South Africa, Cape Town
http://ciee.org
Students are accepted on a first come first serve basis.
This program is appropriate for students from all academic disciplines who have a strong interest in learning about contemporary South African life and society and the forces that have created that society.
Program participants are required to enroll in at least one course with specific African content or one that offers a distinctive African perspective in their area of interest. Alternatively, students can enroll in the independent study option. Courses may be taken in all University of Cape Town faculties excluding Health Sciences. A full course load is considered 3-4 courses. A typical combination of courses includes two courses at the 200 level, and one or two courses at the 300 level.
This program is appropriate for students from all academic disciplines who have experience with community service and/or volunteerism and who are highly motivated to engage in community service while taking part in a rigorous academic program of language study, social research methodology, African studies, and independent research.
All students enroll in the core course, which includes a service placement, choose to study either Xhosa or Afrikaans language, and complete their studies with a capstone project.
Courses taken abroad may satisfy college and departmental core requirements. Students should consult with their advisor to discuss the specific requirements that may be satisfied abroad.
Cape Town is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Its most distinctive feature is Table Mountain, a flat-top mountain which separates the city center from the coast. Cape Town has all the cultural and commercial amenities of a large metropolitan city combined with the casual atmosphere of a beach town. In fact, the best beaches are the ones closest to the city and easily accessible by public transportation. In addition, Cape Town is the gateway to "The Garden Route" which follows the Indian Ocean to Port Elizabeth and has been likened to California Highway 1. From Cape Town, you will have easy access to South African vineyards, some of the best in the world, and the Cape of Good Hope where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet.
The University of Cape Town (UCT) is internationally recognized as Africa's leading research university and has a student population of 15,000. It was established as the South African College in 1829. During the apartheid era, UCT was classified as a white university. In the mid-1980's, however, the University adopted a mission of integration and affirmative action, in defiance of government policy. UCT is still a university in transition, striving to achieve the goals of a new multi-racial, multicultural society. The campus has sweeping lawns, pathways, trees, ponds, and waterfalls, which combine with attractive physical structures and extensive playing fields to make a pleasant study, recreational, and working environment. A full range of commercial, medical, dental, recreational, and sporting facilities is available on campus, including an Olympic-sized heated swimming pool, gymnasium, basketball, tennis, badminton and squash courts, and a weight room.
Housing is in shared apartments with other program students, other international students and/or with South African students attending the University. Apartments are located in neighborhoods adjacent to the University. Meals are not included in the program fee.
Full-time Northeastern student, 3.0 GPA, and middler (third) year or above.
Applications are available at OISP, 10 BV.
$21,400 per Semester for the 2009/2010 academic year. Includes: tuition, housing, orientation, course-related field trips, and round-trip airfare via Boston. Meals are not included.
"Studying abroad in South Africa gave me a world perspective in a way that studying in a more traditional international location like England, Australia, and France could not. There is a close tactile proxemity to a diverse array of realities that I think had Ibeen elswhere I would have had to search for. In Capetown I lived with these realities daily."
Terence Nance, Spring 2005
