About Ancient Israel Studies
Come to study Archaeology and History of the Bible, in the Land of the Bible.
Our unique program puts students at the forefront of archaeological, historical, and biblical research. The International Graduate Program in Ancient Israel Studies at Tel Aviv University is an intensive one year MA, taught entirely in English. The outstanding program offers students “hands on” experience digging Israel’s ancient past, while learning the region’s fascinating and complex history, back to Biblical times and beyond.
The combination of classroom, fieldtrips and archaeological excavation season in the summer provides an intellectual and social component like no other MA program. The vibrant and nurturing environment of the program is unparalleled and prepares students for an academic and/or professional global career in Archaeology and related fields.
Program Highlights:
- Learn cutting-edge methods of field archaeology and engage on the fault lines between archaeology and biblical text in the Land of the Bible. The field is our classroom.
- Excavate the world’s most iconic and enthralling archaeological sites; Masada, The City of David, Tel Azeka, and Tel Moza to name a few.
- Learn and work side by side in the field with our award-winning faculty of world-renowned archaeological scholars.
- Learn a technical skillset in one of our many Archaeology Labs, among them Pottery Restoration Lab, Archaeobotanical Lab, Metal Conservation Lab and Ceramic Petrography Lab, and more.
- Acquire an ancient language. The program offers a different ancient language course every year, including Akkadian, Hittite, Biblical Hebrew, and next year Ancient Egyptian.
Hear from the Head of the Program, Prof. Oded Lipschits:
Our Students:
For over 10 years running, the program draws upon students from diverse backgrounds, around the globe to study Archaeology with a specialization in Biblical History, in the Land of the Bible. Our excavation sites are run entirely by our faculty. Students learn in the classroom, in our labs, and in the field with cutting edge scientific tools and methods integral in our course of study.
We offer three academic tracks:
- One year MA in Ancient Israel Studies
- One year MA in Ancient Israel Studies with thesis (an additional year)
- Accredited PhD track
Visit the career page to learn about our alumni and success stories.
Uncover the ancient world using the latest technology, high-tech instruments, and methods developed in our labs
In our labs, we are working with primary materials fresh out of the ground from our excavations. Materials include: stone tools, pottery, glass, bone, metal objects, and textiles,
Our students learn and conduct research in any of our research labs:
- Ceramic Restoration Lab
- Zooarchaeology Lab
- Laboratory of Archaeometallurgy
- Archaeobotanical Lab
- Laboratory of Metal Conservation
- Ceramic Petrography Lab
- Laboratory of Computational Archaeology
- Graphic documentation studio
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