Turkey

STUDY ABROAD IN THE MIDDLE EAST: TURKEY

Program: McGhee Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies / Georgetown University (Jesuit)
Location: Alanya, Turkey

Is This Program Right For You? The McGhee Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies was established in 1989 when George Crewes McGhee, a distinguished former Ambassador to Turkey and Germany, donated his Mediterranean villa to Georgetown University. It was Ambassador McGhee’s wish that the villa should become a center of scholarship and learning in the Eastern Mediterranean, Anatolia, and modern Turkey. Today the Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies continues to realize this vision by offering opportunities for overseas study, teaching, and research as well as space for workshops, meetings, study tours, and alumni events at the McGhee Villa in Alanya, Turkey. The architectural centerpiece of the Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies is the McGhee Villa, an Ottoman-era mansion located in the historic district of Alanya, within the walls of the castle overlooking the azure harbor. Students, faculty, and guests at the McGhee Center attend classes and meals at the villa. The villa also houses a library, study areas, faculty and staff offices, and space for visiting scholars. Extensive terraced gardens offer spectacular views of the sea, the mountains, and the city. Planted with tangerine, lemon, pomegranate, bougainvillea, cypress, oleander, loquat, olive, oregano, and cactus, the gardens provide a quiet retreat as well as a spectacular setting for entertaining against the backdrop of the Mediterranean Sea and the Taurus mountains beyond. The villa’s history is intertwined with that of the Mediterranean itself. It was built in the early nineteenth century by a local merchant who specialized in the export of timber to Egypt. After World War I and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Alanya’s trade routes were severed and its merchants dispersed. The villa fell into disrepair and was gradually abandoned as families came to prefer the comfort and convenience of modern apartment buildings. Ambassador George McGhee and his wife Cecilia discovered the villa during their travels in Turkey in the 1950’s and 1960’s. They purchased the property in 1968 and renovated it as a Mediterranean retreat.

The Courses/Program: The academic programs offered at the McGhee Center explore the incredible wealth of civilization, history, and culture in the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as the changing landscape of contemporary Turkey and the political forces affecting this region today. The program includes a two-week Orientation in Istanbul and Ankara, with additional excursions to Edirne, Bursa, Konya, Antalya, and other sites of cultural and historical importance. A ten-day mid-semester excursion to Syria and/or southeastern Turkey provides a comparative perspective on the region. The McGhee Center is open to both Georgetown and non-Georgetown students and accepts applicants from a wide range of academic backgrounds and majors, including European, Middle Eastern, and Eurasian Studies; International Affairs; Classical Studies; History; Geography; Art History; Cultural Studies; and more. Courses are taught by Georgetown University faculty at the center.

Housing: Each student at the McGhee Center is paired with a local Turkish host family in Alanya for the semester. The host family gives you a point of contact in the community and an opportunity to learn more about Turkish culture and society – as well as a place to practice your Turkish. Families often invite their students into their homes and to join them in activities and celebrations in the community.

Duration/Deadlines:
• Fall Semester (16 weeks): September - December / Application Deadline: February 29th
• Spring Semester (16 weeks): January - May / Application Deadline: October

Requirements: (Language of Instruction is in English, Turkish)
• 3.0 GPA

Program Cost Includes: Tuition, housing and some meals, orientation, cultural activities, local excursions, field trips, and pre-departure advising For more information: www11.georgetown.edu/oip/os/sites/mideast/McGhee/index.html. Catalogues are available in ISAP’s Resource Rooms. Please note: The information on this sheet is for reference purposes only. It is your responsibility to confirm details and deadlines. (Updated 2/21/08)

Program: Middle East Technical University / CIEE
Location: Ankara, Turkey

Is This Program Right For You? This program is designed for students with a range of interests from archaeology to engineering to sociology, who would like to combine those interests with study in this ancient and dynamic country.

The goals of the CIEE Study Center in Ankara are to enable students to pursue a wide variety of academic fields, including current issues in Islam, and gain a deeper understanding of Turkey as an example of a society undergoing rapid urbanization and industrialization. To supplement and contextualize their studies, students take a multidisciplinary course exploring modern Turkey, which incorporates visits to important historical sites. The program provides all students with the opportunity to take courses alongside Turkish students as well as with other international students.

Middle East Technical University (METU), a state university, was founded in 1956 on the American university model, and is currently one of the region’s leading universities. The language of instruction is English, and METU has a student body of 18,500 including 900 international students.

The Courses/Program: The CIEE Study Center in Ankara, established in the fall of 2000, provides a rigorous academic program at METU combined with an in-country cultural experience. METU offers undergraduate courses of high standards in all areas of engineering, physical sciences, biological sciences, humanities, social sciences, educational sciences, architecture, administrative sciences, and business. The University also has graduate programs in most fields and welcome visiting graduate students.

Although courses are taught in English, students in their first semester at the CIEE Study Center in Ankara are required to take an intensive Beginning Turkish Language course as well as a multi-disciplinary core course about modern Turkey, which includes excursions. These required courses begin two weeks before the start of the semester and continue withweekly class meetings throughout the first six weeks of the semester. The CIEE Study Center, through its affiliation with the Active Language School, provides several levels of intermediate and advanced Turkish for students who need more than basic elementary Turkish.

CIEE students enroll in three or four courses per semester. Breaks during the semester depend upon the Muslim religious holidays which, following the lunar calendar, change each year. The break between the fall and spring semesters is about one month. Students use this time to travel within Turkey and the region.

Housing: Students live in campus dormitories, in double rooms. Special arrangements may be made for graduate students depending upon availability. Meals are not included in the program fee and are the responsibility of the student. Students can take meals at cafés and university restaurants on-campus, as well as at restaurants in the surrounding neighborhood. There are also grocery stores nearby.

Duration/Deadlines:
• Fall Semester (16 weeks): September - December / Application Deadline: April 1st
• Spring Semester (16 weeks): February - June / Application Deadline: November 1st
• Academic Year (32 weeks): late September - June / Application Deadline: April 1st

Requirements: (Language of Instruction is in English, Turkish)
• 3.0 GPA

Program Cost Includes: tuition, housing and some meals, orientation, cultural activities, local excursions, field trips, pre-departure advising, and insurance. Visa not included. For more information: www.ciee.org Catalogues are available in ISAP’s Resource Rooms. Please note: The information on this sheet is for reference purposes only. It is your responsibility to confirm details and deadlines.