Head to Israel for your studies

BILL STRUBBE SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN

If your idea of an ace college education is one that combines experienced and enthusiastic professors, extensive, state-of-the-art libraries and on-the-go learning – from tasting ethnic foods and the sounds of foreign languages, to a walk through ancient ruins and a dive in a coral reef – then Israel might be the place for you. There you can visit a biblical archeological site in the morning, tour the world's largest collection of Bauhaus architecture in Tel-Aviv in the afternoon, be dinner guests of a Druze family near Haifa in the evening – all the while earning fully transferable college credits.

Most of Israel's world-renowned universities offer summer-, semester- or year-long programs for foreigners, each with a unique style and content. While most summer sessions generally focus on intensive Hebrew study, there's also a wide variety of single-semester or year-long Hebrew courses at all the major colleges, as well as a number of master's programs.

The Rothberg International School of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, offering more than 40 courses every semester, employs the ancient walls, meandering streets, endless archeological sites and varied ethnic and religious communities of the fascinating city of Jerusalem as its classroom. Every year, hundreds of students from all over the world arrive to take courses that include the archeology of Jerusalem, the historical geography of Jerusalem, Jewish and Israeli art, international relations and political science.

The Rothberg International School offers undergraduate studies, graduate studies (with six MA programs) and Hebrew language instruction – required of every student. There is also a full program of leisure-time activities including hiking, a film club, a Beit Midrash for religious studies and on-site seminars on Zionism and the Holocaust, given at Yad Vashem. Housing is in the dormitories on campus.

If you prefer your Jewish/Israeli experience to be of the more secular variety, the Tel-Aviv University – located in "the city that never sleeps" – might be more suitable. Tel-Aviv boasts of a lively, cosmopolitan atmosphere, round-the-clock entertainment and the TAU campus is close to several museums and the Mediterranean seacoast.

The Lowy School for Overseas Students offers a program taught in English and provides a wide choice of courses, including intensive language studies, environmental studies and a master's program in Middle Eastern studies. Also provided is the TASP: Teach and Study Program. TASP participants study for an MA in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) while tutoring children in Tel-Aviv, and also learning Hebrew. Graduates leave Israel with a highly marketable skill. Tel-Aviv University foreign students live in campus dormitories and usually room with other foreign students.

For those desiring the "full falafel," Haifa University's department of overseas studies offers a unique social and cultural immersion program. Foreign students room with Israelis in the dorms, attend the same courses, travel together and participate in numerous extracurricular activities: for example, students spend two hours a week tutoring new immigrants (such as Ethiopians) in community centres or private homes. Courses taught in English include contemporary Israel and the Middle East, religious studies, Hebrew and Arabic, communications and political science

Like the city itself, Haifa University boasts a multiethnic atmosphere, one that promotes diversity and tolerance. Students include Jews from Orthodox to secular, new immigrants from Russia and Ethiopia, Muslim and Christian Arabs, Druze and Bedouins. Four thousand students study at the University of Haifa, with more than 250 foreign students every year, most of whom are Americans.

For students with a predilection for math, science and architecture, the Technion in Haifa is the techno hub of Israel, but is the only university that does not offer an English language program for foreign students. Students begin with intensive Hebrew language classes and then, later, attend other courses – engineering, biology, chemistry, physics, architecture and math – conducted in Hebrew. However, not to worry! The textbooks are written in English. Students also share dorm rooms with Israelis and are fully integrated into campus life.

Intensive Hebrew Studies (also known as "ulpan" programs) are offered during the summer and throughout the academic year at most Israeli colleges. Placement tests determine your class level, from complete beginner to advanced reader. For example, Haifa University's summer ulpan offers July and August sessions. Each session has about 200 students – the majority are young people from 18 to 26 – studying at nine different levels, with classes limited to 20 students. Classes are five hours a day, five days a week and college credits are earned.

Haifa University has an evening clubhouse where ulpan students meet and mingle with Israelis and practise their Hebrew. Extracurricular activities include lectures and films on Israeli history and the current political situation, as well as trips throughout Israel. Ulpan housing is in the on-campus dormitories and apartments, together with Israeli students.

Bill Strubbe is a freelance writer based in California.

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