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Doctor of Philosophy in Judaic, Hebraic, and Cognate Studies

Develop crucial skills for a life of scholarship and teaching.

We offer Ph.D.s in History of Biblical Interpretation, Jewish and Christian Studies in the Greco-Roman Period, Rabbinic Literature, Jewish Thought, as well as a joint program in Modern Jewish History and Culture (including the American Jewish Experience) with the Department of History at the University of Cincinnati.

Financial Awards: Full-time Ph.D. students are supported for up to three years of coursework and a year of preparation for comprehensive exams. In addition to full tuition, students receive an annual living stipend of $10,000 renewable for up to four years. The competitive Pines Prize Fellowship offers an annual living stipend of $20,000 renewable for up to four years.

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History of Biblical Interpretation

Explore the history of the Hebrew Bible’s reception as displayed in interpretive and supplemental literary, philosophical, and historiographic works.

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Jewish and Christian Studies in the Greco-Roman Period

Become proficient in reading and interpreting biblical, extra-biblical, and Hellenistic texts and related primary source materials.

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Rabbinic Literature

Become a proficient reader and interpreter of various genres of rabbinic texts and related primary source materials against the background of their cultural contexts.

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Jewish Thought

Become proficient in reading and interpreting various genres of primary source material relating to Jewish thought, philosophy, and theology. Required courses: Jewish thought, rabbinics, and Jewish history.

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Joint Program with UC-Department of History in Modern Jewish History and Culture

Become proficient in reading and interpreting various genres of primary source material and secondary scholarship relating to the modern Jewish experience.

Pines graduates summer in Israel

Summer in Israel

Every two years, Pines students have the opportunity to spend the summer participating in an archeological dig, through the Nelson Glueck School of Biblical Archaeology, at Tel Dan, a multilayered site with remains from the Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Hellenistic, and Roman periods.

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Students awarded the Ph.D. will:

1. be able to read and interpret primary source materials, particularly in their respective areas of specialization;

2. be able to interpret the meaning and place of source data within larger contexts and categories of humanities discourse relating to culture, society, history and religion;

3. be able to understand independent, advanced research within their fields of expertise, and should make significant contributions to scholarship;

4. possess teaching and communication skills; and

5. appreciate and foster intellectual collaboration and cooperation among people of diverse religious backgrounds who are part of the academic community.

The Pines School of Graduate Studies awarded 37 Ph.D. degrees between 2011 and 2021.  25 of those graduates are serving in faculty positions; 4 are serving in academic administrative positions; and 8 are serving in other positions (secondary school faculty and clergy positions).

Full-time PhD students are supported for up to three years of coursework and a year of preparation for comprehensive exams.  In addition to full tuition, students receive an annual living stipend of $10,000 renewable for up to four years. The competitive Pines Prize Fellowship offers an annual living stipend of $20,000 renewable for up to four years.