The American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt
The CMEPS programme is entirely taught in English.
It features language courses in Arabic, taught in accordance with the student's level of proficiency.
Of the total of 120 ECTS (credits), 36 ECTS are allocated to compulsory Arabic courses. While some courses (e.g. entry level courses) are taught partly in English and Arabic, others are exclusively taught in Arabic – again, depending on the student's Arabic proficiency.
At the University of Tübingen:
15 May
At the American University in Cairo:
1 February (first round) and 1 April (second round)
1 April (application deadline)
Tuition fees amount to approx. 1,500 EUR per semester for students from non-EU countries and 650 EUR per semester for students who already hold a Master's degree from Germany. Other students from EU countries only pay the semester contribution (see below).
More information concerning tuition fees: https://www.uni-tuebingen.de/en/31479
All students will take core courses on Comparative Politics of the Middle East, Regime Change and Democratisation, and Development Politics and International Cooperation.
Comparative Politics of the Middle East
Polity, economy, and society are considered as interconnected areas for research in comparative politics. In this course, the debate about theory in Middle East politics is explored in relation to comparative work on other areas. It examines key concepts and questions of comparative politics with the help of cases taken from the Middle East and North Africa, chiefly covering questions of state-society relations, political regimes, civil society, statehood, and political economy. By doing so, it gives an overview of the key characteristics of the region on an advanced level of studies.
Regime Change and Democratisation
The course addresses the academic debate on authoritarianism, regime change, and democratisation from a theoretical and empirical perspective. It provides knowledge about key concepts and theoretical approaches to analyse processes of systemic political change, such as political regime analysis, theories of democratic and autocratic transition and consolidation. Hybrid regimes are a further topic of analysis. While the focus of this module is on concepts and explanatory approaches as well as on international factors in regime change, empirical cases chosen from different continents allow students to apply concepts to real-world cases.
Development Politics and International Cooperation
The course examines the main features of the politics of development and international development cooperation, including, but not limited to, conceptual issues such as the changing understandings of "development" itself as well as theoretical approaches to explain development or its absence; key bi- and multi-lateral as well as state and non-state actors in development cooperation; prominent challenges for development cooperation actors (climate change, poverty, good governance, etc.); and key trends of practical development cooperation. This course may take place as a joint seminar for all CMEPS students at AUC and at the University of Tübingen.
Middle East Politics and Societies
This course provides an in-depth examination of the nature and dynamics of Middle East politics. It explores some of the region's key political and social structural traits, as it aims at generating an understanding of the fundamentals of the modern Middle East. The course will focus on state formation, national identities, leadership, elites, and the impact of the West.
In addition to the political science core modules, students at AUC will take courses on the foundations of political science during their first year of study, while students at University of Tübingen will, depending on their first degree, attend courses on the foundations of political science or basic Arabic language training. Students will take Arabic and German language classes, respectively.
Elective courses
In addition to these compulsory courses, students will have the possibility to specialise in a certain field. At AUC and at the University of Tübingen, they can choose from a variety of elective courses that are listed in "Course organisation" (subject to availability).
During their studies, CMEPS students from Tübingen complete an exchange semester with the American University in Cairo.
At the University of Tübingen, CMEPS studies are organised as follows:
24 ECTS credits for the alternate modules (depending on the students' first degree)
45 ECTS credits for the compulsory modules
21 ECTS credits for the mandatory elective modules (for exchange track students in semesters one to three, for professional track students in semesters one to two)
30 ECTS credits for the examination module
At the AUC, CMEPS studies are organised as follows:
Compulsory courses:
Four mandatory elective courses in consultation with the Graduate Adviser/Coordinator of the joint programme
Thesis
The International Research Colloquium gives students the opportunity to present and discuss their research interests in an plenum comprised of professors and teachers from AUC and Tübingen University as well as external renowned international scholars.
As a joint Master's programme, each student's Master's thesis is jointly supervised by faculty from both institutions. This contributes to the international nature of the programme by bringing in another international perspective during the student's research and writing process as well as in the evaluation of each thesis.
