The creation of the master program “Intellectual Encounters of the Islamicate World” (IEIW) at the Freie Universität Berlin (FUB) was a shared initiative of stakeholders for the internationalization of higher education and development in Germany to pilot an online degree. Growing awareness of the crucial role that access to higher education and advanced professional training play for economic development in the Middle East culminated in the launch of this project by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), with funding made available by the Federal Ministry for International Cooperation and Economic Development (BMZ). An online master program bringing Israeli and Palestinian students together in the study of their shared religious history was expected to foster capacities for intercultural dialogue in future professionals and to broaden access to advanced graduate degrees for marginalized groups.
