You can expect to achieve a high level of social scientific understanding of the Middle East. No language study is required, although you are free to study Persian, Kurdish or Arabic. In the case of Arabic, students with no prior knowledge may take elementary courses, and students with some knowledge of the language will be assessed to find their level. It may not be possible to place students with a very advanced knowledge of the language on an Arabic course. Compulsory and optional modules cover Middle Eastern ethnography, economy and economic development, gender and identity, politics, culture and arts, and religion and society.