An exchange semester at the Egyptian (American University in Cairo) partner institution is an integral part of the programme, as are joint seminars and the joint supervision of the MA thesis by faculty members from both universities.
Alternatively, students can also complete a long internship instead of the exchange semester.
CMEPS students in Tübingen complete a mandatory short internship (exchange track) or a long internship (professional experience track) during the course of their studies.
Tuition fees amount to approx. 1,500 EUR per semester for students from non-EU countries and 650 EUR per semester for students who already hold a Master's degree from Germany. Other students from EU countries only pay the semester contribution (see below).
More information concerning tuition fees: https://www.uni-tuebingen.de/en/31479
Enrolment fees at the University of Tübingen are currently about 150 EUR per semester. This includes use of local public transport free of charge Monday to Friday in the evening, at weekends and on public holidays. In addition, students may purchase a semester ticket for unlimited use of public transport in the city of Tübingen and the surrounding area (currently about 85 EUR).
Estimated basic student expenses are about 950 EUR per month according to the Tübingen Student Services organisation (“Studierendenwerk”), including rent for student accommodation. Rent for private accommodation will be more expensive.
More information concerning student finances and funding possibilities: https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/international/study-in-tuebingen/application-for-non-german-students/costs-and-funding/#c405427
Selection of students is based on academic capabilities, personal qualification and motivation. You are eligible to study in the CMEPS programme if you:
a) in political science or a related social science (for an application at AUC and University of Tübingen ), or
b) in Middle East studies, Islamic studies, or a related discipline (only at the University of Tübingen)
At the University of Tübingen, the applicant's Bachelor's grade must be 2.5 or better (on the German grading scale); at AUC, a GPA of at least 3.2 is required.
At the University of Tübingen, required documents for application comprise:
High school diploma, BA certificate/transcripts of records, CV, a letter of motivation (up to two pages), proof of English language requirements
Optional documents are: evidence of other achievements (internships, work experience, etc.), contact details of an academic referee (if desired, to be noted in CV)
At the American University in Cairo:
Make sure to select Graduate Admissions and the correct entry date as well as the concentration for MA in Comparative & Middle East Politics and Society (CMEPS) on the application form.
Applicants must provide evidence of proficiency in English, e.g. through TOEFL (scores: at least 90), IELTS (at least 6.5, writing section at least 7.0), or by providing a similar certificate. Students are exempted from certifying their English language skills under certain conditions (mother tongue, previous study experience in English-language programmes); please consult our homepage for details.
German language skills are not a prerequisite at either of the partner institutions.
At the University of Tübingen:
15 May
At the American University in Cairo:
1 February (first round) and 1 April (second round)
1 April (application deadline)
Online application: https://alma.uni-tuebingen.de/alma/pages/cs/sys/portal/hisinoneStartPage.faces
For questions regarding the application process, please contact the International Students Admissions Office.
E-mail study.master@uni-tuebingen.de.
Accommodation is available through the Student Services organisation (“Studierendenwerk“) or on the private market. Rooms in student accommodation cost approx. 300 to 450 EUR per month. As Tübingen is a very attractive place to live, private accommodation is more expensive and can take some effort to find. To make sure you find a suitable place to live, you should start looking as early as possible.
We recommend that you apply for student accommodation through the “Studierendenwerk” at the same time that you apply for admission to the Master's programme (https://www.my-stuwe.de/en/housing/online-application) and send in a copy of your notification of admission as soon as you have received it. (Your application won’t be processed before the “Studierendenwerk” has received proof of your admission.) For further information, check out the “Studierendenwerk” page on housing in Tübingen (https://www.my-stuwe.de/en/housing/).
Information concerning career advisory services: https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/einrichtungen/verwaltung/iii-studium-und-lehre/ueberfachliche-bildung-und-berufliche-orientierung/career-service/
The university offers a number of “onboarding” services for newly arriving international students. These include:
For further information, please refer to: https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/182071 (onboarding for degree-seeking students).
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