Mideastwire.com and its partners - Université Paris-Dauphine I Tunis, Tunisia Live and the Bosphore Academy - are pleased to announce the first Summer Arabic & Politics Exchange June 14-July 12, 2013, in Tunis, Tunisia.
The four-week course will immerse our participants in the language and politics of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), with a particular emphasis on direct engagement with some of the leading academic, political, intellectual and religious figures active across the spectrum in Tunisia.
This summer`s Exchange will also be opened by a two-day conference, June 15-16, led by more than a dozen MENA experts from the International Crisis Group (ICG - www.crisisgroup.org). The consecutive weekend sessions will cover a broad range of topics addressed by ICG`s country analysts and moderated by their senior staff.
Different participation modules (detailed below) are available: Including morning Arabic classes only, afternoon and weekend Politics seminars only, attendance at the opening ICG conference, and two-weeks of Politics seminars instead of the full month. TO REQUEST AN APPLICATION for this Summer`s Exchange, email info@mideastwire.com.
APPLY BY APRIL 20, 2013 (applicants are accepted on a rolling basis and spaces are limited).
Note that tuition discounts are available for those applicants with demonstrated need as well as alumni of our previous Exchanges. For more information, please email info@mideastwire.com
Background on Five Years of the Exchange in the MENA Region:
The Exchange is an effort by Mideastwire.com and its partners to promote direct engagement and understanding through a variety of city-focused conferences.
The First Exchange was launched in June 2008 in Beirut, Lebanon. Now, several years on, over 270 students from 44 different countries have participated in 16 different Exchange programs across the region, with many going on to work as diplomats in their home countries, for NGOs serving the region and as social entrepreneurs.
The Exchange welcomes applications from current students as well as professionals and post-professionals interested in better understanding the Middle East and North Africa, and, we hope, their own country`s involvement in the region.
To view previous Exchange programs in Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Tunis and the Gulf, as well as media coverage of our efforts, visit http://www.thebeirutexchange.com
Program Details & Costs:
This Summer`s Exchange will be offered in the following modules:
OPTION A: Politics Only-Full Course, June 14-July 12
- Participants will engage in over 140 hours of seminars, meetings and field trips offered in the afternoons (1:30pm-6:30pm) and weekends throughout the four week course June 14-July 12;
- The language of the Politics Course is English, with translation from French and Arabic provided for all students;
- For previous Tunis Exchange programs detailing the scope of our activities, the range of speakers and where we travel in the country, visit www.thebeirutexchange.com;
- FEE OPTION A - $2300.
OPTION B: Politics Only-Half Course, June 14-June 28 or June 28-July 12
- Participants will have the option of joining us during our Politics Course in the afternoons (1:30pm-6:30pm) and weekends either June 14-June 28 or June 28-July 12 (approximately 70 hours of sessions);
- As with all of our Exchanges, the precise program will only be released in hard copy at the beginning of the course, although we expect to announce speakers and field trips scheduled for each Half Course by April 2013 and expect there to be a rough balance in the caliber of speakers between both Courses;
- Participants in the first Half Course June 14-June 28 will be afforded full access to the opening conference June 15 and 16 convened by the International Crisis Group;
- FEE OPTION B - $1400.
OPTION C: Arabic Only-Full Course, June 14-July 12
- Participants will engage in 60 hours of Arabic classes offered at several different levels including both colloquial Tunisian and Formal Arabic, 9am-12pm, every Monday to Friday;
- The courses will be coordinated and taught by the Bosphore Academy (www.bosphoreacemie.com) at their facility in downtown Tunis, within walking distance of our hotel facility, nearby participant accommodations as well as all afternoon sessions;
- For more specific information on the Arabic classes offered during the Exchange, please email info@mideastwire.com;
- FEE OPTION C: $900.
OPTION D: Politics & Arabic-Full Course, June 14-July 12
- Participants will engage in both Option A and Option C, joining our morning Arabic classes as well as the afternoon and weekend Politics sessions and the opening ICG conference;
- FEE OPTION D: $3200.
OPTION E: ICG Conference, June 14-16
- During the opening weekend of this summer`s Exchange, participants will engage in more than 18 hours of consecutive sessions led by more than a dozen International Crisis Group experts and senior staff, covering the topics that ICG regularly analyses in MENA through its policy reports, commentary and alerts;
- ICG country experts will be led by Robert Malley, ICG`s director of MENA programs;
- FEE OPTION E: $350 regular admission/Exchange Alumni $250. (accommodation and meals not included)
Logistics & Other Costs
Location - All Arabic sessions during the month will take place in downtown Tunis at the Bosphore Academy classrooms (www.bosphoreacemie.com) on Avenue Mohammad V. All Politics sessions will take place in the main conference room of the Tunis Dauphine Institute (http://www.tunisdauphine.tn/) located within 15-20 minutes walking distance of the Bosphore Academy, as well as our preferred accommodations, including our own hotel facility.
Accommodations - Participants have the option of securing their own accommodations during the program. Accommodation at either our Bed and Breakfast (The Maison Tunis) located next to the Bosphore Academy or across the street at the three star El-Pacha hotel (http://www.lepacha.com.tn/) will cost approximately $950-$1200 for the month in a shared double room, including breakfast and all taxes.
Air Travel - It is highly recommended that all participants reserve their airline tickets as early as possible since the summer season is a difficult time to secure seats. Roundtrip tickets from Western Europe are typically $400 during the summer and approximately $900 from the United States.
Miscellaneous - Tunisia is a relatively affordable country when it comes to food and transportation. Participants should budget a minimum of $15 per day for lunch and dinner, as well as a minimum of $300 for other leisure costs during the month.
Financial Aid - In order to gather a diverse group of participants, we offer financial aid to applicants with demonstrated need amounting to between 25% and 50% of the tuition cost. Unfortunately, we cannot offer financial aid towards accommodation costs, airfare or other boarding and leisure costs.
Previous Institutional Participants in the Tunis Exchange:
En-Nahda Party
Congress for the Republic Party
Ettakatol Party
Constitutional Democratic Rally Party
The Democratic Modernist Pole Party
Worker`s Communist Party
Progressive Democratic Party
Tunisian General Trade Union
Union of Tunisian Journalists
The Central Bank of Tunisia
Ministry of Women`s Affairs
Ministry of Human Rights
Manouba University
Tunis University
Association of Democratic Women
Tunisian Network for Social Economy
Tunisian Observatory for a Democratic Transition
Tunisian League of Human Rights
Tunisian-American Chamber of Commerce
Tunisian Association of Young Entrepreneurs
Committee to Protect Journalists
Attounsia Newspaper
For more information:
- Click here to view a schedule for previous Tunis Exchanges.
- To request an application, contact info@mideastwire.com.
- Application deadline is 20 April 2013 (note that applicants are accepted on a rolling basis and spaces are limited).