This spring, the YCMES will be offering two courses – one on politics and one on literature – through the PCMES during the 2010 spring semester.  Both courses will be available to all students currently enrolled at the college’s language center (PAL), as well as to new international students enrolling full-time with the YCMES. Local Yemenis who are fluent in English, having attained a TOEFL score of at least 600, may also enroll. Both courses will be taught in English and are fully accredited.

For more information on the PCMES, please click here.

The 2009 Academic Amsterdam Exchange Program is underway. We are now accepting applications from young Yemeni students currently enrolled in University or recently graduated.

The Program: The YCMES and the University of Amsterdam have annually offered an Exchange program for Yemeni students in December and January. In past years, the program included hosting U of A students here in Sana’a for a 10-day tour of the country which included trips to Manakha and Shebam/Kowkaban as well as meetings with Ministers, NGOs, Political Parties, Human Rights Activists and artists from Yemen. Likewise, the Yemeni students went to Amsterdam for a similar 10-day excursion. This year, the program will become an accredited academic course offered through the YCMES with weekly classes, assignments and projects. The course will include two main goals: Academic skills, to prepare students for college level courses in English, as well as a Political Science aspect, the main topic of the course being “Democracy and Dictatorship in the Netherlands and Europe”.

Requirements: Chosen students will be those will excellent spoken and written English (Level 6 or higher at YALI or equivalent), a strong academic background and either currently enrolled or recently graduated from college, as well as an interest in Political Science and cross-cultural exchange. You must be available during the program for classes and exchange dates to travel and host the Dutch students.

Application/How to Apply: This opportunity is only open to Yemeni nationals. Please e-mail amsterdam@ycmes.org for an application and more information. Deadline is October 1st.

The YCMES is organizing it's annual Amsterdam Exchange Program with the University of Amsterdam. The program was designed to give students from Yemen and the Netherlands the opportunity to meet one another, discuss politics and exchange the culture of their respective countries. This year will be a bit different with the exchange visits only playing a small role in the program. An academic course will be established resembling the course given at the UofA to allow Yemeni students to not only practice and master their academic English but also to prepare them for higher education in the US and Europe. More news coming soon with this exciting opportunity.

The Program in Contemporary Middle Eastern Studies course for Summer Session 1 (June 6 - July 8, 2009) was a great success, with students ranging in age from 20 to 76. “Tribe, Gender and Islam in Contemporary Arabia” was the focus of the course, and it was taught by Havard University Professor and YCMES Advisory Dean, Dr. Steven Caton. In addition to the lectures held on the YCMES campus, the students traveled to Dar al-Hajar, the National Museum, the Tihama Region, and Taiz, Ibb and Jiblah to bring some of the course readings to life. They also met in a discussion forum with prominent gender activists in Yemen. For the students’ final projects, they gave lectures in front of an audience of classmates and other students from the Arabic program on an issue of their choosing that was addressed in the course. Lecture topics ranged from women’s empowerment to tribal and Islamic history, and were all well-received.

The YCMES has now added free grammar and conversation courses for it's students to attend for free. This adds to the several activities and trips we schedule weekly for our students. There is no better way to learn Arabic and about Yemeni culture than here at the YCMES where we actively take our students out into the city and help them learn more about this beautiful country. Check out the Activities Calendar to get an idea of what a typical day looks like for our students.