African Studies
at Penn
|
|
|
| |
Exchange
/ Study Abroad Programs |
There are a number of reasons
why students should consider living
and studying on the African continent
during their educational careers.
The following excerpt from an
essay by Dr. Richard Stryker makes
the case eloquently:
Africa certainly has distinctive
natural attractions, from the
Nile to Victoria Falls and the
great game parks. The range of
environmental contrasts is exceptional:
vast plains and deserts, dramatic
escarpments, dense rain forests,
striking mountains, tropical villages,
and modern cities. The sheer size
of Africa is impressive - three
times greater than the entire
U.S.
But Africa's greatest attractions
are its peoples and varied cultures.
An African educational experience
can be particularly meaningful
and exciting because the continent's
rich traditional heritage is so
vital, its legendary hospitality
is so welcoming to strangers,
and its multiethnic cities so
energizing. African music, dance
and arts, both traditional and
modern, constitute whole other
worlds of meaning and delight;
and there are few esthetic experiences
anywhere to compare with the color,
swirl, smell, and sounds of an
African market. The diversity
of political and economic development
models is equally exhilarating,
to be observed in comparing villages
in neighborhoods as well as across
the 50 independent states of Africa,
and there is a simply extraordinary
variety of religions, kinship
systems and languages even within
any small African country...
[Richard E. Stryker, unpublished
essay (1993) revised as "Why
Study Abroad in Africa,"
in Transitions Abroad XVIII/6
(1995)]
Over
the years, the University of
Pennsylvania, along with its
consortium partners Bryn Mawr,
Haverford, and Swarthmore Colleges,
have established a number of
vibrant linkages with partner
institutions on the African
continent. For more information
about these partnerships consult
the following links, browse
the Office
of International Programs
website, or call the African
Studies Center at 215-898-6971.
African
Studies Consortium Semester
Study Abroad Program
(Administered by Bryn Mawr College)
Nairobi
University in Nairobi, Kenya
University of Pennsylvania
Semester Study Abroad Programs
University
of Pennsylvania Summer Study
Abroad Program
University
of Pennsylvania Exchange Program
|
|
|
|
|
|
