Africa Semester - Zanzibar, Uganda, Tanzania
*Applications for this program have closed for Fall, 2010 - but consider applying for the Spring Term!
The Africa semester boasts rich opportunities for living and working alongside like-minded individuals and organizations committed to the empowerment of local Ugandan and Tanzanian communities. Experience the contradiction of impoverished groups residing in lush landscapes and the broad, white smiles from orphans faced with the adversity of the AIDS epidemic. Safari the Ngorogoro Crater, participate in environmental conservation efforts in Tanzania, build houses or schools for needy communities, and practice your newly-learned Swahili while volunteering alongside locals. Challenge yourself by taking a leadership role in the group's travel, then reward all of your hard work by earning open water SCUBA certification in Zanzibar at the end of your semester. More than any other, this semester is rooted in diverse volunteer opportunities that all involve "getting your hands dirty" while loving every minute of it.
Photos play slideshow
"He clearly values the experience he had in Africa, and speaks of the people he met there, and his trip mates with real affection. His photos are amazing. One of his teachers has asked him to write a piece for the school newspaper explaining what the Gap year option can and should be. He happily agreed. We all feel the approach we took to this year was the best decision we could possibly have made. We were so lucky your program was available, and as well thought out and managed as it turned out to be."
Uganda
Orientation:
After arrival into East Africa, spend a few days getting to know your groupmates, learning the cultural milieu, safe eating, drinking, and behavioral practices, try your hand at a scavenger hunt through the city, and just generally recover from jetlag in a local Kampala backpackers’ resort.
After orientation, travel to Jinja, headwaters of the Nile River, rafting them if you dare! This is a fantastic opportunity for further group-building and the self-satisfaction of conquering a physical task in a famous area of the world.
Education Work:
Next the group will spend a week living together in a village outside Jinja, volunteering with an NGO whose mission it is to fortify (and in many cases build) school houses in Uganda, as governmental funding is sparse. Past projects have included painting, building, digging, and even mural painting—so if you are an artist, this project needs you!
After a short break and short travel day, the group will again live together in a village house outside Mbale at the foot of Mount Elgon. Here you will experience and learn about the growing, picking, and fair trade of coffee on an interfaith coffee cooperative. You will also have the opportunity to experience each of these faiths’ expression in the village setting.
HIV/AIDS Work:
Having traveled overland to the Western regions of Uganda, the group will find itself in the lush Rwenzori Mountain area. Here you work with an amazing organization that has dedicated itself to the education and care of HIV+ orphans in Fort Portal. Work on chicken coops, buildings, art projects, and the like in the mornings, and play with the kids in the evenings. Whatever you do, don’t feel sorry for them—they will sense it a mile away and probably deny you the opportunity to truly see how happy and well cared for they are.
Retreat:
Now that you’ve had a few weeks of intense activity, you’ll receive the opportunity to relax for several days in the lush quiet of Lake Nkuruba area outside Fort Portal. Here you will receive opportunities for yoga practice, meditation, discussion, and general rest and processing of your previous weeks as you look toward goals for the upcoming weeks ahead.
Student-Directed Travel:
Uganda is your first opportunity to try on your travel wings and take an active role in your group’s travel destination(s) and logistics. The only stipulation is you have to end up in Mwanza, Tanzania by a prescribed date! Previous groups have explored the National Parks of Western Uganda and the Genocide Memorial(s) in Kigali, Rwanda.
Tanzania
Health Clinic Experience:
Spend a week staying in a hostel that directly funds a well-established set of clinics in Mwanza while helping them with some of the logistical details that they are strapped for time to complete in the office or on the grounds. See what a well-functioning medical NGO abroad looks like, what international talents they attract, and study Swahili while also getting introduced to the unique tribe that has settled this area along Lake Victoria.
Safari:
After a short domestic flight from Mwanza, the group is met by jeep to spend 3-4 days on overland safari through Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara, and the Ngorogoro Crater. Spend nights staying in permanent campsite accommodations with experienced guides, enjoy game drives to see lions, elephants, and wildebeest, (among many, many others!) and pass through an Iraqw tribal village. End your safari just outside the national park at Esilalei village near Lake Manyara.
Language Study & Social Service:
Spend one more week studying Kiswahili while working with an organization that is building school grounds for a local Maasai tribe. You will be welcomed into this village as a generous guest for whom they are thankful. You will be taught their customs, history, and dance, and live among them in their bomas. The only non-culturally authentic portion of this week is that you will NOT be eating as the Maasai do (they only drink milk, the blood of their herds, and occasional goatmeat) although you’ll be welcome to try it!
UAACC:
Having spent some weeks in the ‘bush’, you’ll be extravagantly welcomed into the United African Alliance Community Center and the home of Pete and Charlotte O’Neal. Pete is an ex-Black Panther who was exiled in 1970 from Kansas City. Since coming to Tanzania almost 40 years ago, Pete and Charlotte have been about the business of community building, enrichment, and empowerment. Hear their story and feel their impact on their community while resting up and enjoying some modern amenities and the 18 children they have taken in.
Social Service Project:
After being refreshed at Pete & Charlotte’s and a short drive to a neighboring village, the group will now enjoy homestays while volunteering building or maintaining the community-sponsored secondary school there. Hone your Swahili skills with your adoptive family and play football in the afternoons with the school’s students.
Student-Directed Travel:
This is your time to further your travel skills and direct where the group goes, this time in Tanzania. Past groups have further explored Tanzania’s national parks, gone hiking and camping, or on a spice tour of Zanzibar prior to their SCUBA week.
ZANZIBAR
Stone Town:
Over the course of the week, enjoy some well-earned activity in this historic island town while simultaneously working toward your PADI Open Water SCUBA certification. (Higher levels of certification are available for those with previous dive experience.) When not diving, students have time for lazing on the beach, emailing friends, taking in a spice tour, or feasting on the variety of local seafood. Celebrate the end of your semester together in the unparalleled indigo bathwaters of the Indian Ocean!
Program Details
Program Dates:
Fall 2010: September 15 - December 8, 2010
Spring 2011: February 9 - May 4
Group Size:
A maximum of 10 Students & 2 Adult Leaders
Eligibility:
Ages 17 and Up
Academic Credit:
Up to 18 credits available
Language Requirement:
None
Admissions:
No deadline - applications accepted on a rolling basis until start date.
Starting & Ending:
San Francisco, California. Our travel agent will price the most economical options and notify participants
Program Fee:
$8,900 Program fee includes all food, accommodations, and scheduled program activities for the duration of the program. International and domestic airfare, health insurance, visas, and spending money are extra. International airfare estimated at $1800; internal Tanzanian flight estimated at $180, Ugandan visa $50, and Tanzanian visa $100. For information on Financial Aid click here.
Program Policies:
For a detailed description of our Program Expectations and Rules, please click this link. These are the rules that we expect of all of our students for their overall safety and to provide the best possible program.
On our East Africa semester we actually live in a rural Maasai village for a week while living their lifestyle. It's a radically different culture, and this video depicts one of the unique aspects of Maasai culture: a marriage proposal. For more videos please visit our You Tube page.
Online Application
