South Africa: Best Decision Ever! Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Coming from a liberal arts college, I came to appreciate the quality of a Wellesley education. There were hundreds of students in all my classes and a tutorial just isn't the same as learning from a professor. However, the topics that the classes covered were much more interesting and all of the classes that I took actually applied what we learned in to our lives. Even though the caliber of teaching may have been below what I was used to at Wellesley, the content was much more interesting and I felt more connected to the things I was learning.

On-site administration of your program

Interstudy seriously has the best staff ever. Ouma, the Resident Director, is like a mmother to us all. I had appendicitis while abroad and ended up having to get surgery. Ouma really looked after me and also arranged transportation to and from the airport for my mother who was coming to see me. Any time there was a problem, we would let the interstudy staff know and it would get fixed almost immediately. They are really nice, friendly, efficient, and good at what they do.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The quality of housing differs widely. The apartment my roommate and I stayed in was probably the worst out of all of them, but when I first walked into the apartment (without seeing anyone else's housing) I thought it was decent. Everyone has their own room and you share a kitchen and bathroom with your housemates. Each apartment houses 2-3 people. Everything was provided by interstudy, and if the apartment was missing someting (like a trash can or some extra frying pans, kettles, etc) interstudy brought it over. We also had cleaning ladies that came and cleaned the apartment once a week. The neighborhood was a little sketchy, but not dangerous. It got really loud at night with drunken locals fighting, and drunken American students as well. Soundproofing isn't that great so you tend to hear everything going on the street. It also got a little too cold in the winter because there was no heating.

Groceries are really cheap in South Africa so I really got to experiment a lot with cooking. Eating out is also really cheap and Cape Town has some of the best fine dining eateries that are very affordable for American students. They have a lot of sushi restaurants, italian restaurants, cafes, steakhouses, bakeries etc...

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I literally had the best time in South Africa. Arranged by my program (all expenses paid/included in program fee): - Local tour of Cape Town - Weekend safari at a 4-star accomodation (it was REALLY REALLY nice) - lunch cruise - farewell dinner at an African restaurant Personal excursions: - Old Biscuit Mill is a weekend farmer's market type place with a lot of vendors from famous restaurants and bakeries around town...there are a lot of new designers as well selling clothes and jewelry - Winelands (franschoek and Stellenbosch, where some of the world's greatest wines come from) - Rugby & Cricket matches (rugby is HUGE in South Africa, you HAVE to be a part of that scene!) - Hiking various routes on Table Mountin - Picnicking at the lush Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden (they also have summer weekend concerts where famous bands play every weekend during the summer) - Garden Route road trip - The World Cup!!!!!!!! It was very exciting to be in South Africa during the world cup as the people and cities were all very vibrant - Spring Break 10 day safari to Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Victoria falls

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I had appendicitis while I was in South Africa and needed surgery. In South Africa, the healthcare system is excellent if you have money. Most students who go abroad are all insured, and my program's insurance company CISI, paid for everything. The only ting is tht the hospitals demand upfront payment for most procedures and doctor's visits. CISI reimbursed me for all these costs, and sent over checks for any costs that were later on billed to me (these were mostly lab tests) I didn't need any vaccines going to South Africa, but when travelling outside of the country, I had to take malaria pills which I purchased locally. Malaria pills are MUCH cheaper in South Africa than in the US and actually the ones that they prescribe in the US can cause serious health problems.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

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• Apartment

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• Americans

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• Local Students