Master of arts in Middle Eastern studies
USEK - Holy Spirit University of Kaslik
Key Information
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Campus location
Jounieh, Lebanon
Languages
English
Study format
Blended
Duration
2 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
USD 309 / per credit *
Application deadline
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Earliest start date
Oct 2024
* * 36 Credits
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Introduction
USEK School of Law and Political Sciences was inaugurated on November 10th, 1988, symbolically on the 40th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. From its beginnings, the School of Law and Political Sciences has always offered its students an exceptional education that consolidates the strength of tradition with the dynamism of the modern world.
The School of Law and Political Sciences is indeed the heir of a long history. The Lebanese Maronite Order, since its foundation, provided its monks with a solid education in canonical law and has progressively extended its teaching to all legal disciplines for its monks, and the Lebanese public. This diversification, based on the educational needs of Lebanese society, has allowed the School of Law and Political Sciences to build on past experiences while opening up to modernity.
Initially based in Byblos, the School of Law and Political Sciences relocated to the central campus of Kaslik in the fall of 1999, to accommodate the rise of the number of its students and to allow them to integrate with other University students and experience campus life to the full. The School also has a Regional university center (RUC) in Zahle. Since 2016, it hosts the Higher Institute of political and administrative sciences, for students who wish to prepare themselves for management careers in government, public service, governmental agencies, and nonprofit organizations.
The School of Law and Political Sciences proposes a full offering of legal education that includes, other than a Bachelor in Law, many Master’s degrees as well as a doctoral degree. Its programs are offered in both French and English. Its school members include highly knowledgeable law professors as well as renowned professionals such as prominent judges, lawyers, and civil servants practicing in several administrations.
However, the School of Law and Political Sciences does not only provide a learning experience but aims at developing students' personal qualities through its many extra-curricular activities such as mock trials, international pleading competitions, vis moot competitions in international arbitration, and clinical training. Most importantly, these experiences are designed to provide students with knowledge and skills to prepare them for the job market, locally and internationally.
It is an era of global legal practice and USEK School of Law and Political Sciences is committed to preparing its students for it by offering several opportunities for transnational experiences, by actively recruiting international scholars (from France, Italy, USA, Canada), by developing its students’ options for study abroad within the Erasmus Plus program (mostly in Greece, France, Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, USA), and by building partnerships with reputable foreign universities, such as the Robert McKinney School of Law of Indiana-Purdue University, for the delivery of an LL.M. in International and Comparative Law, and more recently, with the Syracuse University School of Law in New York.
In addition, the School of Law and Political Sciences has the advantage of the offering, through programs implemented in Lebanon, double Master degrees, from France and Lebanon, such as the Master 2 in International contracts offered in conjunction with the University of Montpellier I where students are awarded a Master 2 degree from USEK and a Master 2 degree from the University of Montpellier I.
Affiliated to the School of Law and Political Science, the Higher Institute of Political and Administrative Sciences was created in February 2006 (decree no 16410) to train future officials in public administration and civil society who are mindful of community spirit and ethics. The Institute contains three multidisciplinary educational fields, those of political sciences, international relations, and public administration.
Mission
The Higher Institute of Political and Administrative Sciences aims to train future officials in public administration and civil society, who are mindful of community spirit and ethics. The Institute contains three multidisciplinary educational fields, those of political sciences, international relations, and public administration. These aim to:
- Provide students with specialized education in political sciences, thus giving them access to professional life.
- Develop the students’ analytical and synthesis spirit, thus enabling them to understand national and international issues.
- Prepare students to follow a specialized higher education curriculum.
Curriculum
Common Core
- DIS560 Diplomatic Management of Energy Security in the Middle East
- DIS535 Foreign Policy Analysis
- POL505 Methodology of Writing and Research in Political Science
- RIN548 Multilateral Diplomacy in International and Regional Organizations
- MES600 Regional Dynamics and Current Issues in the Middle East
Specialization
- MES610 Comparative Study of Political Systems in the Middle East
- MES615 Contemporary History of the Middle East
- MES625 Economic and Development Issues in the Middle East
- MES620 Political Thought and Ideologies in the Middle East
- MES605 The Middle East and Europe: Issues and Challenges in Trans-Mediterranean Relations
Capstone
- POL580A Dissertation
Program Outcome
Program Educational Objectives
- Graduates will formulate original, critical responses to the arguments/theses advanced by the instructor during the lectures, their fellow students’ presentations, and the assigned readings.
- Graduates will structure these responses in their own original research papers with proper argumentation.
- Graduates will evaluate different arguments and independently assess their merits and shortcomings.
- Graduates will enhance both their oral and written skills and conduct autonomous research drawing from a plethora of sources.
Program Outcomes
- Students will understand the main determinants of regional powers’ and great powers’ foreign policies toward the Middle East.
- Students will understand the historical roots of controversial issues and ongoing debates, including the Arab-Israeli conflict and power competition.
- Students will assess the political economy of Arab states and the impact of rentiers on their sociopolitical structure.
- Students will understand new dynamics at play in the post-Arab revolutions in the Middle East, including the role of NGOs, civil society, and the media, the rise of transnational non-state actors like Daech and the Kurds, and the return of the “deep state”.