Program Reviews

This year was my second time visiting the Excellence Center in Hebron and each time is better than the last! Marwa and Osama are such wonderful people who take care of their volunteers like their own children. I had an amazing time taking Arabic lessons with Haya and now feel more comfortable drawing letters in different alphabets!

I had such a fulfilling time with all the volunteers from around the world and learned so much about life in Palestine. Through networking I was able to follow professional photographers in Palestine and learned so much about my camera as well as Israeli apartheid. My goal in travelling to Palestine was to photograph soldiers shutting down Palestinian streets and the architecture of apartheid to share when I get home to America and I truly believe I reached my goal and then some!

I've been on the internship with the excellence centre for three weeks in total now, and the time has flown by so fast. Every morning we all come together for a big Palestinian breakfast, and this communal time is my favourite part of the day. The centre provides a wide range of activities. On some days, we spent a couple of hours visiting the offices of local human rights organisations, and on other days we would visit schools, camps and local manufacturers. On some days, we would simply enjoy a nice picnic together looking over the beautiful valleys and landscapes around Al-Khalil. Each morning i would look forward to my Arabic lessons with Doha, an amazing teacher among many who can teach at whatever level suits your learning style. Should you choose to intern with the excellence centre, you're undoubedly in for an absolutely unforgettable experience; and all the international and local friends I've made here would surely agree.

This is a great opportunity for anyone who would like to become a journalist. I attended many useful workshops that will help me in the future. Meetings with Palestinian journalists and interviews with interesting people were a great experience. What is more, the atmosphere was great and I could always count on the help of the Excellence Center or other volunteers. Also, Arabic lessons helped me a lot, as I learned basic phrases needed for communication. I recommend this program to anyone who wants to develop their skills.

It was an absolutely amazing and rewarding experience to teach English and Study German at the center. I really enjoyed being able to plan and tailor lessons to my students needs and abilities. It was great to meet people from all over the world and learn about each others cultures, language and traditions. I also enjoyed learning German and appreciated the mix between written lessons and interactive lessons out in the community. Sharing breakfast together every morning at the center was another highlight that made me feel supported and welcomed.

Sincere thanks to Rafat, Muaz, Dusan and team for your meaningful work, friendly community and this fantastic experience. I will remember it fondly forever.

This is my second time at the Excellence Center, and it was just as good as the first time. The programs they offer are highly valuable in of themselves, but the center is also a great place to base yourself while in Palestine. The staff knows people all over the West Bank and can find someone to put you in touch with almost anywhere you'd like to visit. As far as safety goes, the West Bank is on most days safer than your average visit to a resort town in Mexico. Everyone at the Center has your best interest in mind and will help keep you safe during your stay.

I had my first ten online lessons in Palestinian Arabic with my teacher Dana and will certainly continue. I can highly recommend. Dana was super friendly and very structured and experienced, while at the same time flexible towards my questions and very motivating. My focus was on conversational skills, but I also learned to read Arabic and its pronunciation. Topics I thought would be difficult became understandable during the classes. I look forward to my next round of classes. Highly recommendable!

The week I spent this summer at the Excellence Centre in Europe teaching English and studying German and Arabic was fulfilling from an both an academic and interpersonal perspective. Rafat and Muaz are wonderful mentors and helped me improve both my technical skills and confidence in my ability to speak German, and gave me a solid foundation to continue studying Arabic. In just a week, the different people I met and connections facilitated by the centre have made this a unique and special experience, which feels truly important.

I came to the Excellence Center in Hebron to participate in their super-intensive Arabic course for about twelve weeks. I had no familiarity with the language when I arrived but for the script, but after three months of one-on-one instruction with an experienced teacher, I gained a very good beginning acquaintance with it, especially as spoken here in Palestine. Classes touched on all aspects of language-learning—on grammar, vocabulary, translation, and conversation—providing me with a solid foundation for further study. I was also happy to discover that the Center was a lively and welcoming place to undertake this work. It’s staffed by a group of people who are really friendly and genuinely interested in sharing the culture with visitors. It’s also an important institution for the local community, making it a great place for someone like me to make some special acquaintances. It’s a hard thing to capture in a few words, but my experience at the Center was one of the most rewarding of my life.

I was anxious going into the program since I didn’t have previous experience teaching English, but my experience was really great! The program is pretty open ended, so you can find a style that works for you. Everyone at the Center from the teachers to the students are so nice and friendly. Halle is also a cute city and really nice to walk around. I also learned Arabic for two weeks as a beginner and I’m surprised by how much I learned. I’d recommend the program to anyone that wants to learn or teach a language and explore a unique part of Germany.

I studied on the Intensive Levantine Arabic course, and it was an excellent experience. Ali and Muaz teach students Arabic in a fun and practical way, and sometimes took us around the city to learn new vocab as we walked and where could order in Arabic in Arab-run cafes/restaurants too. I learnt so much more than the language, and learnt about customs and culture in Levant region which helped me understand the language even more. Rafat makes all the students feel welcome and he creates a great atmosphere at the school. I would highly recommend the Excellence Center, and Ali and Muaz as teachers!