Welcome to Jewish Studies at Tulane University.

Jewish Studies represents an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the Jews, their history, religion, language, thought, culture, literature, and music.

About Jewish Studies

The Tulane program uses methods of history to gain accurate insights into the Jews' past; sociological analysis to find the larger patterns of Jewish behavior and social interaction; and the study of philosophy to examine the comprehensive understandings of humanity and nature proposed by Jewish thinkers.

In addition, language, literature and musicology are studied in order to explore the diverse cultural creations of the Jews and the method of social anthropology allows students to characterize Jewish religion and to define its impact upon the lives of its past and present adherents. Through these several approaches, Jewish Studies attempts to comprehend the Jewish experience in antiquity, the middle ages, and the present, and to examine the identities and ways of life that Jews have developed in order to make sense of the worlds in which they have lived.

The Aim of Jewish Studies

Tulane's Jewish Studies Program gives students a thorough understanding of the social, cultural and intellectual processes through which people lend meaning and importance to their lives. Its underlying premise is that the Jewish experience throughout history is an important illustration of the experience of all of humanity.

Through intellectual observation and study of the Jews, we gain insight into the human condition -- into the problems that face all peoples and social groups. We attempt to understand the choices they make in confronting and overcoming these human dilemmas. This means that the study of Jews and Judaism is not parochial nor doctrinaire. It is an attempt, through the study of one group, to understand the inner dynamics of all human life.

After Tulane

The ability to function responsibly and effectively in social and professional settings depends upon a broad intellectual background and a keen awareness of the potentials of one's self and of others. Since Jewish Studies makes use of a wide range of scholarly approaches in order to explore the nature of the human condition, it provides an effective background for individuals interested in diverse career options -- the social sciences, business law, medicine and government. In fact, many students choose Jewish Studies as a double major along with such fields as pre-law, pre-med, areas of the sciences as well as other programs within the humanities.

At the same time, a major in Jewish studies prepares the student for a variety of careers within the Jewish community -- in education, social work or agency administration, for example. Jewish Studies also provides a solid background for those who wish to continue in areas of Jewish learning, either within graduate programs in Judaism or religion, or in rabbinical seminaries.