Global Issues in Local Context
Summer programs in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa
Two summer 2027 programs that take students from the classroom to the places, people and histories behind the questions you teach.
See the two programsStay in touch
Get program details, syllabi and dates to share with your students.
The questions you teach, where they unfold
Peacebuilding, migration, borders and belonging are questions your students meet in the classroom. Our summer programs let them study those questions in Dublin, Belfast, Amman, Seville and Rabat, alongside the practitioners, communities and institutions working through them.
FIE: Foundation for International Education is a nonprofit based in London that has offered study abroad programs for more than 25 years. We're proud to support MESA 2026 and to share two programs built for students of the Middle East and North Africa.
Conflict and the Struggle for Peace: Explorations in Ireland and the Middle East
Dublin • Belfast • Amman
DatesMay 25 to June 29, 2027Credits6 USMin. GPA2.75Apply byMarch 15, 2027
Using the Irish peace process as a case study, students examine intractable conflicts in the Middle East, including regional and tribal conflicts beyond Israel and Palestine. Students learn across three cities and meet the Bedouin of the Wadi Rum desert.
- Life Cycle of Peace and Conflict: Lessons Learned in Northern Ireland (3 credits, Dublin)
- Views from Jordan: Humanity and the Future in the Wake of “Peace” and Uprising (3 credits, Amman)
Scholarship The Sharif Rahman Conflict and the Struggle for Peace Program Scholarship awards $1,000. Apply by February 15 (11:59 p.m. CST). Details and application
Full program detailsBorders, Mobility and Migration: Europe and the MENA
Seville, Spain • Rabat, Morocco
DatesMay 24 to July 3, 2027Credits6 USMin. GPA2.75Apply byMarch 15, 2027
An interdisciplinary program drawing on political science, sociology, anthropology and history. Through coursework, NGO visits and excursions in two countries, students examine the economic, political and humanitarian dimensions of migration and transnational identity.
- Immigration in Spain: Sociological, Political and International Dimensions (3 credits, Seville)
- Labour and Migration in the Middle East (3 credits, Rabat)
Scholarship The Sharif Rahman Borders, Mobility and Migration Program Scholarship awards $1,000. Apply by February 15 (11:59 p.m. CST). Details and application
Full program detailsTranscripts are issued by FIE's School of Record, Drexel University.
Add Arabic to either program
Students can stay on for intensive Arabic (6 more US credits): four weeks in Amman with the Sijal Institute, blending Modern Standard and Colloquial Jordanian Arabic, or four weeks in Rabat. All levels, beginner to advanced.
Three ways to bring students to the region
Share with your students
Point students to both programs in one place, or ask us for a short class visit or information session.
Browse and applyGet them approved on your campus
We work with study abroad offices to add programs to their approved list so credit transfers smoothly. We're happy to send syllabi and connect with your office.
Design your own program
Lead students abroad yourself. FIE supports visiting faculty programs with curriculum design, logistics, housing and teaching space.
Let's talk
Dr. Grahaeme Hesp, Senior Director of Institutional Relations, and Dr. Julie Ann Andreshak, Chief Academic Officer and Provost, are happy to talk about bringing your students to the region, in person at MESA in Boston (November 21 to 24) or online any time. Write to Grahaeme at
