Intersectional Islam: Sacred Spaces, Feminist Perspectives & Social Justice

Spend spring break in Istanbul, the only city in the world that spans both Europe and Asia and where centuries of history meet contemporary culture.

Highlights

• Explore how Islam, gender, race, history, and culture intersect to shape identities, social movements, and contemporary debates on justice, belonging, and social change in Turkey.
• Engage with Turkish scholars, university students, activists, and community organizations to examine issues of Islamic feminism, social justice, religious pluralism, migration, and the lived experiences of diverse Muslim communities.

• Visit significant religious, historical, and cultural sites, including Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapı Palace, the Grand Bazaar, and the Spice Market; experience a Bosphorus cruise and a Whirling Dervishes ceremony while exploring how sacred spaces, cultural heritage, and public memory inform contemporary understandings of faith and identity.

You will enroll in a spring course in Rochester that examines the intersections of Islam, gender, race, identity, and social justice through historical and contemporary perspectives. Drawing on Islamic texts, feminist scholarship, intersectionality, and decolonial thought, you will explore how Muslim scholars, activists, and communities have engaged with questions of power, belonging, equality, and social change. Through critical discussion and reflection, you will develop the knowledge and analytical tools needed to engage thoughtfully with the people, places, and perspectives you will encounter in Turkey.

During RIT's spring break, you will travel to Istanbul and Bursa, connecting classroom learning with firsthand experiences in one of the world's most historically and culturally significant crossroads. Through engagement with local scholars, university students, religious and community leaders, and cultural organizations, you will examine the relationship between faith, identity, social justice, and civic life in contemporary Turkey.

Istanbul provides a unique setting for exploring the course themes as a city shaped by centuries of interaction among diverse religious, cultural, and political traditions. You will investigate how sacred spaces, historical memory, and contemporary social movements influence conversations about gender, religion, pluralism, and justice in modern society.

Program excursions may include:

• Visits to iconic religious, cultural, and historical sites, including Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Süleymaniye Mosque, Topkapı Palace, Dolmabahçe Palace and Harem, the Basilica Cistern, and Galata Tower. These sites offer insight into the religious, political, and cultural histories that have shaped Turkey and the broader Islamic world.
• A cruise along the Bosphorus and Golden Horn, providing a unique perspective on Istanbul's role as a bridge among continents, cultures, and civilizations.
• Visits to the Grand Bazaar and Spice Market, and a Whirling Dervishes (Sema) ceremony, offering opportunities to engage with living cultural and spiritual traditions.
• A day trip to Bursa, the first capital of the Ottoman Empire, where students will explore historic mosques, markets, and cultural landmarks while examining the historical development of Islamic institutions and society.
• Through these immersive experiences, students will connect course concepts to lived realities, deepen their understanding of the diversity of Muslim experiences, and develop critical intercultural competencies for engaging with questions of faith, identity, justice, and social change in a global context.

Upcoming Student Info. Meetings

• Thursday, Sept. 10th, 5-6 pm, Liberal Arts Hall, Mackenzie Commons, Room 1251
• Wednesday, Oct. 7th, 3-4 pm, Zoom

Course Term: Spring course at RIT, travel to Turkey over Spring Break
Travel Dates: March 6-13, 2027 (estimated)
Credits: 3

Course Details:

• INGS/WGST 231: Global Feminism (Intersectional Islam) (undergraduate)
• WGST 598: Advanced Project in WGSS (graduate)
  
  Students will be enrolled in a spring course at RIT and travel to Turkey over spring break.
  
  Course can count as a major course (Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies B.S. or Global Futures B.S.), a GE Ethical or GE Global Perspective, GE Elective, or Free Elective.
  
  Course can also count towards the following minors/immersions: Diversity, Inclusion, and Dialogue IM & MN, Gender, Art, and Media IM & MN, Gender Equity, Social Institutions, and Public Affairs IM & MN, Global Experience IM, Global Justice IM, Arabic IM & MN, Queer and Trans Studies IM & MN, Religious Studies IM, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies IM & MN.

No course prerequisites, no language requirements: program is taught in English.

Open to all undergraduate and graduate majors, all year levels, 2.5 cumulative GPA or above.

Application Deadline: Sunday, October 18th, 2026

Program Cost & Financial Aid

Program Cost: A student budget worksheet outlining all program costs will be available in early September.

Financial Aid:
Financial aid may cover some program costs. As you review the budget worksheet, please remember that it does not include your RIT financial aid or scholarships, which may cover some of the program costs. The purpose of the budget worksheet is to show all the costs associated with your study abroad program, which will help your RIT Financial Aid Assistant Director determine how your aid and scholarships may be applied. 

To understand how your financial aid and scholarships may apply to your program costs:

• Make an appointment with your financial aid assistant director (call Financial Aid at 585-475-2186) and mention that you are calling for a study abroad appointment
• Upload a copy of your budget worksheet(s) via the Financial Aid upload portal at https://join.rit.edu/register/FA_upload (at least 48 hours prior to your scheduled meeting so they have time to prepare) 
  • Please rename the file name of your budget worksheet before uploading it to the Financial Aid portal based on the instructions provided in the portal (adding your name and student ID)

To find out the name of your financial aid assistant director for your degree program visit: https://www.rit.edu/admissions/aid/contact#counseling-team

We recommend you meet with Financial Aid before the application deadline so you understand how your aid will apply. The RIT financial aid office is located in Bausch and Lomb Center (Bldg. 77), 2nd floor, 2125.

Scholarships:

• RIT Education Abroad Travel Grants ($500-$1,000)
  All students with pending applications in the RIT Study Abroad Compass for this program will be automatically considered for an RIT Education Abroad Travel Grant. You will be informed of your scholarship status shortly after the application deadline. Scholarships are awarded based on financial need, as determined by financial aid and your FAFSA on file.

• Additional Scholarships
  RIT scholarships and national scholarships for study abroad are good options to explore for scholarship funding. Make sure you check scholarship eligibility requirements and note scholarship deadlines. 

To Apply

1) Start an application in the Compass (RIT's study abroad application system)
Once you login to the Compass you will need to complete some profile/registration questions, then use the “Search Programs” tab to search for “Intersectional Islam” to complete an application.

2) Watch this video, which goes over all important application steps for RIT Faculty-Led Programs

Contact

Silvia Benso
Professor
Department of Philosophy, College of Liberal Arts
Director, Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program
sxbgsl@rit.edu

Hinna Upal
Adjunct Faculty
Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program
hmucae@rit.edu