists to accept or decline the CLS Program scholarship. Therefore, we will not be able to begin working to identify alternates to fill any scholarship positions that might be declined until early April at the earliest. We will let you know if we have any further information over the next few weeks, and thank you for your patience as we move forward at this historic moment of monumental change in the region. More waiting.