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Arabic Language,
History,
International Studies,
Middle East Studies
GPA Requirement:
2.5
NCSU Students Only:
No
Program Description:
Contact a Program Ambassador to find out more information about this program
Egypt Summer Program Information Meeting
Date & Time: October 29th, 7:00pm
Location: 200 Park Shops
Dates
May 27 - June 30, 2010
Program Description
The program will be situated in Cairo where thousands of years of history, architecture, religion and culture merge together into an intricate and dynamic tapestry. Although students will be residing and attending classes in Cairo, we will leave Cairo for three separate excursions. The first excursion will take us to Upper Egypt to explore Luxor and Valley of the Kings. Our second 4-day excursion will take us to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates where we will be able to see firsthand modern architectural wonders of the Middle East. Finally, we will take a day trip to the beautiful Fayoum Oasis in Egypt. Please read below for more details on program excursions.
While living in Cairo you will explore the richness of Egypt's Pharaonic, Coptic and Islamic past, as well as experience contemporary life in the largest city of the modern Middle East. We will visit the famous Giza Pyramids and the equally fascinating Dahshour and “Bent” pyramids. We will see hundreds of Pharaonic treasures at the Egyptian Museum. During our many tours of this great city we will visit breathtaking sites such as the Citadel, and explore the vibrant Khan al-Khalili medieval market. Some of our evening activities include a faluka ride on the Nile and attending a performance of the whirling dervishes. For current issues facing Egypt and the Arab world today, we will visit the Arab League and various NGO's.
Cairo provides our students with a unique opportunity to see a major, thriving city in the Middle East. They will encounter the great diversity in socio-economic classes, form abject poverty to the luxurious lifestyles of the elites of Egypt. Students will experience first-hand the intermingling currents of cultures that have shaped the Middle East and that continue to do so today. We will visit Ayyubid, Mamluk, Ottoman, Italian and French architectural edifices; students will sample food from the falafel stands next to the McDonald's; hear the mix of Arabic classical music with American and European influences; see traditional and local attire worn by men and women alongside the Nike and Levi’s which are also prevalent; students will come to understand how Islam and Christianity are practiced daily as personal faiths and encounter those who use religion as a political ideology.
In addition to students taking six credit hours of course work (2 classes), this five-week experience of living in the Middle East will deepen the students' knowledge by exposing them to the complexities of Arab culture, society, religion, economy and polity. It will humanize this knowledge by providing students with the opportunity to encounter the people behind the histories, statistics and headlines which are studied in the classroom.
Courses
FL 495: Special Topics in Colloquial Arabic (3 Credit Hours)
Every student will take an intensive, introductory course in Egyptian Colloquial Arabic at the Kalimat Language and Cultural Center (http://www.kalimategypt.com/). Students will be placed in various levels of classes based on their skill level in spoken Arabic. No previous experience with Arabic is required.
Students can choose one of the following three credit hour courses:
HI 491: Seminar in History (A History of Modern Egypt)
This course looks at the history of modern Egypt (1805-1990s). The general framework will be a political history that traces events from the foundation of the modern state under Muhammad 'Ali to the current period of Hosni Mubarak. However, the focus will be on understanding the creation of modern Egypt by looking at examples of various cultural productions (film, architecture, music and literature) over the course of the past two centuries. Our main concern will be to understand how Egyptians came to understand and depict themselves, as well as their relationship to the outside world--especially the "West." The course will look at how Egyptians have sought to modernize themselves and their society at the same time that they maintained a sense of "authenticity" or Asalah. The tensions between memories of the past (invented or real) and desires for the future are the historical dynamic that we will be exploring together.
FL 495: Special Topics in Arabic
Fusha in Modern Arab Culture (3 credits)
This course offers students the opportunity to observe firsthand how Fusha (Modern Standard Arabic) is incorporated into modern Egyptian life. Students will discover the extensive reach of Fusha in modern Arab culture as seen in literature, newspapers, theatre, restaurant menus, news broadcasts, academic settings, bookstores, advertisements and much more. Students will go on fieldtrips in Cairo. Prerequisite: FLA 102 or minimum 1 year formal Arabic study.
