Program Reviews

I’m from the Netherlands. I did a Bachelor’s degree in law and in Middle Eastern Studies and a Master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies. I chose to follow the Human Rights Program at the Excellence Center because it combines my interests: Law and the Middle East, especially concerning the situation in Palestine. I wanted to learn more about the humanitarian situation in Palestine. Moreover, I wanted to experience living in Palestine to get an impression of the culture.
The program started with several lectures about human rights and the situation in Palestine. The presentations focused on the political situation in Palestine, the laws applicable to Palestine, and the violation of laws. Various teachers delivered the presentations. Given the complexity of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, these lectures and presentations prepared me for the trips to human rights organizations that would take place during my internship.
I attended a lot of activities that were organized by the Excellence Center. For the Human Rights Program, we went to organizations that work on the topic of human rights for example Human Rights Defenders an organization that organizes campaigns to stop the Israeli occupation. Moreover, we went to Palestinian Artist, Nizreen Al-Azza. She lives in the H2 area (the military-controlled area in Hebron). She told me about her husband, a human rights defender in Hebron before he died following the inhalation of tear gas in a checkpoint in Hebron. The work of human rights lawyers is under pressure due to the Israeli military making it difficult for them to carry out their work. Besides organizations that directly focus on human rights, I also visited organizations that are indirectly involved in human rights. An example is the Ministry of Education, a department of the Palestinian government that focuses on the right to education. We discussed the school system and the importance of focusing on schools next to settlements due to the difficult circumstances to go to school because of checkpoints, and the fear of children passing military soldiers. Moreover, it is hard to find teachers that want to teach in these areas given the challenges of teaching children that grew up in a conflict zone and have experienced traumatic events. Also, most of the teachers do not want to be in these areas. Therefore, the right to education in Palestine is under pressure.
The working visits were very helpful to get a better understanding of the situation in Palestine. However, the best way to get a better understanding is by living in the country, speaking with a lot of different people, and hearing their perspectives and experiences. The people in Hebron are very open and willing to talk to foreigners. They are very hospitable and I have been invited to several family dinners. Their hospitality is the thing that I liked most I like to take that home. I have never felt unsafe in Palestine. There are always people on the streets and everyone is willing to help.
It is important to understand a little bit of Arabic. The Center organizes 3 hours of Arabic per week you’re at the center. Those lessons helped me to interact with the people on the streets.
During the weekends you have time off to travel to other places. I have been to many places such as Ramallah, Nablus, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Jericho, and the Dead Sea. I really liked the opportunity to visit these places.
In short, I really enjoyed my time at the Excellence Center in Hebron. The staff and the teachers are very friendly. I am writing this in my last week and I am sad that I have to leave. It is an experience I will take with me forever.

I was a bit nervous because of what I heard about Palestine and the fact that I had never traveled anywhere in the middle east before. But I learned and experienced so much that I would've never been able to anywhere else. It was also extremely safe and my host family was very helpful throughout my stay.
During my first week in Palestine, I understood how important community is and how it holds everything together. In the West, we’re much more individualistic and focused on the self; here, it is the opposite. One of my first visits was to a Human Rights NGO in the Old City. The man we spoke to was a non-violent activist who provided English lessons, first aid classes for women, and much more. He told us that for Sahoor they took community members to a local Palestinian village to learn about Palestinian agricultural practices and their history. This is just one example of how vital these resources are.

Overall, this experience was very impactful, and it was necessary to experience life here first-hand. I’ve made unique connections with people in the center and Palestinians all throughout Palestine. I won’t forget the time I spent here, and I plan on taking everything I learned and immersed myself in while I was here, with me when I go.

Nowhere on Earth will you find people quite like the Palestinian people, they are extremely firendly, generous, and kind. They will happily welcome you into their country and their own homes. The Arabic courses here at the Excellence Center are an amazing way to quickly improve all facets of your language skills. My teacher Duha was amazing! Everyday I learned new and important skills, I felt supported the whole way. I cannot recommend this program enough to others. I always felt safe walking in the city.

I am a 20F and a master’s student in America studying Palestinian politics. I had not been in Arabic classes for over a year, and I wanted to improve my Arabic in an immersive way for a reasonable price. After searching on the internet, I found the Excellence Center.
I was worried about starting Arabic again since I hadn’t been in classes for over a year, but I was blessed to be in a class with one of the best teachers I have ever had. Haya met me exactly where I was and has helped me grow tremendously. Not only in vocabulary, reading, listening comprehension, and writing, but most importantly, I gained confidence in speaking Arabic that I didn’t have before her class. Haya is a fantastic teacher; I can attribute much of my success in Arabic and navigating Palestine to her. She pushed me in the best way, and everything we did in class was set up to help me succeed. Haya is incredibly attentive and meticulous in her lessons and tailored each class to what I needed and even my interests! It is easily visible how much she cares about her students. Even now, I know I can continue to build upon my Arabic because she set up an incredibly firm foundation for me to continue on my own. Everything I learned from Haya applied to my daily life in Palestine. I could visibly see my progress even though I had only spent four weeks in class with her.

