Program type:

Certification
Format:

On Campus
Est. time to complete:

2-3 semesters
Credit Hours:

12
Explore the history and culture of Israel and the global Jewish community through an interdisciplinary lens at UNT.
The UNT Jewish Studies Program is the only Jewish Studies program at a public university in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and one of only 10 such programs in the U.S. We educate students, faculty, and the DFW community about the religion, cultures, and historical experiences of the Jewish people.

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Why Earn a Jewish Studies Certificate?

The Jewish Studies certificate is an undergraduate academic certificate that enables students and members of the community the flexibility to pursue Jewish Studies without commitment to the full minor.

The required course work in Jewish Studies promotes interdisciplinary work that will allow students to pursue topics within Jewish Studies that are most relevant to their career paths and to gain knowledge of the religion, cultures and historical experiences of the Jewish people. The certificate also aims to promote Jewish Studies in the DFW community.

Jewish Studies Certificate Highlights

The UNT Jewish Studies Program offers multiple scholarships from seven funds each academic year.
Jewish Studies is open to all majors.
Students can join Jewish organizations at UNT to connect with other members of the community.
The UNT Jewish Studies Program has a library of over 2,600 books and 350 films. Our library is located in the Jewish Studies Office Suite in GAB 460. The collection includes the Rene and Jimmy Wisch Library and the Goldberg-Hirsch Library.
We also offer scholarships for studying abroad in Israel. Study abroad arrangements can be made through the department or external programs.

Jewish Studies Certificate Courses You Could Take

The Jewish Graphic Novel (3 hrs)
In this course, we will look at the major figures and tets in the history of 20th-century Jewish-American comics/graphic narratives (Lee/Kirby, Siegel/Shuster, Bob Kane, Kurtzman/Elder, Will Eisner, Art Spiegelman, among others), and also the path breaking and formally dissonant work of Israeli writers and artists. Special attention will be paid to the representations of the Israel/Palestine conflict, the main topic of all Israeli comics.
Introduction to Judaism (3 hrs)
Examines the beliefs, practices, laws, and movements of Judaism from Biblical times to the present, emphasizing the impact of modernity on the central texts and tradition.
Jews Under Greek and Roman Rule (3 hrs)
History of the Jewish people from Alexander the Great to the spread of Islam; covers the Maccabean revolt, the Herodian dynasty, life in the diaspora, sects of Judaism, the ministries of Jesus and Paul, the Jewish revolts, early Rabbinic Judaism, and the development of Christian anti-Semitism. Readings include the Hebrew Bible, intertestamental literature, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the New Testament, Flavius Josephus and other historians and Talmudic excerpts, as well as documentary sources.
War Crimes, Genocide, and Justice Description (3 hrs)
This course examines first war crimes and the development of the laws of war from Antiquity through the 19th century.
Israel Politics (3 hrs)
This course investigates the government and politics of modern Israel.
Representations of Jews in European Literature (3 hrs)
This course is designed to introduce students to the ways in which the foibles and fables, wit and wisdom of life in the cities and shetls (small villages) of Eastern Europe are expressed through the works of nineteenth and twentieth-century Jewish authors. As well as written works, Jewish humor and folklore will be studied. Films which illustrate their way of life will be shown. Most, if not all, of these writings were written in the Yiddish language and Translated to English. Historical background on the language and the authors will also be provided.

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