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Middle Eastern Studies

Entry requirements


A level

A,B,B

Required subjects: A Levels: no specific A Level subjects required. GCSEs: English at C or 4.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

34-36

36 points with 665 at HL - 34 points with 655 at HL. Required subjects: HL: no specific subjects required. SL: English at 5.

Scottish Higher

A,A,A,B

AAAB by end of S5 or AAAA by end of S6. BBB must be achieved in one year of S4-S6. Required subjects: Highers: no specific Higher subjects required. National 5s: English at C.

UCAS Tariff

126-128

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

4years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Modern middle eastern studies

Located at the crossroads between Europe, Africa and Asia, the Middle East has played a pivotal role on the world stage from ancient times.

The University of Edinburgh is recognised in the UK and internationally as a leading institution for the study of the Middle East, Middle Eastern languages and the Islamic world.

Taking an Area Studies approach to the region, our four-year Master of Arts (MA) programme is highly flexible. It is designed to develop your knowledge and understanding of Middle Eastern:

* history

* literatures

* cultures

* politics

You will develop the skills to analyse, critique and compare key issues and concepts, both in group discussion and in written work.

To help you access and interpret source material, you will take Year 1 classes in at least one of the three main languages of the Middle East:

* Arabic

* Persian

* Turkish

You can continue to take your language(s) into Year 2, or opt to take courses from other areas.

As you progress through the programme, you will develop your research skills to the level of completing a dissertation in your final year.

You will graduate with a combination of specialist knowledge and the Intercultural Competence valued by employers around the globe.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£26,500
per year
International
£26,500
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£1,820
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Central area campus

Department:

School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

65%
Modern middle eastern studies

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

African and modern middle eastern studies

Teaching and learning

86%
Staff make the subject interesting
91%
Staff are good at explaining things
68%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
57%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

81%
Library resources
95%
IT resources
73%
Course specific equipment and facilities
59%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

80%
UK students
20%
International students
33%
Male students
67%
Female students
98%
2:1 or above
5%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

African and modern middle eastern studies

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£22,000
high
Average annual salary
100%
high
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

14%
Teaching and educational professionals
10%
Business, research and administrative professionals
10%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

Mainly covering the study of Turkish or Arabic, this isn't a very common degree choice for UK students - just 150 students graduated in this area in 2013 - so bear that in mind when drawing conclusions from any employment and salary stats. If you are interested in studying this subject, then it's a good idea go on open days and talk to tutors about what you might expect from the course and what previous graduates went on to do.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

African and modern middle eastern studies

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£21k

£21k

£29k

£29k

£33k

£33k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here