The Center was welcoming, and it was great to be placed with a host family to have an
immersive experience. The other teachers at the Center were also incredibly supportive. They were always willing to practice speaking with me and answer my questions about the ongoing Nakba, occupation, and general things about Palestine and traveling around the country.

I traveled to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Ramallah, and Nablus during my month here. I visited multiple refugee camps in numerous cities. Even if you have followed the news and studied Palestine, nothing can compare to seeing what is happening firsthand.
I cannot speak highly enough of Haya and the other teachers at the Center. They are genuinely some of the best Arabic instructors I’ve ever had. But, this is tied directly to Palestinian hospitality. This was my first time out of the United States, and I never once felt uncomfortable or unsafe. I knew that if I ever needed help, all I needed to do was turn to a random Palestinian on the street, and they would go above and beyond to help me. I am incredibly grateful for my experience here, both in and outside the classroom, and I cannot wait to return to Palestine.

I spent a month interning at the Excellence Center in Halle during July 2023. During this time I studied Arabic, taught English, and had the chance to get to know several people/families who came to Germany as refugees.

My time at the Excellence Center was a positive experience, in which I had the chance to both learn from my peers and help others as an English teacher. The workload was extremely manageable, as it is a flexible environment where you can plan lessons on your own both in terms of time and location. For example, I don’t work well with many classes in a row and prefer to have my lessons spread out, therefore I planned in 1-2 classes a day in the afternoons including during the weekends in a café near my house, which is what suited me best. In contrast, another of the volunteers prefers to have intense days: he scheduled all of his classes on Wednesdays and Thursdays, meaning that the other days he can either study, plan lessons, or go on trips around the area.

As well as this, the Excellence Center is a welcoming atmosphere, and works to create activities to make the volunteers and interns get to know each other. We have breakfast together four days a week, and Rafat regularly makes brunches and lunches with traditional Palestinian dishes for special occasions, most often when we have goodbyes for volunteers. The Center also organizes city tours and trips outside of Halle, and supports any new trip ideas they might have. This was especially interesting as the group of volunteers was quite international, meaning that through these activities we got to know each other and our different cultures and experiences better.

My only comment for the Center would be the nature of the communication. Several times it felt like information was communicated last-minute, and only when asked. I was only told about my accommodation a few weeks before starting, and was only told where I was supposed to go upon arrival two hours before getting to Halle, after I asked. Though I was told to bring basic necessities such as bedsheets, I wasn’t told that there wouldn't be Wi-Fi in my accommodation, which led me to spending extra money to get data roaming, using café Wi-Fi, or having to ask to use my housemates’ Wi-Fi hotspots when they were home. This hassle would’ve been prevented by making sure every accommodation had Wi-Fi, or by communicating in advance that I needed to buy a German SIM. During the internship itself it also felt like events were communicated last-minute, either the day before or the day of the activity, and the dates and times of events do change quite a bit. To be fair, the flexibility of the work means that I could simply reschedule things, but organization and communication still is an area where the Center can improve.

However in general, I did feel very supported throughout the whole internship, because there were many people I could go to for any issues. There are student coordinators who help a lot, for example checking you into your accommodation, organizing tours around the city, and acting as points of reference for any issues you may have. For instance the second week I was here, my housemate had locked herself in her bedroom and couldn’t get out as the key wasn’t working. I called Ali (the volunteer team leader) and Lord (the coordinator) for help: Ali gave me information regarding locksmiths in Germany but couldn’t help as he had a meeting, and Lord helped me by calling the 24-hour locksmith who only spoke German, and checked in throughout the afternoon to know how things were going. It all worked out in the end, and we couldn’t have done it without their knowledge and help. Similarly Rafat, the director, is a caring and generous person, who makes an effort to get to know everyone and makes sure they feel comfortable and safe. For example I got ill the first week of my internship, and he showed me where the pharmacy was, loaned me cash as my card stopped working, told me to go home and get rest, and texted me a few times to ask how I was feeling. He also reassured me that if I wasn’t getting better, he could help me get checked-out by a doctor. Rafat consistently checked in with me throughout the month, asking how I was settling in and if there were any issues that he could help with. When my boyfriend came to visit me, Rafat was extremely welcoming and supportive, and invited him to both breakfast at the Center and a home-cooked meal.

All in all, interning at the Center was a growing and fulfilling experience, where I had the chance to know caring and interesting people, while learning about different cultures and experiences. I highly recommend it!

