An associate history professor is hoping UCF will allow students to broaden their cultural horizons and adopt a new major.
Hakan Ozoglu, a professor of Islamic and Middle Eastern history, wants to push for a new major at UCF: Middle East studies.
In his fourth year at UCF, Ozoglu has always taught full 45-person classes for students interested in a Middle Eastern minor.
However, as the enrollment continues to grow, Ozoglu says there is a wide demand from undergraduate students from all interdisciplinary backgrounds to enroll in a major concerning Middle Eastern studies.
“This is a great university with a very active global perspective program on international education,” Ozoglu said. “But the classes are so full and the demand for the minor is so high that establishing this new major can only enhance student understanding on a topic that is crucial in the 21st century and already popular at UCF.”
Ozoglu said that having a major devoted to the Middle East would be beneficial for undergraduate students applying to graduate schools, because by having an open understanding on such a global issue that affects people living both in the U.S. and around the world, students will be able to defend and take stands on arguments involving politics, the economy and even religion.
Besides providing a strong core for applying to graduate programs, Ozoglu said, a major in Middle East studies would inform undergraduate students about the importance of the Middle East for the future of the U.S.
“The Middle East is one of the places where the United States spends a great amount of investment because of the Iraq War,” he said. “Now we are at a time when a lot of veteran soldiers are coming back [from Iraq], and I’ve had students come to me and ask me about the circumstances of the war and what will happen to the soldiers and the war draining our economy.”
According to Ozoglu, the UCF administration is supportive for an international curriculum, but the biggest obstacle is the budget crisis, the most influential factor when establishing a new major at the university.
Because the major would fall under interdisciplinary studies, political science, philosophy, history and modern language students - among the many belonging to the College of Humanities - could be highly influenced by the approval of the major were it approved.
“The best and most important way for this major to get approved is by students speaking up their minds and show some interest,” Ozoglu said. “And upon the student reaction, the university administration will see the need to allocate the necessary funds to move forward with this idea.”
Other state universities, such as the University of Florida and Florida State University, have already established a major in Middle Eastern studies, especially at the graduate level.
But that isn’t the biggest concern for Ozoglu, because he would rather focus on providing an array of different courses that could be offered more specifically for undergraduate students.
Establishing the major at UCF would mean more courses for the humanities.
Ozoglu said that the biggest problem for students is their ignorance on topics in the area.
“In order to solve a problem, you need to understand it,” Ozoglu said. “We have most of the resources necessary for creating this change, but all we need is the organization and the will to make it happen.”
Obtaining a degree in Middle Eastern studies is ideal for students considering careers in diplomacy, journalism, consulting, business, foreign service, translation and academia.
Ozoglu received his doctorate in history from Ohio State University in 1997. Ozoglu also taught at the University of Chicago and he is the author of a book titled Kurdish Notables and the Ottoman State.
