Engage with themes of enduring human significance with our Jewish Studies minor.
Why Minor in Jewish Studies?
A Jewish Studies minor helps you understand identity, thought and self-expression within larger historical and social contexts, and develops your ability to analyze human experience from different disciplinary perspectives, through the lens of Jewish experience and civilization.
Why Study Jewish Studies at CSUN?
Interdisciplinary Exploration
The minor is interdisciplinary and examines Jewish literature, art, religious thought, history, social attitudes, and behavior. Many courses in the program satisfy General Education requirements and/or may be used as electives in several majors.
Inclusive and Welcoming
Our courses attract students from almost every department, program and college of the university. As a result, you'll be prepared to live and work with ease in a multicultural world. All students are welcome and encouraged to attend any of our lectures, seminars or events.
Impact
As a Jewish Studies minor, you will develop a unique level of cultural competence through your study of global Jewish cultures and a keen understanding of how the past shapes the present. With this knowledge, you will be able to help others understand the past and respond to important contemporary issues that affect all of our daily lives, contributing to a more thoughtful and compassionate society.
What You'll Learn
As a Jewish Studies minor, you'll gain an appreciation and understanding of the significant events and cultural features of Jewish life every continent, except Antarctica.
The strong liberal arts background that Jewish Studies provides equips you to communicate clearly and sensitively, and to read not only for critical information but also between the lines to grasp what is left unsaid. With this training, you will graduate with the ability to think flexibly, pay attention to a wide variety of variables, and recognize and grapple with complexity and gray areas. These skills are useful in different contexts, allowing you to seize new opportunities as they arise, rather than locking you into a specific career path.
You'll choose courses from in culture and society, history, religion and thought, such as:
- Jewish Identity in the U.S.
- History of the Jewish People
- Great Books of Jewish Culture
- Hebrew Bible/Old Testament
- Israel’s History and Peoples
- Women in the Jewish Experience
- Applied Jewish Ethics
Nonprofit internships provide experience and connections
Our nonprofit internship course offers you marketable skills and career preparation for professions inside and outside the Jewish community. In this course, you can earn credit for a placement in a local Jewish nonprofit organization, paired with a classroom experience that emphasizes workplace skills informed by Jewish ethics.
Scholarships
The Jewish Studies Program offers three different scholarships -- the Jody Myers Memorial Scholarship for Jewish Studies majors, the Yona and Stanley Schloss Scholarship for Jewish Studies majors and minors, and the Jewish Studies Scholarship for students of all majors who take Jewish Studies courses.