Hello! My name is Stephanie Carpenter and I am from Germany and England. I am currently doing a four year masters degree in Arabic and Islamic Studies and I came to the Excellence Center in Hebron to improve my Arabic dialect (language skills).

I did a lot of research to find a course that suited me and found that the Excellence Center not only gave a wide variety of options in their courses but also offered flexibility within their curriculum.

Once I found the center, I was determined to go and it was the best decision I made to improve my Arabic.

I had already studied Arabic for one year, and I was a unsure if the classes would match my level but my teacher, Mahmoud and my class was suited me perfectly. And even though I was with the Center for a short time I learned such a lot and laughed a lot in my classes . Every morning I had Arabic from 8:30-12 with breaks for food and coffee and the afternoons were filled with trips to the city of Hebron. On my first day, we went to Al Fawwar Refugee camp where I learned a lot about the reality of living in these areas and the struggles they face daily. This was really important for me as I believe that hearing about their experiences is the best way to get a real understanding of the situation.
Another trip was to the Old City of Hebron and the Ibrahimi Mosque, both of which were incredible to see firsthand. In between the big trips we also had some lovely events at the center, including traditional Palestinian music and Maqloubah for dinner. This was a lovely way to chat with others in different programs.

One of the things I loved most about the Center is the kindness and friendliness of the staff, teachers, and students which gives such a welcoming atmosphere. But everyone you meet in Palestine is extremely polite and willing to help whether you are speaking English or Arabic. I’ve never felt unsafe or insecure during my time here and I couldn’t recommend coming to Hebron enough.

Additionally, staying with a host family was such a unique way of getting to know the food and culture of Palestine. I can honestly say from the first day I felt extremely at home and very comfortable which is very important when travelling as a solo woman. I can’t wait to come back again to Hebron and to the center and I will definitely be staying for longer next time!

I had a really great time in Hebron. I studied Arabic and my level has increased greatly. Every step of the way, I had support from my teacher who always tailored the lessons specifically for my needs. Other than just Arabic, living in Khalil was great. People in Khalil are extremely nice and welcoming. It is a great place to be based in within the West Bank. Khalil is a safe city and I never felt under any threat ever. In fact, I expect that you will feel safer in Khalil than in your country of origin

I had an amazing time with the Excellence Centre. Staff are absolutely brilliant and very friendly. We visited different organisations which help support refugees and visited fawar refugee camp and gained an insight into the living conditions and life of the refugees. Fantastix experience with great people. I will definetly return in the future. My message for those who are afraid of coming, I want to reasure you it is extremely safe so please come and visit Palestine and the lovely people here.

I visited Hebron with my family. We stayed for 12 days one of these weeks was with the excellence centre. We participated in voluntary work with refugees and medical professionals. We feel it was an eye opening and informative experience. We were able to gain a lot of knowledge and insight into the lives of those living in Hebron. Throughout the experience, we all felt safe, supported and welcomed. I would recommend this program to others and I think the programe it excellent in allowing younger students to engage in learning English, which was taught very well.

My Name is Dayton. I have a Bachelors in Economics and I participated in the Media and Journalism internship at the Excellence Center in Palestine.
During my time at the Excellence center I toured the city of Hebron. I was able to see many important place in the city as well as meet many members of media, the chamber of Commerce, the Municipal government, Law and activists. I also hade the opportunity to volunteer in English langue classes held at the center for Palestinian youth and take Arabic classes myself. My Arabic classes were rigorous, engaging and a lot of fun! My listening and reading comprehension greatly improved during my time at the center. I also developed the rudiments of conversation skills that I hope to build upon in the future.
The Center is a very warm and inviting environment. I was able to meet volunteers from around the world as well as well as many Palestinians from the community of Hebron. People were full of advice about how to make the most of my internship and how best to navigate the West Bank and Hebron. During my stay, I participated in every site visit that was made available to me. I visited the Ibrahim Mosque, a Russian Orthodox Church, a Kafiyeh Factory, a School for the Blind, A radio station, a TV station, the Old City and to H2. I was also able to visit other cities in the West Bank such as Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jericho and Nablus.
Living in Hebron was a very pleasant experience. The People are very curious, friendly and generous. People off the street would invite my to have dinner with them or just to strike up a conversation. I never worried about feeling unsafe. If ever crossed the street it was because I didn't want to accept a gift of coffee or some sweets! I most enjoyed and respected the resilient spirit of the Palestinian people and that despite the daily reality of the Occupation; very person that I met was positive about their future.
My Favorite experience in the West Bank was all of it! I was able to learn so much not just about Arabic or Palestinian history but about world history. MY time in the West Bank and in Hebron has left a lasting impression that will affect where I travel and how I live for some time. I would recommend the Excellence center to anyone that wanted to learn more or who wanted an exciting experience.