[Online]: Small program gives way to more opportunity

Compared to most graduate programs, the Islamic studies
department is one of the smallest at UCLA. But members of the
department say they like it that way.

Both faculty and students enjoy the closeness between them. They
believe if the program grew too quickly, there wouldn’t be
enough funding to allow for the same student-faculty
relationship.

“I enjoy this program because it allows students to do
what they want. It’s always better if it’s smaller,
because I am very student-oriented, and the small program allows me
to help each student accomplish their goals,” said Diane
James, a counselor at the Center for Near Eastern Studies.

The department typically receives between 20 and 25 applications
each year, and this year there are eight students enrolled in the
program.

The Islamic studies graduate degree program is interdepartmental
and interdisciplinary, which gives students the flexibility of
choosing nearly any aspect of Islam as a focus for their
degree.

“Students come with all different kinds of interests. In
this department, they have the freedom to design their own course
of study within the framework of studying within three
fields,” James said.

Some subjects explored include Islamic architecture and Islamic
culture and art.

Munir Shaikh, a doctoral candidate in the Islamic studies
department, believes the program’s flexibility benefits
students.

“Training that Islamic studies students at UCLA receive is
fairly unique in the country. Students get a taste of different
kinds of study,” Shaikh said.

From 1999 to 2001, the Islamic Studies department went through
the process of revising its course requirements. Previous
requirements placed a strong emphasis on language components at the
masters level, and few applicants met the minimum requirements.

The new requirements were implemented at the masters level,
making the degree program accessible for more people that are
interested in studying aspects of Islam.

Shaikh received his masters degree from the Islamic studies
department in 2000, before the revisions were made to the
requirements. He said he chose to continue his study of the history
of Muslim society in medieval Spain for his doctoral degree at UCLA
because of the relationships he made with professors.

“This program trains people to study Islam from the point
of view of different academic principles spanning the social
sciences, the humanities and the arts. Students choose their own
focus, and that is a strength of the program,” said Michael
Morony, a professor of early Islamic history.

Because the program is so small, many undergraduate students are
unaware of the opportunities that the department presents to
graduate students, James said.

After Sami Hasan, a second-year international developmental
studies student, learned about the opportunities the program
presented, he said he became interested.

“Now that I know what the department offers, I think I
will look into it for my graduate work, and definitely reconsider
my ideas of the Islamic studies department,” Hasan said.