Egypt in Transition (UMAIE)
This course looks primarily at Egypt’s rich history and its impact on the modern Egypt of today. Most of the course is spent in and around Cairo where students are introduced to issues and then have the opportunity to talk to local leaders, administrators of schools and hospitals and families. A 3-day excursion to Upper Egypt allows students to discover the temples of Luxor and Karnak and the site of King Tut’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Another 3-day trip visits Alexandria on the Mediterranean and highlights the Roman period of Egypt’s past. The students are introduced to the history, art, mathematics, architecture, religion, politics and social institutions and people of ancient and modern Egypt.

• Enrollment: lottery
• Prerequisites: none
• Maximum participants: 16
• Counts toward: no major/minor requirement 
• Fee: $5195 + $175 UST off-campus study fee
• Fulfills: Human Diversity core requirement
• Faculty Director: Samiha Ibrahim, Gustavus
• Detailed Course Description

Islam and its Influence in Turkey (UMAIE)
The course is primarily an introduction to Islam. Secondarily, it compares Islam to Christianity and to some extent, to Judaism. Islam, however, is not just a set of beliefs and readings, but a way of life. When the course is taught in Turkey, students encounter not only the readings and beliefs, and some of the major writings of Islam, but also the lived aspect of Islam. Islam, for Muslims, is intended to penetrate every aspect of life. To experience and understand this, it is vital for students to visit an Islamic country. Turkey is the best choice to fulfill both goals of the course: (1) to introduce Islam and the Islamic way of life, (2) to compare Islam with Christianity--because many Christian sites remain in Turkey. In addition, in Turkey one can see a Muslim country and culture which is struggling to adapt to contemporary secular and scientific society. The tensions in Turkey between secularism and a resurgent Islam are those that face every Islamic country today, but they are especially evident in Turkey.

• Enrollment: selection
• Prerequisites:  THEO 101 and one 200-level course
• Maximum participants: 26
• Counts toward: Theology major/minor upper level elective
• Fee: $4650 + $175 UST off-campus study fee
• Fulfills: 300-level Faith & Catholic Tradition and Human Diversity core requirements
• Faculty Directors: Terence Nichols and Adil Ozdemir, UST
• Detailed Course Description

Race and Ethnicity in South Africa (UMAIE)
Students will leave this course with a deep personal understanding of race and ethnicity in South Africa (SA), and will experience important aspects of people’s lives in several of the 11 major ethnic groups. The course is a comprehensive overview of all peoples who settled this land, from early Khoisan to almost all of the Congo-Benue groups who migrated later, as well as the Dutch, British and Indians, with emphasis on how these groups interacted and their relations today. Reading is enhanced by relevant visits with individuals and to cultural sites, such as Soweto and the Apartheid Museum. Students will hear the personal accounts of those who participated in the struggle against Apartheid, including the group’s co-leader, Dr. Mxolisi Mavi, who was arrested and jailed by the white regime.  The course ends in Cape Town to experience an AIDS project, since AIDS has a huge effect on life in South Africa.  Students also will visit Nelson Mandela’s prison cell and hear about the political efforts to ameliorate Apartheid during a tour of Parliament.

• Enrollment: selection
• Prerequisites: None
• Maximum participants: 26
• Counts toward: Geography major/minor upper level elective
• Fee: $6075 +$175 UST off-campus study fee
• Fulfills: Human Diversity core requirement
• Faculty Directors: Bob Werner, UST, and Mxolisi Mavi, U. of South Africa
• Detailed Course Description

Religious Traditions of Western Asia: Turkey & Jordan (UMAIE)
This course is intended to give students eye-witness experiences and first-hand knowledge of the major historical religious forces that have shaped the contemporary national and religious life of West Asia with primary focus on Islam in Turkey and Jordan. Participants in the course will visit the major political, economic, cultural, and religious regions of both countries. Through home-stays, students will have the opportunity to share in the daily life of devout Muslims families in Konya—a city whose population still seems deeply affected by the love, inclusiveness, and irenic nature of its most historical resident, the Islamic mystic and scholar, Jalâluddin Mevlâna Rumi. Students will explore the historic power of the religions of West Asia as well as their contemporary place in familial and national life. From ancient Hittites to modern Muslims, from the Jewish Diaspora to the Christian cradle, the religions of West Asia can teach those who have ears to hear.

• Enrollment: selection
• Prerequisites:  None
• Maximum participants: 26
• Counts toward: Theology major/minor upper-level elective requirement
• Fee: $6490 + $175 off-campus study fee
• Fulfills: 300-Level Faith and Catholic Tradition core
• Faculty Directors: Paul Parker and Mladen Turk, Elmhurst
• Detailed Course Description