South Africa will change your life!

The best part of this program was our onsite director, Hestea. She is a Stellenbosch local and took us on excursions to see the most beautiful parts of her hometown. Being able to travel with her was a unique opportunity that added so much value to all of our trips. The academic life in Stellenbosch is very different from a standard university in the United States. Classes meet once a week, and there is usually only a paper and a final. It takes a lot of independent commitment to make sure you do well. Class discussions were interesting because there are students from all over the world. This made group projects a challenge, especially with some language barriers, but I always looked forward to gaining new perspectives from my international peers. I liked that our class schedules made it easy to have time for seeing more of the town and taking trips to Cape Town (about 40 minutes away). Stellenbosch is a fun town for college students. There's always something to see or do, and it's fairly easy to navigate. I enjoyed walking or cycling most places, but uber is also a very affordable option. The housing situation looks different each term depending on how big the group of international students is. I had a great experience with housing. I lived in an apartment with 3 other girls from the United States, and we had plenty of space. It was cool to live in a building with other international students, because I made connections from all over the world. It did make it more difficult, however, to connect with local South African students. Still very doable, but it's definitely something you have to seek out for yourself! There is so much diversity in South Africa, and I'm thankful for the friends I made there. Can't wait to visit again soon!