Program Information | Course Information | W&M Faculty | Dates | Deadlines | Program Fees | Eligibility | Handbooks

Cape Town is the vibrant capital of South Africa and is a port city on the southwest coast of of the continent on a peninsula beneath Table Mountain. Cable cars actually go to the mountain's flat top, from which you can enjoy sweeping views of the city. You can also travel to Robben Island, which was the location for the notorious prison that once held Nelson Mandela, and it is now a living museum. Famous for its natural beauty, Cape Town is nestled in a ring of mountains and provides visitors with breathtaking views, along with sandy beaches along the coast. The city has a tumultuous history, which has given birth to a rich culture and an increasingly strong economy. Tourism has grown rapidly in recent years, making Cape Town the most popular travel destination in all of Africa.

Things to Do and See:
Visit Boulders Beach and Foxy Beach to see African penguins; hike Kasteelspoort on Table Mountain.


Program Description:
The Cape Town summer program allows students to study and experience how post-Apartheid South Africa is working to combat racial, ethnic, economic, and political disparity.

Students will earn a total of 7 credits for the Cape Town Summer Program through a W&M faculty taught course and several courses locally taught that will help students learn more about South Africa and explore the local areas, including excursions to local areas of interest to highlight both courses. 

Participants will live in apartments. Meals/meal stipends are included. The Cape Town program can include excursions to locations such as Robben Island, the site of Nelson Mandela's imprisonment, Table Mountain, Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope, and museums and historic sites in and around Cape Town.
 

Course Information:
Students will take two 3-credit courses and one 1-credit course. All students will be enrolled in:

• BIOL 404:  From Lab to Governance:  Conducting, Reporting & Regulating Biomedical Research
• AFST 306/HIST 212 Topics in Africana Studies/Topics in History: From Rhodes to Mandela and from Apartheid to Aids (3 credits)

There is a required 1 credit course that will be taken in the Spring prior to departure, which you will be registered for following program acceptance. This course is designed specifically for students going on the summer program and is intended to enhance your cross-cultural understanding of Cape Town and to cover a variety of pre-departure information. The scheduling of this course will be dependent on the class times possible for program participants.

Courses are taught be W&M faculty. Grades will appear on the W&M transcript and will be included in GPA calculations.

W&M Faculty:
Mayank Chugh


Term:
Arrival date: early July 
Departure date: end of July

Deadlines
Application Deadline ($75*):  December 2, 2024
Deposit ($700): March 7, 2025 (Friday before spring break)
Final Payment: April 1, 2025

Application fee information:
The application fee is due by the deadline and should be paid online at the GEO Marketplace Store. Whoever is making the payment will need student 93#, email, and phone number. The application fee is refundable in the event that you are not accepted into the program or the program is canceled by W&M. 

Program Fees:
2024 program fee:  $7300 Students are responsible for airfare, all meals included.
2025 program fee:  TBD, anticipated mid- November

To view the estimated costs for this program and important payment information, please visit here​

Reves Summer Scholarships are available for this program.
If applying for a Reves Summer Scholarship, please apply to the W&M faculty-led application BEFORE applying to the Reves Summer Scholarship. 

Program Features:

• All meals
• On-site orientation
• Transportation to/from Cape Town airport
• Housing
• Excursions and admittance fees for excursions
• Wifi
• CISI insurance
• On-site support services
• W&M credits 
• Fulfills COLL 300

Eligibility:

• Students must be an active W&M undergraduate student in good standing, not on academic or disciplinary probation during time abroad, and eligible to take classes at the W&M Williamsburg campus to study abroad. 
•  Students currently on-campus must successfully complete 1 credit spring course. 
• For more information about eligibility, please visit our Policies that Affect You page.

Handbook:
Click to view the Summer Abroad Handbook 2025