East Africa: Be Free Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

This is what education should be! Classes outdoors, with professors and guest lecturers from the area and know the history of local issues. Classroom lectures, traveling lectures, and field lectures, labs, are combined to get comprehensive views. The Tanzania side was not as academically rigorous as Mount Holyoke, but the type of work we were doing was engaging, interesting, and very relevant! The Kenya side was much more rigorous and the quality of the directed research was very high. Professors expected students to put in hard work and to be passionate about topics.

On-site administration of your program

small program, so staff got to know students well. Staff/faculty meetings meant activities well coordinated. Moses Okello coordinated Kenya and Tanzania sites together well.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Students in hut or "banda" groups of 3 or 4.

Vegetarian and vegan options. Friendly kitchen staff. Students help make breakfast/wash dishes.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Hikes (to waterfall on boarder of Kenya and Tanzania, to highlands above Lake Manyara Tanzania), safaris in National Parks, visits to cultural bomas (Maasai and Iraqw), souvenir shopping in Curio shops and in town.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Very good about keeping students safe (from people, traffic, wildlife, etc). Very amenable to taking students to local clinics for treatment.

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

Practiced everyday with staff and faculty. Swahili used mostly in Tanzania, in town. Picked up some Maasai and other local languages outside of the classroom.

Select all that apply

• Other

Select all that apply

• Americans

• Small group size
• Specific program focus (wildlife management)
• Remote locations

• Staff/faculty in Kenya did not mingle with students as much as in Tanzania