With the Pathways to PhD’s in Ancient Egyptian, North African, and Western Asian Studies, we aim to challenge academic colonialism by bringing young scholars of color to UCLA to combine traditional Egyptological research with diverse perspectives and approaches. The program’s ultimate goal is to prepare students to enter PhD programs and eventually receive full-time positions as tenure-track professors, museum curators, or higher education administrators.
To accomplish this, students will get an overview of all aspects of Egyptian culture and discuss the racial history of the field over the course of the summer. Special emphasis will be placed on how to challenge and overcome barriers to Afrocentrist and other alternative approaches. By the end of the course and continuing into the academic year, students will be guided through the creation of a competitive and cutting-edge research paper. This paper can then be used as a writing sample for PhD applications with continued mentorship through the entire application process by the program’s faculty.