Faculty-Led Programs
/ Study Abroad in Egypt
FLPOverview Summer Study Abroad in Egypt
Led by Associate Professor Juan E. Campo and Continuing Lecturer Magda Campo
This faculty-led program in Cairo explores the relations between people, food, and religion in Egypt and the wider Middle East. It is concerned with how peoples in this region have used food to fashion and express their religious, cultural, and personal identities, and how the Egyptian “foodscape” in particular has developed historically through centuries of contact with other cultures and civilizations. The course focuses on Muslim and Christian culinary traditions in Egypt, and draws comparisons with feasting and fasting practices of other cultures in the Middle East. The roots of modern Egyptian cuisine in ancient Egypt and the effects of globalization on Egyptian culinary culture will also be examined. Includes a two-unit course in colloquial Arabic, as well as hands-on practice in preparing Middle Eastern recipes.
FLPExcursions Academic & Cultural Excursions
Locations You’ll Explore in Egypt:
Based in Cairo and includes weekend excursions within Egypt. Excursions may include exploring the Giza Pyramids, trips to local fish, produce, and spice markets, and a weekend trip to Alexandria to visit the Wadi Natrun Monasteries and Greco-Roman archaeological sites. Language of Instruction
English
FLPLanguageOfInstructionText
Language Study
Arabic
FLPLanguageStudyText All students will take "Introduction to Egyptian Colloquial Arabic" for 2 UC quarter units.
Duration
Summer
:
FLPDurationText June 28-July 28, 2012
You must arrive in Cairo no later than June 28, 2012, to be in time for a required on-site orientation on June 29. The course itself will start on Sunday, July 1, 2012, and continue through Saturday, July 28, 2012. (The Egyptian work week is Sunday to Thursday.)
Schedule
FLPSchedule
Week One
Orientation: Introducing Food, Religion, and Culture in Egypt and the Middle East
Excursions: Giza Pyramids and lunch at Filfila restaurant, Cairo City tour (Ibn Tulun Mosque, Muhammad Ali Mosque), evening musical/dance performance.
Week Two
The Formation of Egyptian Culinary Culture: History & Identity
Excursions: Egyptian Museum, Museum of Islamic Art, Mu`izz Street, Khan al-Khalili & Fishawi's Coffee House, spice market, fruit and vegetable market. Weekend trip (one night, two days) to Alexandria to visit Wadi Natrun Monasteries, Greco-Roman archaeological sites, Anfushi fish market, Alexandria Library.
Week Three
Food and the Sacred in Everyday Life
Excursions: Coptic Cairo and Ben Ezra Synagogue; Iftar dinner.
Week Four
Politics, Globalization, and Sustainability
Excursions: Iftar dinner, evening cultural event, City Star Mall and Food Courts.
Lodging
FLPLodging Your lodging costs are included in the fees for this program. You will be housed in a variety of accommodations while traveling and studying abroad. These may include shared, budget-style accommodation, single- or double-dorm rooms, or shared hotel rooms. More detailed information on lodging will be available soon.
Course Work
FLPCourseOpportunities In this program you will take the following required three courses, totaling 9 UC quarter units. You may be able to petition these courses towards various departments, beyond the UCEAP subject area designations listed below, on your home campus. See “Course Equivalents” note below.
Core Course
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 169 (4 UC quarter units, Letter Grade only)
This course combines a lecture format with excursions to historical and contemporary sites linked to Egyptian culinary culture, as well as hands-on practice in the preparation of Middle Eastern recipes. Students will have daily reading assignments, a midterm and final exam, and keep a food journal on historical, cultural, social, and ecological aspects of Egyptian and Middle Eastern cuisine. The goals of the course are to provide students with an in-depth understanding of the importance of food in religious and cultural life in Egypt and the Middle East, knowledge about the historical origins of foods that have become part of Euro-American cuisines, and skills for conducting culinary research and preparing Middle Eastern dishes.
Independent Study
RELIGIOUS STUDIES 188 (3 UC quarter units, Pass/No Pass only)
You will write a 10-12 page paper based on topics covered in class or drawn from excursions to field sites in Egypt. The paper must focus on foods or foodways in Egypt and the Middle East. It may be historical, literary, or address topics in the contemporary period.
Introduction to Colloquial Arabic
ARABIC 12 (2 UC quarter units, Pass/No Pass only)
This course introduces students to Egyptian Colloquial Arabic spoken in the city of Cairo. It emphasizes acquisition of listening and speaking skills while living in Egypt, and topics related to our class on Religion, Food, and Culture in the Middle East. During class there will be drills and exercises to activate the vocabulary they have learned as homework. A DVD video will be watched at home and in class to guide students in their conversation. To activate the vocabulary, you will be paired to converse with another student and share the conversation with the other students in the course. Conversations will also continue outside the class, and you will be immersed in the culture of the language.
Course Equivalents: As with all UCEAP courses, subject area listings do not indicate that these courses will satisfy specific major or other degree requirements at any particular campus. Work with your home UC campus academic department before departure to identify potential requirements that could be fulfilled through this program's coursework. Units
FLPUnits You will take three courses totaling 9 UC quarter units on this program.
Internships, Research, and Independent Study
FLPInternships The Independent Study allows you to focus on a particular topic. Concurrent additional independent study, internships, or research are not an option on this program.
