SUMMER SCHOOL 2007

 Level 1 / Level 2

Level 1 Fees
Standard organisation £950
Standard individual £450
Student £250
(Student fees are subsidised by The Ibn Jabal Foundation)
Fees are not inclusive of visa, flight, accommodation or any other costs.
Please see breakdown below for projected estimates of other costs.

Level 2 Fees
Standard organisation £950
Standard individual £450
Student £250
(Student fees are subsidised by The Ibn Jabal Foundation)
Fees are not inclusive of visa, flight, accommodation or any other costs.
Please see breakdown below for projected estimates of other costs.

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Extracurricular Activities

The Arabic on this course is very intensive and participants will have precious little time for other academic activities. However, those who feel on top of their work may take advantage of the many other subjects that are available at different institutes and with private individuals in Cairo, such as tajweed. This is not included in the package and participants may enquire as to the cost of such lessons when they arrive.

Sightseeing
Sightseeing around Cairo can cost as little as 100EGP (£10). Outside Cairo, the price varies according to location, amount of time, and the mode of transportation. These are best arranged once you are in Egypt.

If you are a student, take your student card and international student card if you have one. This will give you discounts when visiting tourist sights.

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Important information for participants

Applications and Fees
Please apply using the online application form in the Registration section of this website. Once your application is accepted, you will be given information on how to pay your fees.

Arrival
You should arrive on or before Thursday 5 July. This will give you time to settle in, rest and acclimatise over the Weekend (Friday and Saturday) and be in gear to start class on Sunday.

Flights
Return flights from London to Cairo should cost approximately £300. We advise that you book flights early in order to ensure they get a seat and get a cheap price.

Visa
Visas should be obtained well in advance. Note that the fee does not include visa processing or costs.

Airport pick-up
If you wish to be picked up from the airport, which we advise if you are travelling alone or have not been to Egypt before, this will cost you £10. Please inform us of your arrival date and time so we can arrange pick-up from the airport.

Accommodation
The Course fees are not inclusive of your accommodation costs. The Al Diwan Centre will help you find accommodation either before or after you arrive. We project, on a generous estimate, that accommodation for two months will cost approximately £350, inclusive of the fee the Al Diwan Centre charges for their service. We appreciate that people's needs vary and some may find accommodation to their taste at a cheaper rate.

Clothing
We expect the weather to be quite summery and hot. However, we advise that you bring one set of warm clothing and a jacket in case the temperature drops, especially at night. It may be wise to bring a small rollable sleeping bag with you.

Food
The cost of food in Cairo depends on whether you prepare your own meals or eat out. If you cook your own meals, food expenses run less than 50 EGP (£5) a day. If you purchase cooked food, the price varies depending on the restaurant you go to and can be anywhere from 10 EGP (£1) to 100 EGP (£10) a meal. There are a wide variety of restaurants all over Cairo.

Transport
We encourage you to take accommodation within walking distance of the teaching venue. If students do require transport the price will range from 1 to 5 EGP (10-50p) per day.

Communication
Internet
Internet – There are over 50 Internet companies in Cairo that offer free dial-up Internet services (if you have a computer/laptop and phone line). With your land line, you can get an ADSL (256K) for as low as 150 EGP (£15) a month. You can pay hourly for dial-up at approximately 1.5 EGP (15p) per hour.

There are also Internet Cafes throughout Cairo whose prices are about 2-4 EGP (20-40p) per hour.

Telephone - You may like to take accommodation that has a land line phone installed, especially if you wish to receive calls from home.

Mobile phones differ widely in cost depending on what you are looking for. You also can buy sim cards for 50 EGP (£5) and can then top up as you wish.

You can make a call for approximately 0.50 EGP per minute at many stores. However, this rate also varies depending on the operators/owners of the store.

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Some General Advice on going to Egypt

1  Ask for the price before buying any goods.

2  Set – after negotiation if needed – the cost of the trip before getting in a taxi. There is a meter in every taxi, but over the years, they have become obsolete.

3  Carry cards with the names of the places you need to go to in Arabic.

4  Use the Currency Exchange services or banks for exchanging foreign currencies. Changing money on the black-market is illegal.

5  Always carry a photocopy of your passport and residency documentation.

6  Egyptian people, like any other people, are good and bad. Do not trust everyone 100% but also do not treat everyone with suspicion or mistrust.

7  When in the Masajid (Mosques), keep your belongings and shoes close to you.

8  If you do not like to use taxis, there are air-conditioned buses available. They are cheap, costing about 30 cents (3p) for a one-way trip.

9  Women should take care to wear modest clothes in order to avoid harassment. It is uncustomary to find native Egyptian women wearing above-the-knee skirts, low-cut tops, or shirts that reveal one’s midriff. Wearing more modest clothes will help you to avoid being harassed.

10  In Egypt, Friday is part of the weekend, as it is the Muslim Sabbath. Banks are also closed on Saturdays.

11  Avoid drinking alcohol or engaging in any kind of sexual intimacy in streets or public places. It is against the law as well as prohibited in Islamic culture, the culture of the Egyptian people.

12  If you want to make Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca) or Umrah from Egypt you will have to get a Saudi visa from your country of origin. The Saudi embassy in Egypt does not grant visas to non-Egyptians in Egypt, unless they have been in Egypt for at least a year. To confirm whether this visa policy is still in effect, please contact the nearest Saudi embassy to you.

13  If you wish to continue your stay and study in an Egyptian university, you have to get your Birth Certificate and your school certificates stamped (conferred) from the Egyptian embassy in your country. Conferrals mostly take place in July and August.

Disclaimer: Advice mentioned on this page is for general information only, and is not to be considered as official consultation of any kind. The Ibn Jabal Institute does not guarantee the accuracy of the information mentioned. The Ibn Jabal Institute is not liable for any use of this information.