Were you asking concerning a degree in Israeli/Middle Eastern studies, I would very much agree. However, the Jewish communities of Africa, Europe, late antiquity, the Middle Ages, etc. etc. are all equally a part of "Jewish studies". I don't believe that modern Hebrew is inherently a more legitimate aspect of academic Jewish studies than is Judeo Arabic, Yiddish, Ladino, or any other language spoken by a Jewish community, even if it is currently (far more) useful than most. For what it's worth, it might be worth noting that RIETS does require potential s'micha recipients to answer questions on a newspaper article written in modern Hebrew (presumably if they can't do that, it might prove difficult finding work in the modern Orthodox world).