FLPFacultyBio  Juan E. Campo, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at UC Santa Barbara, specializes in the comparative study of Islam, particularly in the Middle East and South Asia. He is also director of the UCSB campus office of the Education Abroad Program. He teaches courses on Islamic tradition; religion, politics and society in the Persian Gulf region; Islamic mysticism; modern Islamic movements; Islam in South Asia; as well as introductory courses on the study of religion. Since 2000 he has co-taught a course on Food, Religion, and Culture in the Middle East with Magda Campo. His research has taken him to Egypt, where he has lived for more than five years, including two years as the Study Center Director of the UCEAP Study Center at American University in Cairo, and to India, where he served as Study Center Director of the UCEAP Study Centers in Delhi and Hyderabad from 1998 to 2001. Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Turkey, Singapore, and Thailand are other countries where he has conducted research. Professor Campo’s most recent book is the Encyclopedia of Islam, a one-volume reference work intended for students and the general public. It received a "Best of Reference" award from the New York Public Library in 2010. He is also the author of The Other Sides of Paradise: Explorations in the Religious Meanings of Domestic Space in Islam, which won the American Academy of Religion’s Award for Excellence in 1991.
 Magda Campo is a Continuing Lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara (from 1985 to present). She is also affiliated with the Linguistics Department at UCSB. Magda obtained a B.A. from Cairo University and M.A. in Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language from the American University in Cairo. She is fluent in Arabic, French, and English. Her teaching specialization is Arabic language, but she also teaches Egyptian Colloquial Arabic, and co-teaches Food, Religion, and Culture in the Middle East with Juan E. Campo. She co-authored “Women, Gender and Food Preparation: Central Arab States, Egypt, and North Africa” for the Encyclopedia of Women and Islamic Cultures and “The Arabs as Seen through Their Cuisine” (forthcoming, Cambridge University Press). She has won outstanding faculty member awards from the UCSB Residence Halls Association and the Office of Residential Life (2000, 2001, 2003, 2004).
On-site Support
FLPOnsiteSupport As a UCEAP participant, you will be supported by your UC faculty leader, the UCEAP Systemwide Office, and the University of California, which includes a network of study abroad offices at every UC campus. Drawing on UCEAP’s worldwide resources, your faculty leader will guide you academically, culturally, and logistically, with strong support from UCEAP staff in California.
Estimated Cost
FLPCost Studying abroad with UCEAP, the official UC study abroad program, allows you to enjoy exceptional value and perks! Often, the expenses of participating in UCEAP programs are less than those of non-UC study abroad programs. The cost listed in the chart below include: 1) program fees that are paid directly to UCEAP in the current year, and 2) an estimate of the amount needed to cover your personal living expenses abroad. Recreational travel and entertainment are not included.
If you receive UC financial aid, it will be repackaged and customized to the cost of your UCEAP program. In other words, the amount of your financial aid package will take into account the estimated TOTAL COST of this experience, as it is estimated below.
These expenses are estimated for the current year. Amounts are subject to change due to potential changes to UC fees, exchange rate fluctuation, etc. Here’s what is included in the estimate:
Your Program Fees:
- UC fees
- All Program Costs, including tuition & instructional expenses
- Accident and medical insurance
- Orientation and advising
- Lodging and partial meals
- All excursions and entrance fees for cultural activities
- Automatic transfer of credits and grades to your UC transcript
Estimated Personal Expenses:
- Pre-departure expenses (health clearance, student visa, etc.)
- Round-trip airfare and other travel-related expenses
- Meals not covered by program fees
- Books and other incidental expenses
Your Program Fees + Estimated Personal Expenses = $7,400
UCEAP scholarships for the 2012-13 academic year are available for the new 50th Anniversary UC Faculty-Led Summer Programs. For general information visit our Scholarships page. Please check back near the end of February for detailed information regarding eligibility requirements and application deadlines.
How to Apply
Application Process
FLPApplicationProcess
To apply for this program, follow the steps below. You will apply directly to the UCEAP Systemwide Office.
- Create an account with MyEAP.
Note: Once you register with MyEAP you will receive an auto e-mail from UCEAP with instructions specific to your UC campus. Please disregard this e-mail.
- Select this program from the dropdown menu.
- Complete the online MyEAP application.
- Gather the required documents as listed in the MyEAP application Instructions.
- Mail your application including all the required documents directly to the UCEAP Systemwide Office (must be received by April 1, 2012):
Mailing Address
Attn: Ann Logan
UCEAP Systemwide Office
6950 Hollister Avenue, Suite 200
Goleta, CA 93117-5823
APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 1, 2012
Application Requirements
Class Level:
Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior, Graduate Language Prerequisites:None GPA: 2.50 cumulative GPA at the time of application and maintained through the end of the last term prior to departure.
Minimum Criteria:
All applicants must also have:
- Serious academic goals and a clear plan for integrating UCEAP studies into the student's UC degree program
- Social and cross-cultural sensitivity; the ability to adapt successfully to a different environment and an new education program model; and the ability to exhibit appropriate standards of behavior in a variety of situations, show evidence of maturity, stability, and self-discipline, in a variety of situations
- A willingness to abide by program regulations
- An endorsement by the UCEAP Systemwide Office Selection Committee and completion of all application requirements
Estimated EAP Costs*
*Based on estimated 2012-13 costs.
FLPScholarshipOpportunities
FLPMiscInfo
Selection Process
FLPApplicationDeadlines The deadline to apply is April 1, 2012.
Don’t delay! Applicants are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
If you are selected for the program, you will be notified within one week of your application submission. At that time, a $400 non-refundable fee will be assessed to secure your participation in the program. The payment will be applied towards your UCEAP program fees.
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