Middle Eastern languages at UCLA are taught in the department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. These courses are open to UCLA students and to non-UCLA students with the consent of the instructor, space permitting. For more information about special program enrollment, please see this web page. The California Education Code allows undergraduate students enrolled in any campus of the California community colleges, the California State University, or the University of California to enroll without formal admission in one course per academic term at a campus of either of the other systems on a space-available basis. Students not enrolled in one of those systems may enroll and pay through UCLA Extension, with the consent of the instructor.
During the academic year, the department teaches courses in Arabic, Armenian, Hebrew, Persian, and Turkish. Occasionally, minority and historic languages such Akkadian, Aramaic, Coptic, Old and Middle Egyptian, Middle Iranian, Ottoman Turkish, Phoenician, Sumerian, and Ugaritic are offered. MENA languages are also taught during UCLA Summer Sessions. Finally, the UCLA Center for World Languages offers summer workshops for instructors of heritage languages of Middle Eastern languages and occasionally includes courses for heritage speakers as well.
Language Schools
For intensive study of Arabic, Armenian, Hebrew, Kurdish, Persian, and Turkish, please see the list below of international and domestic programs, including online offerings. Please check directly with the programs for details. Students considering study abroad should check the US State Department's current Travel Advisories website.
ARABIC
For Arabic courses in the US and abroad, check the website of the American Association of Teachers of Arabic (AATA).
Al Akhawayn University, Arabic and North African Studies Program (ARANAS), Ifrane, Morocco
American Councils Arabic Overseas Flagship Program
American Institute for Maghrib Studies
American University in Cairo (AUC), Arabic Language Institute
American University of Beirut (AUB), Center for Arab and Middle Eastern Studies (CAMES)
Arab American Language Institute in Morocco (AALIF), Meknes
Arabic Language Institute in Fez (ALIF)
California State University, San Bernardino, Summer Intensive Arabic Program
California State University, San Diego, Language Acquisition Resource Center
Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA) at American University in Cairo and Qasid Arabic Institute in Amman
Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program
Fajr Center for the Arabic Language, Cairo
Heyadet Institute, Cairo
Indiana University, Intensive Summer Language Workshops
Middlebury College, Vermont
Middlebury at Mills College, Oakland, CA
Monterey Institute of International Studies, Monterey, CA
Qalam Center for Arabic Studies, Rabat
Qasid Institute for Classical and MS Arabic, Amman
Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center
University of Arizona, Arabic Flagship Program
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Summer Institute for Languages of the Muslim World https://linguistics.illinois.edu/languages/summer-institute-languages-muslim-world
University of Jordan Language Center
University of Maryland, Arabic Flagship Program
University of Oklahoma, Arabic Flagship Program
University of Texas at Austin, Arabic Summer Institute
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Arabic, Persian, and Turkish Language Immersion Institute
West Los Angeles College, Elementary Arabic
ARMENIAN
Arizona State University, Critical Languages Institute
HEBREW
Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Intensive Hebrew Language Courses
Rothberg International School, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Hebrew Language Summer Courses
Arizona State University, Critical Languages Institute
Middlebury College, Vermont
Tel Aviv University, Intensive Hebrew Course
University of Haifa, International School
KURDISH
DC Internationals MESALI, Summer Intensive Language Institute
Indiana University, Intensive Summer Language Workshops
Northeastern Illinois University, Summer Institute in Kurdish Language and Culture
University of Arizona, Center for Middle Eastern Studies and Critical Languages Program, in partnership with University of Texas-Austin Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Online Kurdish Kurmanji
Zahra Institute, Kurdish Studies
PERSIAN
Arizona State University, Critical Languages Institute
California State University, San Diego, Language Acquisition Resource Center
Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program
Indiana University, Intensive Summer Language Workshops
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Summer Institute for Languages of the Muslim World https://linguistics.illinois.edu/languages/summer-institute-languages-muslim-world
University of Maryland, Persian Flagship Program
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Arabic, Persian, and Turkish Language Immersion Institute
TURKISH
Arizona State University, Critical Languages Institute
Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, Turkish Language and Culture Program
Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program
Dilmer Turkish Language Teaching Center, Istanbul
Sabanci University, Istanbul, Modern Turkish Language and Culture
Tőmer Turkish Language Programs, (Ankara University), several locations
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Summer Institute for Languages of the Muslim World https://linguistics.illinois.edu/languages/summer-institute-languages-muslim-world
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Arabic, Persian, and Turkish Language Immersion Institute
ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE RESOURCES
NaTakallam, Immersive Language Practice
American Councils for International Education Study Abroad
Critical Language Scholarship (CLS)
Boren Scholarship
Gilman-McCain Scholarship
Gilman Scholarship Critical Need Language Award