Thirty credits of graduate study are required for the degree: 12 credits in the core curriculum, 15 elective credits, and 3 credits of thesis writing. The core curriculum consists of four 3-credit courses required for all MA students: Approaches to the Study of the Middle East, which introduces students to methods and sources for studying the Middle East and its diasporas, and History of the Modern Middle East, which surveys the history of the region, and two additional Special Topics courses.  (More than two may be taken.)  Electives are taken, with faculty permission, in any Middle East-related course that is currently offered at the Graduate Center.