Berkeley Summer Sessions

Music has been described as the perennial migrant, following the movements and migrations of communities throughout the world. This course explores music's own migrations, probing the ebbs and flows of music across national, regional, ethnic, and other borders across Latin America. We will focus on some of today's most crucial borderlands, such as the US-Mexico or Venezuela-Colombia borders.

Additionally, the course will examine the transnational flows of styles such as salsa, tango, cumbia, reggae, reggaetón, and samba.

Throughout, we will ask what the affordances and limits of music and/in migration are.

Click the ink in our bio for more information or visit: https://classes.berkeley.edu/content/2026-summer-music-139-002-lec-002

This introductory course uses psychedelics as a three-part case study to examine a) how educational institutions and broader society have adjudicated among competing ways of knowing (i.e., epistemologies, or worldviews); and b) how this process of adjudication has limited psychedelics education and risk reduction efforts that stand to equip students with critical knowledge and scientifically-based tools; and c) how comprehensive knowledge and appropriate campus-based and other tools might support the navigation of complex, real-world contexts safely, rather than assuming pure avoidance of psychedelic substances.

Join us for an orientation webinar before Session B begins so you can hear updated announcements, important information regarding enrollment, Berkeley course expectations, and ways you can get involved with other students at UC Berkeley!

The presentation will be hosted by our Summer Sessions advisors who will help answer questions after a 30-minute presentation. For international students joining us from abroad, we will also present relevant information regarding your F-1 visa and maintaining your international student status.

This event is held on Zoom. A link will be shared with you 24 hours prior to the event.

Click the link in our bio for more or visit: https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/ucb-summer/orientation-webinar-session-b

Whether you want to decode the mysteries of the pharaohs or understand the complex tapestry of global history, the MELC department has you covered.

MELC 18: Introduction to Ancient Egypt
If you’ve ever wanted to know what’s actually inside a mummy's tomb, this is for you. We’re covering everything from the building of the pyramids to the daily lives of the people who lived in their shadow.

👀 Visual learners rejoice: Lectures are packed with deep-dive slideshows.

🏛️ We’re heading to the Phoebe Hearst Museum of Anthropology. It houses the best collection of Egyptian artifacts west of Chicago—and you get a front-row seat.

MELC 146: Islam
The course will cover both medieval and modern Islam and will touch upon all major sects. In reference to the modern period, particular emphasis will fall on the relationship of medieval and modern interpretations and on the emergence of “political” and “liberal” Islam with reference to the history of the modern Middle East.

Topics: The life of Muhammad, the Quran, Tradition, Law, Sufism, Theology, Philosophy, and Politics.

click the link in our bio to learn more or visit https://classes.berkeley.edu/

Trips, visions, psychedelic experiences: this course will trace the theme of hallucinations through literature of the 19th and 20th centuries, with some diversions into film, the visual arts, and music.

Beginning with early attempts by writers and ending with hallucinations in recent film and literature, this course will focus on a broad treatment of the issue, including novel(s) influenced by schizophrenic experience, works inspired by experiences under the influence of drugs, hippies and other countercultural figures, dreams, spiritual and religious visions, and more.

We will look at contemporary discussions of the topic, including science on altered states of mind, philosophical essays, and real first-hand accounts. Students will be encouraged to explore their own interests in the topic, and the culmination of the course will be a research paper due at the end of the course.

Click the link in our bio for more or visit https://classes.berkeley.edu/content/2023-summer-celtic-r1b-002-lec-002

Think Global. 🌎

From political constraints to operational strategy, UGBA 178 is your guide to doing business in an interconnected world.

Why take it?
✅ Learn foreign market analysis.
✅ Study the impact of overseas investments.
✅ Fulfill International Studies + Social & Behavioral Sciences breadths.

Join us in session D!

Session D - UGBA 178 001D - July 6 - August 14

Click the link in our bio for more information or visit https://classes.berkeley.edu/content/2026-summer-ugba-178-001d-lec-001d

Introduction to the Study of Buddhism

This course will consider materials drawn from various Buddhist traditions of Asia, from ancient times to the present day. However, it is not intended to be a comprehensive or systematic survey; rather than aiming at breadth, it is designed around key themes such as ritual, image veneration, mysticism, meditation, and death.

The overarching emphasis throughout the course will be on the hermeneutic difficulties attendant upon the study of religion in general, and Buddhism in particular.

Meets Philosophy & Values, L&S Breadth

Click the link in our bio for more or visit https://classes.berkeley.edu/content/2026-summer-buddstd-50-001-lec-001

ARMENI 122 - Language in its Social Context: The Case of Armenian

This course explores the complex social and historical forces that shape languages and language behaviors across time and space, introducing key concepts in sociolinguistics and historical linguistics with a particular emphasis on the case of Armenian.

Students will learn about themes such as language ideology; language vitality; language and identity; dialect variation; and multilingualism; and they will apply those ideas to case studies from the Armenian context. Examples will be drawn from Armenian in the Republic of Armenia and the Diaspora, and (to a lesser extent) from languages with historical and/or social relationships to Armenian, such as Arabic and English.

Students will apply and extend their knowledge through a series of short projects, where they will discover the role of language in their own lives and weigh in on some of the debates they learn about in class.

This course is open to students without experience in Linguistics or Armenian Studies and will be a useful foundation for future coursework in those fields.

Click the link in our bio or visit https://classes.berkeley.edu/content/2026-summer-armeni-122-001-lec-001 for more information.

Join Summer Sessions Student Services for an afternoon of fun and games! Meet us at the Memorial Glade at 4 PM for a Campus Scavenger Hunt. We will put you into a team when you arrive. This is the perfect opportunity to meet new people.

The Scavenger Hunt will conclude at the Memorial Glade with food and games. We will also be announcing the winners of the Scavenger Hunt who will receive a prize.

We hope you will join us for this excellent opportunity to meet your fellow Summer Sessions classmates.

Click the link in our bio or visit https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/ucb-summer/2026-campus-scavenger-hunt-and-sunset-social-session-a

Join us for a one-hour workshop on how to be a successful Berkeley Summer Sessions student. We will give you a quick introduction to the academic culture at UC Berkeley, share some tips on how to navigate college life in the U.S., and provide some insights on how to make the most of your experience as a visiting student. The workshop will be hosted by our Summer Sessions advisors and our student assistants.

Click the link in our bio or visit https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/ucb-summer/berkeley-bound-thrive-connect-succeed-session-a-12w