Deepen your learning experience by immersing yourself in this one-week seminar on the history and culture of Athens and its environs through a combination of lectures, guided museum visits, educational walks, field trips, and hands-on workshops.
In partnership with Columbia Global and its Global Center in Athens and the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation, the Center for Undergraduate Global Engagement is excited to offer the Mediterranean Humanities travel seminar.
Overview
What is the Mediterranean, and how was it constructed and canonized as a space of civilization? A highly multicultural, multilingual area whose people represent a broad array of religious, ethnic, social, and political differences, the Mediterranean has been seen as the cradle of Western civilization but also as a dividing border and a unifying confluence zone, as a sea of pleasure and a sea of death.
Students participating in this seminar take Athens, Greece, as a vantage point to explore the multiple ways this body of water has been imagined by the people who lived or traveled across its shores. In this one-week seminar, students will immerse themselves in the history and culture of Athens and its environs through a combination of lectures, guided museum visits, educational walks, field trips, and hands-on workshops.
Check out our Information Session on March 1st, 2024 to learn more!
Eligibility and Application
ELIGIBILITY
- Open to undergraduate and graduate students in good academic and disciplinary standing.
- Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA.
Priority will be given to students who are registered in Mediterranean Humanities II (CLIA GU4500) during the Spring 2024 semester, as well as to students of the Italian Department and the Program in Hellenic Studies.
HOW TO APPLY
Want to apply? Click the “Start Your Application" button at the top of this page. If the button doesn't appear above, the program is not yet accepting applications. You will be asked to set up a short profile, which will allow us to send you relevant information about your application. Once you’ve created a profile, you will see a checklist of items that you will need to submit. These generally include:
- Application questionnaire(s) and material(s)
Travel Details
Please view the tentative itinerary for this one-week intensive seminar from Sunday, May 19th, 2024, to Sunday, May 26th, 2024:
SUNDAY, MAY 19TH, 2024
Arrivals and Check-in: Please note that students are responsible for their travel to and from Athens as well as getting from the airport in Athens to the housing site
6:00 PM: Orientation (with Chloe Haralambous and our local assistant, TBD)
7:00 PM: Welcome Dinner
MONDAY, MAY 20TH, 2024
10:00 AM - 12.30 PM: Guided visit to the Syntagma area and the Benaki Museum of Greek Culture by historian Nikolas Nikolaidis
1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Light lunch at Dionysiou Aeropagitou str, under the Acropolis
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM: Discussion on Philopappos and Pnyka Hill with historian Nikolas Nikolaidis
3:30 PM - 7.30 PM: Educational visit to the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum
TUESDAY, MAY 21ST, 2024
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM: Educational workshop on ancient Greek drama with actor and classicist Menelaos Kyparissis at the Karolos Koun Greek Art Theater
12:00 PM - 3:00 PM: Free time to explore
3:00 PM - 6:00 PM: Educational Visit at the Kerameikos Archaeological site and The Centre for the Study of Modern Pottery–G. Psaropoulos Foundation. Lecture and pottery workshop with Nikos Liaros
WEDNESDAY, MAY 22ND, 2024
9:30 AM: Departure for Piraeus
10:00 AM - 1:30 PM: Guided tour to the Historical Library and Admiral Horatio Nelson’s Maritime Collection at the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation in Piraeus
- Refreshments at the Laskaridis Foundation
- Educational tour of Piraeus
1:30 PM: Return to Athens city center
5:30 PM - 7:00 PM: Educational visit to the National and Archaeological Museum guided by Professor Zanou
THURSDAY, MAY 23RD, 2024
"Literary Athens: From Museum to the Streets” (educational activities led by Prof. Kakkoufa)
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM: Visit to the Cavafy Museum
1:00 PM - 4:00 PM: Free time to explore
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM: Street Art and Literary walk in Exarcheia
FRIDAY, MAY 24TH, 2024
Day trip to the island of Aegina: Guided tour to the archaeological sites of Temple of Aphaia and Kolona by archaeologist and ceramist, Nikos Liaros
- Walk to the city of Aegina, the seat of the first Greek government
- Group lunch and discussion
Afternoon at the beach (tentative/time permitting)
Return to Athens
SATURDAY, MAY 25TH, 2024
"Refugees and Migrants in the Mediterranean” (educational activities led by Chloe Haralambous)
- Educational walk in the multicultural neighborhood of Kypseli and conversation with local NGO refugee volunteers
- Conversation on Migration in the Mediterranean
7:00 PM: Farewell Dinner
SUNDAY, MAY 26TH, 2024
12:00 PM: Check-out / Departure
Housing
Due to the fast-paced nature of the program, participants are required to stay in program housing. More details regarding housing will be added soon.
People
In partnership with Columbia Global and its Global Center in Athens and the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation, the Center for Undergraduate Global Engagement is excited to offer the Mediterranean Humanities travel seminar.
Faculty Directors: Konstantina Zanou, Associate Professor of Italian, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of Italian
Nikolas P. Kakkoufa, Lecturer, Modern Greek, Director of Undergraduate Studies of the Program in Hellenic Studies
Graduate Student Coordinator: Chloe Haralambous, PhD Candidate in English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University specializing in migration and revolution in the 21st century
Local Assistant: TBD
Financial Considerations
TUITION AND FEES
Through generous funding from the Columbia Global Centers and the Center for Global Engagement, the program fee has been reduced to $1,300. Program housing will be provided and included in the program fee.
Additional funding may be available for highly qualified and committed candidates. Applicants will have an opportunity to indicate financial need in their application. Because the program fee is already reduced for all participants, additional funding is limited.
All participants are required to confirm their participation by March 22nd, 2024, with a non-refundable $500 deposit that will be applied to the $1,300 program fee. Students are required to pay the remaining $800 program fee by April 1st, 2024.
Students are responsible for their travel to and from Athens as well as getting from the airport in Athens to the housing site. Some transportation and meals will be provided. Students should have access to money for other meals and free time.
FINANCIAL AID
For Columbia College and SEAS students, contact the CC/SEAS Financial Aid & Educational Planning to understand if any of your federal financial aid may cover enrollment costs for a summer program. Please note the Columbia Grant is not available for summer studies.
For General Studies students, if you receive financial aid at Columbia University, you will often remain eligible for aid as long as you take a minimum of 6 points during the Summer term. Please contact the GS Office of Educational Financing for more information.