The Bud Shorstein Center for Jewish Studies fosters the academic study of Jewish cultures, languages, history, society, and religion for all students at the University of Florida. Students are expected to develop as critical thinkers, aware of the diversity and complexity of the field. The center promotes a broad and interdisciplinary approach including the arts, social sciences, and textuality. The curriculum emphasizes historical transformations and comparative frameworks among various Jewish communities and with other groups and religions. Courses draw upon a variety of theoretical approaches to the study of class, ethnicity, gender, race, and sexuality with methodologies that are both textual and performance oriented.

COURSEWORK FOR THE MAJOR

The major requires a minimum of 30 credits in Jewish studies and related courses with minimum grades of C. A minimum of 15 credits for the major must be taken at the University of Florida. 

Required Coursework

• REL 2600
• HBR 3410 and HBR 3411
• 21 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level (at least nine credits to include courses taught in Hebrew)
• Students must work with the center’s undergraduate advisor to design a curriculum that will give a sampling of the Jewish experience across time and across disciplines. Majors must complete a comprehensive research project in an upper-division course as a capstone experience in their final year.

Approved courses in other departments may be counted toward the major provided they include substantial coverage of material relevant to Jewish studies. Students may earn limited class credit in independent study or in honors or other undergraduate research projects. Normally, no more than 12 credits of the minimum may be transfer credit. However, all transfer credits in JST-related courses from UF-approved programs abroad will apply toward the major.

Honors

Honors in Jewish studies can be earned by students who have at least a 3.5 GPA in their upper-division work and a 3.5 GPA in the major. Students who seek honors are required to complete an honors project, with a grade of A or B, under the guidance of a Jewish studies faculty member. In their senior year, honors students should register for JST 4970, a 2-3 credit course.

Internship in Jewish Communal Services

Students can gain practical experience as an undergraduate through the internship option of JST 4940. The goal of this program is both to expose the student to the opportunities for service in the world of organized Jewry and to provide a means for students to understand how Jewish values are propagated in organized settings. Students earn credit for volunteer work and training in applied settings such as Jewish family and social services agencies, community centers, federations, educational institutions, museums, newspapers, denominational organizations, public affairs groups, synagogues, Hillel or equivalent institutions. To qualify for JST credit, the organization must have an explicit public tie to Judaism and be approved for internship credit by the Bud Shorstein Center for Jewish Studies.

Overseas Study

The Bud Shorstein Center for Jewish Studies provides counsel regarding study abroad at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University, Haifa University, and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. The overseas programs at these Israeli universities offer summer, one semester and full-year courses of study. Information is available in 1120 Turlington Hall and at the UF International Center, 170 Hub.

Scholarships for study abroad are available for qualified students. 

Critical Tracking records each student’s progress in courses that are required for progress toward each major. Please note the critical-tracking requirements below on a per-semester basis.

For degree requirements outside of the major, refer to CLAS Degree Requirements: Structure of a CLAS Degree.

Equivalent critical-tracking courses as determined by the State of Florida Common Course Prerequisites may be used for transfer students.

Semester 1

• Complete HBR 3410
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 2

• Complete HBR 3411
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 3

• Complete REL 2600
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 4

• Complete one Jewish studies or HBR course above the 3000 level with a 2.5 critical-tracking GPA
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 5

• Complete one Jewish Studies or HBR course above the 3000 level Hebrew with a 2.5 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 6

• Complete one Jewish Studies or HBR course above 3000 level with a 2.5 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 7

• Complete one Jewish Studies or HBR course above 3000 level
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 8

• Complete Jewish Studies major requirements for Hebrew Language Concentration
• 2.0 UF GPA required

Students are expected to complete the Writing Requirement while in the process of taking the courses below. Students are also expected to complete the General Education International (GE-N) and Diversity (GE-D) requirements concurrently with another General Education requirement (typically, GE-C, H, or S).

To remain on track, students must complete the appropriate critical-tracking courses, which appear in bold. These courses must be completed by the terms as listed above in the Critical Tracking criteria.

This semester plan represents an example progression through the major. Actual courses and course order may be different depending on the student's academic record and scheduling availability of courses. Prerequisites still apply.

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One General Education option taken this term must be a Quest 2 course.

This major familiarizes students with the aspects of Jewish history, religion, languages, and cultures. Emphasis is placed on basic language acquisition, analysis, and critical evaluation of texts and contexts, integration of cultural data with disciplinary concerns outside of Jewish studies and comparative frameworks among different Jewish groups and with co-territorial non-Jews.

BEFORE GRADUATING STUDENTS MUST

• Satisfactory evaluation of paper written for the CJS capstone course, graded according to department rubric.
• Complete requirements for the baccalaureate degree, as determined by faculty.

STUDENTS IN THE MAJOR WILL LEARN TO

Student Learning Outcomes | SLOs

Content

1. Demonstrate knowledge of and competence in the Jewish experience, including minority and diasporic communities within a comparative framework.
2. Demonstrate knowledge of transformations of Jewish communities over time and space.

Critical Thinking

1. Understand the significance of language in assessing Jewish culture(s).
2. Evaluate and apply effectively the significance, quality, and veracity of information (both primary and secondary) in the literature.

Communication

1. Articulate research results clearly and effectively in an accepted style of presentation.

Curriculum Map

I = Introduced; R = Reinforced; A = Assessed

ASSESSMENT TYPES

• Direct assessment of essays and final tests (by track: Holocaust studies, Israel studies, general studies)