Jewish Studies (BA)

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Offered by the Jewish Studies program , College of Arts and Sciences .

Admission to the Program

Formal admission to the major requires a grade point average of 2.00 (on a 4.00 scale) and the approval of the director of the program.

University Requirements

120 credit hours with minimum 2.00 cumulative GPA (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 2 )
Completion of all requirements for a major (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 9 )

AU Core Requirements

Completion of AU Core foundation requirements (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 8.2-8.6 )
Completion of AU Core Habits of Mind requirements (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 8.7 )
Completion of AU Core integrative course requirements (Undergraduate Academic Regulation 8.8-8.11 )

For additional information, see AU Core Curriculum .

Major Requirements

39 credit hours with grades of C or better, including at least 18 credit hours at or above 300-level

Course Requirements

Required (9 credit hours)

Note: HEBR-116 and HEBR-117 are prerequisites for the language requirement but do not count toward the major. Students may substitute HEBR-217 with equivalent proficiency in Hebrew as approved by the Jewish Studies faculty.

Jewish Literature (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following, or other Jewish literature courses approved by program director:

Jewish Thought (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following if not taken to fulfill Jewish Literature, or other Jewish Thought course approved by program director:

Jewish Life (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following if not taken to fulfill Jewish Thought, or other contemporary Jewish Life course approved by program director:

Research Semester (3 credit hours)

Complete 3 credit hours from one of the following:

Electives (15 credit hours)

Complete 15 credit hours from the following if not taken to fulfill Jewish Thought, Jewish Life, or Research Semester:

Note: Students may take related coursework from other university departments with approval by the program director.

Capstone (3 credit hours)

Note: Students continuing thesis work via JWST-482 fulfill either research semester or elective.

JWST-481 Senior Thesis in Jewish Studies I (3)

Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees

American University offers students the opportunity to earn both undergraduate and graduate degrees through its combined bachelor’s/master’s programs. See Admission to a Combined Bachelor’s / Master’s Program and Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees for more information.