The Program in Jewish Studies offers an undergraduate major (BA in Jewish Studies) and minor, Departmental Honors (both by research paper and by service learning), and courses in Jewish Studies, Hebrew, and Yiddish; we also co-sponsor courses in many other units, especially Religious Studies and History, Global and International Studies, and Political Science. Among our several focus areas are Jewish history and culture, Judaism, Holocaust studies, Israel Studies, Jewish languages and narratives, and applied service in Jewish organizations.

Students who choose to complete the BA in Jewish Studies often find employment working in Jewish education, non-profit organizations, outreach, and other areas where knowledge of Jewish languages, history, and culture is an asset. The Jewish Studies BA is easy to combine with other majors and/or minors within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Jewish culture and religion have flourished in a rich variety of forms and in remarkably disparate places on the globe for thousands of years. Jewish contributions have deeply affected the art, languages and literature, law, philosophy, and political thought, and the sciences of all nations. The global impact of Jewish culture thus warrants its study as an important component of the liberal arts curriculum at KU. The Jewish Studies Program at KU is the only such program in the state of Kansas. Its mission, therefore, is to celebrate the Jewish experience and promote the understanding of its cultural importance with courses and academic programs that focus on the history, diversity, culture, languages, thought, and practices of the Jewish people and their religion.