Welcome to CMES

The Center for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) at the University of California at Berkeley enhances awareness of the Middle East and of its diverse peoples and cultures. The center promotes both specialized knowledge and public understanding of this crucial area of the world, which includes the Arab states, Turkey, Iran, and Israel.

For many years the U.S. Department of Education has recognized UC Berkeley as one of the most significant universities in the United States in terms of Middle East area offerings. Drawing on all the resources of the Berkeley campus, CMES has become the most important sources of information about the Middle East and the Islamic World in the Western United States.

U.S. Department of Education National Resource Center

CMES has received competitive three-year cycle grants from the U.S. Department of Education (USED) since 1979, and has participated since then in the USED Title VI Program as a National Resource Center (NRC). Status as an NRC (one of approximately a dozen recognized for their excellence throughout the United States) provides the center with partial financial support for many of its programs devoted to public understanding of the Middle East and the Islamic World. These programs include visiting faculty and language instruction in Middle East studies; pre- and post-secondary educational outreach programs; publication of the biannual CMES newsletter; lecture, symposia, conferences, film series, and cultural activities; faculty travel grants for research and conference participation; and FLAS fellowships.