University at Buffalo (UB)
The riches of Jewish Tradition to all and everyone.
MA in Jewish Thought Program Overview
The MA in Jewish Thought, a comprehensive, 30-credit program, provides advanced training in the intellectual and spiritual history of Judaism, with special emphasis on medieval, modern and contemporary thought. The only degree of its kind and scope in SUNY, our innovative program welcomes students in pursuit of doctoral degrees as well as students seeking a terminal degree of Master of Arts in Jewish Thought. You will explore both classical and modern texts, and examine authors and philosophers who have an impact on the field. These authors and texts will be read closely to discover original ideas, the conceptual and historical relations of these ideas and thinkers to one another, and their relation to the broader intellectual issues of their times and our times.
Certain themes will also be examined in the context of these thinkers and their broader contributions to Western intellectual tradition and history: conceptions of God, revelation, redemption, ethics, gender theory, politics, Zionism, election, aesthetics, literature, the mission of Jews and Judaism, the nature of “religion,” Reformation in Judaism, and, more recently, the significance of the Holocaust and the State of Israel for Judaism and the contemporary world.
Upon completion of the degree, an individual will possess the skills to combine and synthesize key competencies and demonstrate the ability to articulate and defend, in both oral and written forms, the principles, philosophy, and spiritual history of Judaism.
Contact arts-sciences@buffalo.edu for more information.
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Current UB Graduate Students
We nourish a welcoming enviroment in which students and professors closely engage in learning and research activities. The normal Graduate student to faculty ratio across UB is 6:1.
The Department of Jewish Thought faculty frequently serve as committee members in doctoral dissertations for the Departments of Art, Comparative Literature, English or Philosophy. If you are a current doctoral student interested in asking one of our faculty members to serve on your graduate committee, please contact them directly. We look forward to working with you!
Graduate Student Testimonial
"The program welcomes a diverse community of both Jewish and non-Jewish students. The professors are attentive to students’ merits and research interests. They have helped me a lot in exploring the broad space of interdisciplinary studies between literature, theology, and continental philosophy. More specifically, in applying modern research methods as well as critical and hermeneutical theories to ancient Jewish texts."
Provided by MA Student, Tian Zheng
Graduate Student Testimonial
"As an advisor, Dr. Sergey Dolgopolski is strict, responsible, and careful. I finished my thesis under his help; yet more than just finishing the thesis, I formed my own mode of thinking like a real scholar under his guidance"
Provided by MA Student, Mengxue Wu