Hebrew and Aramaic Studies Leiden University

Overview

The master's in Hebrew and Aramaic Studies is delivered by internationally-acclaimed experts at Leiden University. You will benefit from a broad range of relevant adjacent disciplines for the study of ancient languages and civilisations – many of them rarely taught elsewhere – as well as from the famous library resources. Leiden University’s Chair of Hebrew and Aramaic actively contributes to scholarship in the field, and classes regularly reflect ongoing research.

Tailor the programme to your interests

The programme can be tailored towards your specific needs and is known for its close attention to individual interests. Languages and primary sources constitute the backbone; they equip you with a lasting set of tools. You may focus on the literature and culture of Ancient Israel against the backdrop of the world of the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible/Ancient Judaism, from its emergence in around 1200 B.C.E. until its disappearance as a political entity in 135 C.E.

Within the limits of the programme, you may also expand your scope by putting a stronger focus on cognate languages: a great variety of pre-modern forms of Aramaic, Phoenician, Ugaritic, and other small corpus idioms, and their contribution to the region's wider cultural history. Electives from other fields offer additional possibilities for specialisation (e.g., Linguistics, Ancient History, etc.).

What you will learn

Your future employers will not only be interested in your knowledge of Classics and Ancient Civilisations, but also in the skills that you have developed during your studies. Therefore, it is important that you are aware of the skills that you are training in your MA programme.
In the MA programme you learn how to analyse a problem, how to formulate a research question, how to select and assess your sources, how to assess secondary literature, how to give a clear and well-argued oral presentation either for specialists or for a wider audience, and how to write a clear and well-argued paper. You will be training the following transferrable skills:

• critical thinking (formulating questions, checking assumptions, assessing sources and scholarship)
• analytical skills (selecting, ordering, sorting out, and solving a problem)
• oral presentation skills (speaking, listening, discussing, receiving feedback)
• writing skills (reporting, summarizing, presenting an argument, with structure and style)
• independence (self-discipline, initiative, motivation)
• project management (planning, demarcation of a topic, discipline, meeting deadlines)
• flexibility (adapting to changes)
• creativity (curiosity, developing new ideas and innovative topics)
• academic integrity (acting with honesty, fairness, and responsibility)
• collaboration (working together with other students on a joint project)

Career prospects

As a graduate of an MA in Classics and Ancient Civilizations at Leiden University you are qualified to work as a junior academic researcher in an academic environment or carry out further research work on a PhD programme. It is also possible to find employment within the fields of publishing or teaching, at policy-making departments of governmental bodies, within the education sector, or within cultural tourism.

Leiden University Master's graduates are sought-after employees at (inter)national organisations. Our graduates are known for their combination of robust academic training, in-depth and relevant knowledge, and critical, multidisciplinary approach to problem-solving. Our graduates end up working in a diverse range of positions, examples include:

• PhD candidate at a Dutch or international University
• Secondary school teacher
• Curator at a museum
• Policy officer at a ministry
• Communications officer
• Project leader

Accreditation

Accredited by NVAO, the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders.