Study Abroad in South Africa

Program Overview

During the Winter Session program, students spend the month of January studying and traveling throughout South Africa with University of Delaware and South African university faculty members. This multifaceted program includes several components, designed to enhance participants’ understanding of South Africa’s history and culture. In the field-based 40-45 hour service learning experience, which is required for all participants, students work almost exclusively with infants, toddlers and school-age children, in a variety of settings (e.g., primary schools, day care centers, orphanages). These placements provide students with pre-professional experiences and helps them learn more about South Africa’s history and cultural protocols. Cultural excursions include visits to township schools, health care facilities, community service agencies as well as historically, culturally and ecologically important sites in the Pretoria/Johannesburg/Soweto areas.

Pretoria & Johannesburg Experience

Students begin their journey in Johannesburg and Pretoria, where academic learning at the University of Pretoria is paired with immersive cultural and historical exploration. Through site visits, community engagement and guided excursions, students examine South Africa’s complex history, vibrant traditions and global significance.

From exploring the legacy of apartheid in Soweto to visiting UNESCO World Heritage Sites such as the Cradle of Humankind, the experience connects classroom scholarship with lived history. The program blends intellectual engagement, cultural immersion and shared reflection, offering students a deeper understanding of South Africa’s past and present.

Safari Adventure: Pilanesberg National Park

Before departing for Cape Town, students embark on a weekend safari experience that offers full immersion in South Africa’s remarkable natural landscapes. Through guided game drives and on-site lodging, students encounter the country’s diverse wildlife, including the iconic “Big Five,” while gaining a deeper appreciation for the region’s ecosystems and conservation efforts.

Cape Town Experience

The second half of the program takes place in Cape Town, where students explore one of Africa’s most dynamic cultural and natural landscapes. Through guided city tours, immersive cultural performances and shared meals, students engage with the richness of Pan-African heritage and contemporary South African life.

Visits to Robben Island, the District Six Museum and the Slave Lodge provide powerful insight into the country’s history of apartheid, resistance and resilience, while conversations with those directly connected to this history deepen students’ understanding of global movements for justice. Additional excursions highlight Cape Town’s renowned wine traditions, vibrant communities and layered past.

The experience is complemented by encounters with South Africa’s extraordinary natural beauty, including Table Mountain and the dramatic coastal landscapes that define the region. Together, these experiences blend history, culture and environment into a transformative conclusion to the program.

Courses & Degree Requirements

All students in the program will complete one required course, which fulfills the University of Delaware Diversity Learning Experience requirement. Students may also choose from additional optional courses, depending on their major, interests, and degree needs.

Required Course for All Students:Diversity Learning Experience (DLE)

HDFS 335: Culture in Context

This course introduces students to cross-cultural awareness and sensitivity, emphasizing how cultural contexts shape individual and community development. Students examine how groups of people understand identity, nationality, social systems, and community life across diverse global and domestic settings. The course aligns closely with the study abroad experience by engaging students in the concept of development within diverse communities.

Fulfills:

• University of Delaware Diversity Learning Experience (DLE)

Optional Courses (Program-Approved)

Students may elect to take one of the following courses, depending on availability and degree requirements.

HDFS 202: Diversity and Families

This course explores the complexity and diversity of families in an increasingly globalized and interconnected world. Topics include historical, demographic, economic, technological, and social changes affecting families, with particular attention to differences shaped by socioeconomic class, race, ethnicity, disability, region, sexual orientation, and gender. The course also examines globalization and its unequal effects on families, as well as how internal and external forces shape family dynamics. Students are encouraged to reflect on their own lived experiences and social positioning within broader social, economic, and political systems.

Fulfills:

• University Breadth: Social & Behavioral Sciences
• College of Arts & Sciences Breadth: Group C (A&S Social & Behavioral Sciences)
• Multicultural Requirement
• Required course for Human Services majors

AFRA 206: South Africa—Apartheid, Segregation, and Black Consciousness

This course examines South Africa’s racial history, focusing on apartheid, segregation, and resistance movements, including Black Consciousness. Students analyze systems of racial oppression alongside political, cultural, and intellectual traditions of resistance, making direct connections between course content and on-site experiences in South Africa.

Fulfills:

• University Breadth: Creative Arts & Humanities
• College of Arts & Sciences Breadth: Group A (A&S Creative Arts & Humanities)
• Multicultural Requirement