CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: INTERNATIONAL SUMMER SCHOOL FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS

The Chair of Islamic Studies at the University of Erfurt is pleased to announce the 9th International Summer School MUSLIMS IN THE WEST which will take place from 14 August – 29 August 2010 at the University of Erfurt.

The Summer School will be chaired by Prof. Dr. Jamal Malik. Sixteen young scholars from countries with significant Muslim populations will participate in this cultural encounter together with students from the University of Erfurt. Ever since its involvement in the “Dialogue with Islam”, an academic activity initiated by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in 2002, the University of Erfurt has been actively engaged in the increasingly socio-politically relevant debates on “Islam and the West”. In this context, the Summer School, financially supported by the DAAD, contributes to mutual acceptance and understanding. Besides the creation and consolidation of a permanent basis for a dialogue, the goal of the project is to provide the possibility to directly
experience the pluralistic structure of Islam in the European context, and to point out the welladvanced mutual interlacing, not only between Muslims and non-Muslims, but also among the Muslims themselves.

The Summer School will focus on four topics: It will start with the analysis of historical encounters and mutual perceptions between Muslims and “Christian Europe”. The second topical complex will deal with the European Union, its structures, goals and proclaimed values. Particular emphasis will be laid on the role of religion in the self-perception of EU and its positioning vis-à-vis Islam. The third part will be devoted to the presence of Muslims in public sphere in areas of education, law and political participation with a focus on the Image
of Islam in mass media and its development.
The interaction with the state and the majority populations will be discussed on the basis of selected case studies (Germany, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands). Finally, the last topical complex will approach the relationship between religion and violence.

The educational part of the Summer School will be accompanied by a rich cultural
programme and excursions to Weimar and Berlin. Please visit our homepage for regularly updated schedules and further information (http://www2.uni-erfurt.de/summerschool/).

Participants will receive a grant covering a part of their travel and accommodation expenses.

Besides a careful preparation of selected texts in advance, each participant is expected to contribute to the workshops on the spot. The working language is English. Applicants must be under the age of 27 and must have graduated before the beginning of the Summer School. To start the application process, please send your CV and a statement of motivation (400 words) to: University of Erfurt, Chair Islamic Studies, Nordhaeuser Str. 63, 99089 Erfurt, Germany, phone: +49 - (0)361 - 737 - 4100/4114; fax: +49 - (0)361 - 737 – 4109 ; c/o Jessica Maaßen jessica_maureen.maassen@stud.uni-erfurt.de ; ref: Muslims in the West.

Applications should be submitted in English, by 30 April 2010. Once the selection process is completed, the participants will be given further instructions.