Excursions & Events
During our 5-week stay in Egypt, we will take three long excursions outside Cairo (where we will be based) and several short ones within the city. The longer excursions will take us to:
Luxor/Upper Egypt
After flying to Luxor from Cairo, we will check into our hotel and then tour the Temples of Karnak and Luxor which are located within the city of Luxor. The evening we will walk around the corniche (boulevard along the Nile) and have dinner. The next day we will visit to the West Bank, including the Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut and the Colossi of Memnon. In the afternoon of that same day we will take a one hour felucca sail along the Nile You will have the opportunity to shop in the market of Luxor On the morning of the third day we will fly back to Cairo.
Dubai, UAE
We will fly to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. There we will see the stunning architecture and infrastructure that characterizes a new Middle East which is an integral part of our global economy and society. We will ride to the top of the tallest building in the world, visit the largest aquarium in the world, receive a tour of a major Arab news network, and ride the new metro to the famous Nakheel “Palm” island. We will also tour historical Dubai and experience the extravagant “mall scene.”
Fayoum Oasis
Details of this excursion will be provided soon
Accommodations
During our stay in Cairo students will be residing together at the Mayfair Hotel, in the district of Zamalek--an island on the Nile.
Most students will be housed in double-occupancy rooms with the same gender roommate. It is possible that--depending on the number of students on the program--that three students would have to share a room. In that case, they will be assigned a larger room with three separate beds. All beds will be twin-size. Each room will be air-conditioned, and will have a small refrigerator. The Mayfair Hotel will provide daily breakfast, which normally includes tea, juice (not necessarily fresh but more like Tang), cheese, bread and boiled eggs.
Zamalek is a quiet district located on a small island on the Nile just minutes away from downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square. It is a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of Cairo, and provides a manageable base from which to explore the great city life that Cairo offers. It houses many embassies and European cultural centers, and has some of the most elegant architecture in Cairo. Zamalek is home to a vibrant cultural life.
Flight Information
Students will fly as a group to Egypt from New York City. It is the student’s responsibility to get to NYC for the scheduled group flight to Egypt.
Program cost includes all of the following roundtrip airfares:
New York, USA – Cairo, Egypt
Cairo, Egypt – Luxor, Egypt
Cairo, Egypt – The Persian Gulf
Financial Aid
Financial aid is generally available to help qualified NC State students to meet the expenses of the NC State study abroad programs. Students from other institutions should contact their home institutions study abroad and financial aid offices for information. For additional funding, NC State students should consider applying for a study abroad scholarship from the Study Abroad Office. Special scholarships are available for ROTC students. Partial scholarships sponsored by The Egyptian American Club and the Triangle Lebanese Association are also available for Egypt program participants. Please contact Jodi Khater for details.
Resident Faculty
Both faculty members Dr. Akram Khater, Director of Middle East Studies Program, and Jodi Khater, Dept. Foreign Languages and Literatures, have lived and worked extensively in Egypt and the Middle East region.
Contact Information
Dr. Akram Khater
Director of Middle East Studies Program
919-513-2218 akram_khater@ncsu.edu
Jodi Khater
Arabic Section Coordinator
Foreign Languages and Literatures
919-515-2509 jskhater@ncsu.edu
The University reserves the right to alter the program format and/or costs in case of conditions beyond its control. If the program is canceled or a student withdraws, a refund of program costs may not be available in all cases. Please refer to the Study Abroad Office Refund Policy for details. Contact us at: study_abroad@ncsu.edu
Brochure
This page is the brochure for your selected program. You can view the provided information for this program on this page and click on the available buttons for additional options.
Contact a 
Zamalek is a quiet district located on a small island on the Nile just minutes away from downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square. It is a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of Cairo, and provides a manageable base from which to explore the great city life that Cairo offers. It houses many embassies and European cultural centers, and has some of the most elegant architecture in Cairo. Zamalek is home to a vibrant cultural life.