AYA IBRAHIM
Country: Egypt
Programme: BA in Value Studies (2015)
Email: a.ibrahim@ecla.de
Why did you choose ECLA?
Amongst other things, the high academic standard to which it holds its students. I was also intrigued by the sort of people this kind of institution would attract -- so far, I haven't been disappointed.
What was the most interesting course for you so far and why?
"Stendhal and the Napoleonic World" with Catherine Toal. I struggled with this class for the better part of the term because reading the assigned novel was like staring at a fully loaded, colorful and rapidly spinning washing machine; I couldn't quite tell what was in there or where it was going. This class was history, literature and politics intertwined and it kept getting more and more elaborate. In the end I realized this served as a reflection of the historical context in which the novel was set, and was an accurate illustration of the contemporary political situation, which I found to be very interesting.
What's the most important thing you've learned at ECLA?
I learned this during my first core seminar for "The Republic and its Interlocutors". The discussion had somehow taken a turn towards the nature of human motivation in relation to Achilles' attachment to Briseis in The Illiad. One of my classmates felt it pointless to try and relate to Achilles as it was a different time and thus no correlation could be established between our motivation and his, our instructor protested and a heated debate ensued. Opinions on this stance can hugely vary, but I came out of the class with a deep conviction that flirting with the distant and abstract is evidently easy, because it's safe. The challenge is trying to bring it home. What would you do if you were in Achilles' shoes? How would you respond to Socrates? There is a lot of interaction with theory here at ECLA, which is outstanding because it forces you to develop your mental web so to speak, but that interaction is more or less pointless if you're not interested in investing effort to make it relevant.
What's your favorite activity outside the classroom?
Not much really, mostly preparing for class.
When/if a friend comes to Berlin, where do/would you take them?
Get up early and catch one of Berlin's many free walking tours, then go marvel at the bust of Nefertiti and The Pergamon Altar on the Museum Island. Have dinner at one of Berlin's exquisite (but surprisingly affordable) Thai restaurants.
In your view, what is the value of a liberal arts education?
A liberal arts education, more specifically an ECLA education, is ultimately what you make of it. As far as practicality is concerned I have no reason to believe that what I am getting here will not be useful in what I choose to do after I leave. An ECLA education helps develop a strong reliable mechanism for thinking about things that really matter, and further expand these thoughts into concepts that can then be used to shed light on a given issue. In short it forces you to bare your essence and look for answers where you wouldn't normally look.