The Jewish Studies Minor

     Why the Jewish Studies Minor is a good choice for any student:

The Jewish Studies program is committed to furthering the understanding of Jewish life, history,and identity in the past
and present and of the relationships between Jewish thought and practice to other cultures and religions. Jewish Studies
is an exciting interdisciplinary field of teaching and research ranging from the study of texts, such as the Bible, to cultural
and historical experiences of Jews as a people. The program encourages participation by all students at all levels of study.
Jewish Studies faculty members are prominent professors drawn from the humanities and the social sciences at UIC.
The Minor in Jewish Studies offers students the opportunity to design a program of study to fit their individual interests,
goals and knowledge. Whatever the chosen field or areas of inquiry may be,the goals of the Jewish Studies Minor are identical:

• the experience and cultural expression of Jews from Biblical times to the present
• Jewish culture as an intregral part of American history and contemporary American society
  
• anti-Semitism and the Holocaust

     Jewish Studies Minor courses will help you:

• develop critical thinking, writing and discussion skills.
• gain a reading and speaking knowledge of Jewish languages.
  
  
  

For the minor, a minimum of 18 semester hours in Jewish Studies, of which 9 hours must be at the 200 level or above.
In addition, 6 semester hours must be on Judaism as a religion, and 6 must concern Jewish culture and history.
Two courses must consider Jews or Judaism in a comparative context, although these courses may overlap with courses taken
to satisfy the religion and history/culture requirement (see list of comparative courses).Students are strongly urged to consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) when selecting courses, and must have a written statement from the DUS stating that the courses they plan to take will satisfy the requirements for the minor before beginning their final semester in the program. The study of Jewish languages is encourged but not required; one course in a Jewish language may, however, count toward the total number of courses required by the minor. Upon petition to the Director of Undergraduate Studies and the faculty committee, other courses can count toward the minor.