Michlalah Jerusalem College
Machal, the Linda Pinsky School for Overseas Students
Bayit Vegan, Jerusalem · Year after high school
Machal Year 5776
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The overseas-students division of Michlalah Jerusalem College, running since 1969. It describes a year of advanced, text-based Torah study with guided mentoring, aimed at students who want to build a personal commitment to Torah life.
At a glance
- Founded
- Michlalah Jerusalem College founded 1964; overseas seminary program established five years later; named The Linda Pinsky School for Overseas Students (Machal) in 1989 Source: the school's website pages listed under Where this comes from
- Size
- Approximately 100 students in Machal Alef and 30 in Machal Bet Source: the school's website pages listed under Where this comes from
- Program
- Year after high school; a second year (Shana Bet) is offered Source: the school's website pages listed under Where this comes from
- Location
- Bayit Vegan, Jerusalem Source: the school's website pages listed under Where this comes from
- Housing
- On-campus air-conditioned apartments with a shared eating area and kitchen; rooms for two to three students. A house mother and counselors live on campus. Source: the school's website pages listed under Where this comes from
- Price
- Not published. Ask what's included.
Learning, cost and credit
- What's taught
- Tanach, Halacha, Mussar, Machshava, Text-based classes
- Who runs it
- Dr. Rosenwasser, Rector of Michlalah and Rosh Machal; Mrs. Kermaier, Director of Machal
- Also on their site
- Machal Alef (about 100 students)
- Machal Bet (about 30 students) with two weekly chesed slots
- Machal Tzarfati (French-speaking group)
- $2,000 academic scholarship for qualifying applicants
- Price
- No price is published on their website. Ask the school, and ask what's included.
- Masa grants
- Their website doesn't say. Most year programs are registered with Masa, so ask. How Masa works
- College credit
- Their site says Michlalah is accredited by Israel's Council for Higher Education and lists joint-program agreements with Yeshiva University, Touro, and Women's Institute of Torah. Machal Bet offers general-studies courses for university credit. It is on Yeshiva University's list of Israel Program schools. How credit works
Photos and videos
Videos play from YouTube; the channel and year are under each one. We don't copy pictures from the school's website, so their own galleries and social pages are linked instead.
Machal@Michlalah2014-15
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Where it is
Address on their website: Bayit Vegan, Jerusalem
See it on the map
The map loads its pictures from OpenStreetMap, a free public map. When it loads, OpenStreetMap sees your device's internet address. Everything on the map is also written out on this page.
Approximate: their website gives no street address we could place, so the pin marks the neighborhood, village or campus.
Open this spot in Google Maps (opens in a new tab) · See every seminary on the map
Nearby
Straight-line distances, to give a sense of the area. Walking and driving routes are longer.
- Malcha Mall1.3 km · 0.8 mi
- Hebrew University, Givat Ram1.3 km · 0.8 mi
- Mount Herzl1.5 km · 0.9 mi
- Israel Museum1.5 km · 0.9 mi
- Sacher Park2.4 km · 1.5 mi
- Ben Gurion Airport39.7 km · 24.7 mi
The area in pictures
These show the neighborhood, not the school itself.
The year in detail
As described on the school's own website. A missing heading means their site didn't say.
- Language
- The sample class schedule lists most course titles in Hebrew and some in English
- Dates
- Students arrive in Elul; their 2026-27 gallery shows arrival and orientation on August 24, 2026.
- A typical day
- The sample schedule shows 50-minute classes Sunday through Thursday from the morning, a lunch break, afternoon classes on some days, a dinner break and evening classes or a chavrusa program.
- Shabbat
- The calendar lists several 'Machal Shabbaton' dates through the year, some optional and some away. Eim Bayit and madrichot live on campus and are available 24/7 through the school year.
- Trips
- Tiyulim listed include a two-day trip to the south, trips to the north, desert hikes, caves and a Selichos tour; the calendar mentions an annual pre-Pesach educational tour of Eastern Europe and optional Tochnit Nissan.
- Chesed and volunteering
- Chessed trips shown in the 5787 gallery (Pantry Packers, Just One Chessed); there is a 'Rakezet Chessed' on staff; Machal Bet has two chessed opportunities each week.
- Campus and housing
- Campus at the bottom of Bayit Vegan: classrooms, a renovated three-story library, bookstore, computer labs, a chavruta room, basketball court, swimming pool, dining room, student lounge with exercise room. Dorms are air-conditioned apartments, each with a common eating area, a kitchen and rooms for two to three students.
- Rules they publish
- Attendance is required in all classes; students need permission from the Hanhalah to leave Israel during the school year (from the calendar PDF).
- After the year
- Machal Bet (second year) offers its own classes, tiyulim, shabbatons and general studies courses for university credit. Michlalah is accredited by Israel's Council of Higher Education; joint-program agreements with Yeshiva University, Lander College for Women, Touro University and Women's Institute of Torah Seminary & College (Baltimore). Alumnae services include guidance phone hours, shidduch referrals, kallah seminars, shiurim and a weekly divrei Torah mailing.
- Staff named on their site
- Mrs. Lisa Kermaier - Director of Machal
- Mrs. Avigail Teller - Director of Academics
- Mrs. Shoshie Ellman - Director of Logistics & Social Programming
- Mrs. Tehilla Greenblatt - Head Rakezet & Student Coordinator
- Rav Chaim Pollock - Senior Consultant, Rosh Machal Emeritus
