Constructing the Israeli Identities
The field school is offered in collaboration by the Azrieli Institute of Israel Studies (Concordia University), the Department of Political Science (Concordia University), and the Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology (Bar-Ilan University).
About the program
Israel is a country of many different and conflicting identities. The field school provides students with direct encounter with members of the different ethnic communities, and with the physical sites that have shaped these identities. Cooperation with the students of the Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology at Bar-Ilan University and with students and faculty from other parts of the university will be an essential component of the program. These students and faculty come from different walks of life in modern Israel and from different religious and ethnic communities; some are experienced tour guides who can share with Concordia students how and why the history of the land excites them and shapes their lives. Direct encounters will include meetings with different communities in Israel: Palestinian Arab, Beduin, Jewish immigrants from Ethiopia and Morocco, Jewish and non-Jewish immigrants from Russia, Druze, Christian, and others.
The program consists of three main components:
- A substantial period at the Bar-Ilan University campus near central Tel-Aviv, which will allow students to situate themselves and to become acquainted with the basic narratives of modern Israel. This will also include several days in Jerusalem, which will allow students to hear how modern Israelis interact with the past which shapes the present.
- Several days in Israel’s south, encountering how desert landscapes shape identity.
- Several days in Israel’s north, encountering the ethnic diversity of the region and the sites and history that shape these.
Dates & course
Dates: July 23, 2023 - August 10, 2023
Undergraduate courses: POLI 313: Special Topics in Comparative Politics
Estimated cost & bursary
Program fee: $1250
Quebec Mobility Bursary: Quebec Mobility Bursary: Concordia International offers a $1575 CDN bursary to students who qualify.
- Field school applicants do not need to submit a bursary application as it is part of the on-line field school application, and you will automatically be considered for the Quebec Mobility bursary.
- The bursary will be applied to student accounts. Details on the payment of the bursary will be sent to successful applicants.
- Eligibility requirements:You are a Concordia student enrolled in a Concordia Bachelor’s degree program while participating in the program.
- Undergraduate students must have completed a minimum of 24 credits toward their degree. These must be credits earned from the current program. Transfer credits, whether internal or external, do not count.
Host institution
Bar-Ilan University is one of the largest universities in Israel. The university campus is located in the heart of Gush Dan and is visited daily by thousands of students from all over the country and from all religions and ethnicities, faculty members, and visitors from both Israel and abroad. All of these together create a multicultural human mosaic that reflects the face of Israeli society; in its curriculum, in the values it imparts to its students and in the general atmosphere prevailing in it, BIU encourages tolerance, freedom of thought and dialogue.
The Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology is involved in an interdisciplinary research of the Land of Israel throughout all periods of human history, from various aspects, including archaeology, historical geography, nature, physical and human geography and demography.
Application process
To be eligible to participate in the field school, you must meet one of the following criteria.
- Be enrolled in a Bachelor’s degree program, with a minimum 2.7 cumulative culmative GPA (CGPA) and have completed at least 24 credits toward your current degree program by the time you leave for the program.
- Be enrolled in a Master’s degree program, with a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA (CGPA) and have completed at least 9 credits toward your current degree program by the departure date.
- Be enrolled in PhD degree program, have a 3.7 cumulative GPA (CGPA) and have completed at least 9 credits toward your current degree program by the departure date.
All students interested in applying to this program must attend an information session given by Concordia International prior to submitting an application.
Date: March 6, 2023
Time: 12 p.m.
Zoom Meeting Link: https://concordia-ca.zoom.us/j/3654810697
- Submit the Concordia Field School Abroad Application through the Concordia International Outgoing Mobility portal by the application deadline of Aprill 11 2023. The application can be accessed through the Concordia International CSEP Mobility Portal.
- Your application must also include:
- A copy of your most recent transcript (whether from Concordia or another institution). An unofficial Concordia transcript.
- A letter of intent of 500-750 words describing why you wish to participate in the Israel Field School and the kind of work you hope to accomplish while there. You should also make mention of what strengths or contributions you think you will bring to the group.
Final admissions decisions will be made by the program monitor, Dr.Csaba Nikolenyi.
By April 17th 2023, admitted students must make a $500 deposit on their Concordia student account towards costs to hold their position in the program, the $500 deposit will be credited to their student account and applied against their future tuition.
Students admitted to the program will have to attend a mandatory pre-departure meeting held by Concordia International through the following Zoom link: https://concordia-ca.zoom.us/j/3654810697 . The date and time TBD.
Academic Inquiries
Professor, Department of Political Science