Mission Statement

The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) is a non-profit association that fosters the study of the Middle East, promotes high standards of scholarship and teaching, and encourages public understanding of the region and its peoples through programs, publications and services that enhance education, further intellectual exchange, recognize professional distinction, and defend academic freedom in accordance with its status as a 501(c)(3) scientific, educational, literary, and charitable organization.

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Annual Meeting  


The Middle East Studies Association’s 58th annual meeting will be held virtually from November 11-15, 2024

Submissions to the Call for Papers are now closed. Program decisions will be announced in May.

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Advocacy


The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) advocates on behalf of its members on issues that are central to its mission.

This includes statements and letters from MESA's Board of Directors, MESA's Committee on Academic Freedom, the Task Force on Civil and Human Rights, and the MESA Global Academy.

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Become a MemberTea cup and plate


Be a part of a community of scholars who are passionate about the pursuit of academic knowledge on the MENA region. Help MESA defend academic freedoms. Share your research at the annual meeting. Access the best, cutting-edge scholarship in person at the conference or online in our journals.

Join or renew today!

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Member Announcements

MESA 2024 Call for Papers

If you submitted for MESA's 58th Annual Meeting to be held virtually in the fall of 2024, please check back in May for decisions from the Program Committee. In the meantime, please see the full call for papers and submission instructions here.

Applications Sought for IJMES Editor

The MESA Board of Directors invites applications and nominations for the next editor of the International Journal of Middle East Studies (IJMES) for a five-year term beginning July 1, 2025. Application review will begin June 2024, and continue until a new editor is identified. For more information, go here.

Applications Sought for RoMES Editor

The MESA Board of Directors invites applications for the next editor of the Review of Middle East Studies (RoMES) for a five-year term beginning July 1, 2025. Application review will begin August 2024, and continue until a new editor is identified. For more information, go here.

Issues of IJMES, RoMES, and IMES available

To access, select the Publications tab in your myMESA account then click the publication image.

Security Alerts for Researchers and Students

There are two active security alerts issued by MESA’s Board of Directors for those embarking on research in Egypt and UAE.

Crisis in the Geopolitics of MENA: “The more things change, the more they stay the same”

Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore

A year ago, the Middle East region was in a state of flux in certain ways, but seemed to be stabilising in others. Confrontation paradigms were giving way to what seemed to be de-escalation plans: Normalisation of relations between Saudi and Iran, and the widening of the Abraham Accords, among others. October 7 upended all of that – or did it? Dr HA Hellyer will examine how things have changed – and how, indeed, they’ve stayed the same. This public talk will be conducted both in-person and online via Zoom on Wednesday, 17 April 2024, from 4.30 pm to 6 pm SGT.

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Post-doctoral Research Fellow in Israel Studies

The Middle East Studies (MES) Programme at Oxford School of Global and Area Studies (OSGA)

The Oxford School of Global and Area Studies (OSGA) invites applications from candidates with relevant qualifications and experience for a 3-year fixed-term externally funded postdoctoral research position, commencing on 1st October 2024 or as soon as possible thereafter. The School is seeking a candidate possessing expert knowledge of the relevant field of research and pertinent skills to manage academic research projects and associated activities, who will be able to play a leading role in developing Israel Studies at the University of Oxford.

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Sectarianism, Proxies & De-sectarianisation Project

Call for Papers: Workshop on "State Islam and Authoritarian Rule: Comparing Control Over Religious Institutions in Muslim-majority states"

The Sectarianism, Proxies & De-sectarianisation Project (SEPAD) at Lancaster University, UK, is pleased to announce a Call for Papers for a workshop on "State Islam and Authoritarian Rule: Comparing Control Over Religious Institutions in Muslim-majority states" to be held on 11th December 2024.

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Letter to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem protesting suspension of faculty member Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian

Our letter to the leadership of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem objecting to the recent suspension from teaching of an esteemed faculty member, Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, for her comments and reflections prompted by Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza.

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Iranian Studies Unit Conference Call for Papers: “The Social Sciences and Humanities in Iran: Possibilities and Constraints”

Iranian Studies Unit of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies

The Iranian Studies Unit at the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS) is welcoming abstracts for its 2024 annual conference, titled “The Social Sciences and Humanities in Iran: Possibilities and Constraints,” to be held from 9-10 October 2024.

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MESA Board Joint Statement with CAF regarding the ongoing genocidal violence against the Palestinian people and their cultural heritage in Gaza

The Board of Directors of the Middle East Studies Association and its Committee on Academic Freedom condemn in the strongest possible terms the ongoing attack on Gaza by the state of Israel, resulting in the widespread destruction of the built environment and civilian infrastructure of the Gaza Strip with the apparent intention of erasing Palestinian heritage, thereby amounting to cultural genocide.

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