To be eligible for admission to the master’s program, you need to fulfil the following requirements:

1. You must hold a first university degree (e.g. a bachelor’s degree) comprising of at least 180 credit points (ECTS) and you

• EITHER have earned 60 ECTS or more of this first degree in courses that are relevant to interdisciplinary studies of the Middle East in fields such as Arabic Studies, Iranian Studies, Islamic Studies, Jewish Studies, Semitic Studies, or Turkish and Ottoman Studies,
• OR have acquired equivalent qualifications in addition to the first university degree (e.g. education other than a university program, professional experience, knowledge of relevant languages).

2. you must provide proof of proficiency (at least level B1 CEFR or equivalent) in one of the following languages: Arabic, Armenian, Hebrew, Kurdish, Ottoman, Persian, Syrian-Aramaic, or Turkish;

3. you must provide proof of excellent English language skills (at least level C1 CEFR) if you have not obtained your first university degree in a program where English is the language of instruction.

For more information, please see the admissions regulations. (Please note that the English version of these regulations is for information purposes. Only the German version is legally binding.)For an explanation of the admission process please visit the program website.

Students do not pay any tuition fees, the university only charges semester fees and contributions each semester.

Interdisciplinary Studies of the Middle East (ISME) is a two-year, tuition-free, full-time master’s program taught in English on the campus in Berlin.

Freie Universität's expertise in cultural studies of the Middle East – represented by Arabic Studies, Iranian Studies, Islamic Studies, Jewish Studies, Kurdish Studies, Ottoman Studies, Semitic Studies, and Turcology – comes together for this master's program to offer students the possibility to approach this fascinating and complex region from multi-faceted and interregional perspectives taking into account the diversity of languages, literatures, societies, religions, and cultures of this region.

As a consecutive program, it builds on knowledge about the Middle East and skills from the field of humanities, cultural studies, and philologies that have been acquired in the course of a bachelor program or through professional qualification. 

Possible fields of studies include: Arabic literature, cultural and intellectual history of the Arabic-speaking world, Qur’an–Tafsir–Hadith, Old and Middle Iranian philology, Iranian religions, Iranian history, Iranian literatures and linguistics, Islamic history, Islam in Europe, Judaism and Islam, Jewish history of knowledge, comparative Semitics, Eastern Christianity, Arabic linguistics and dialectology, Aramaic linguistics and dialectology, Turkic literatures and linguistics, etc.

The program offers a uniquely rich academic environment, provides you with solid methodological foundation, and allows you to tailor your course of studies to the expertise you wish to acquire.

Go beyond disciplinary borders

The program has a genuine area studies profile: A unique breadth of subjects related to the Middle East comes together under the roof of the Department of History and Cultural Studies. As a student in this program, you gain access to an extensive academic and professional network, connect with fellow students from related master's programs, and network with internationally acclaimed scholars from the six participating disciplines. Furthermore, the program cultivates cooperation across departments and universities in Berlin and beyond, with the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO) or the Selma Stern Center for Jewish Studies Berlin-Brandenburg (ZJS), to name just two.

Choose to unlock your potential

The program not only provides you with a solid methodological basis for interdisciplinary work, it distinguishes itself through its flexibility and a broad range of electives in all areas of study. This allows you to tailor your curriculum to your personal interests and career aspirations within an interdisciplinary context.

Gain professional and research experience

The program allows you to learn about and participate in ongoing research on the Middle East or to gain professional experience through an internship either in Berlin or abroad. This is your opportunity to expand your skills in a wide field of activities ranging from cultural institutions to publishing houses and NGOs.

Become part of an international network

In the past ten years the Freie Universität has expanded its excellent international network of teaching and research, e.g., through its liaison office in Cairo and by establishing strategic partnerships such as the one with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. You are encouraged to study at a university in the Middle East to immerse yourself in your chosen languages and cultures.

Explore Berlin, academic and otherwise

Berlin as a location offers a unique network of scholarly and cultural institutions related to the Middle East, such as the Museum of Islamic Art, the Jewish Museum, the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin Preußischer Kulturbesitz with its world-famous manuscript collection, the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, the Forum Transregionale Sudien, the Stiftung Neue Synagoge – Centrum Judaicum, and specialized libraries. And beyond that, well, there is always non-academic Berlin.

The Master's program is divided into three areas, each composed of several modules which, in turn, comprise two courses – a fourth area being reserved for your Master’s thesis:

As a graduate of our master's program, you are qualified to realize career aspirations that require specialist language and intercultural knowledge of the Middle East. 

With its interdisciplinary focus, the program prepares you for a wide range of scholarly activities. It qualifies you to pursue a doctorate, both in the individual disciplines and in areas where they intersect. Freie Universität Berlin is home to internationally oriented, renowned graduate schools such as the Berlin Graduate School of Muslim Cultures and Societies and the Friedrich Schlegel Graduate School of Literary Studies as well as the International Max Planck Research School "Knowledge and Its Resources: Historical Reciprocities" and the Berlin Graduate School of Ancient Studies (BerGSAS). Furthermore, the Dahlem Research School is the center for junior researchers at Freie Universität and provides continuous, systematic and sustainability-oriented support to early career researchers. It develops strategies and measures to assure and improve the quality of graduate education and, on the other hand, offers an extensive qualification program.

Successful completion of the master’s program also prepares you for employment in the broad field of science and research: in higher education; in university and non-university research institutions; in documentation; in media outlets, journalism, archives, and museums; in international organizations, non-governmental organizations; in working with migrants; in tourism; in adult and continuing education; and in teaching intercultural issues in academic and non-academic settings. 

In addition, the skills and abilities acquired in the master’s program open up career paths to professions that involve knowledge transfer, management, as well as representing the social, political, and cultural interests of others, especially for businesses or organizations operating internationally or in certain regions of the world. The international character of the master’s program also increases your chances on the global job market.