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Study Abroad: Cape Town, South Africa

World Cup Summer in CapeTown, South Africa

CapeTown, South Africa
June 9, 2010 - July 10, 2010

Entrollment for the Summer 2010 semester is now closed.

In 2010, South Africa will host the World Cup and the atmosphere in Cape Town and everywhere else in South Africa next June and July will be electric. The entire country is gearing up for the hundreds of thousands of visitors who will be coming to SA for the most watched global sporting event in the world. Accordingly, we have revised our study abroad program for next year so that we can give students an affordable opportunity to experience the excitement of the World Cup and all that Cape Town has to offer while earning 6 credits in a stimulating academic program. One of the special aspects of this program is that 10-15 south African students will be participating in two of the courses. The program will last from June 9 – July 10. Instead of staying in downtown Cape Town where we usually stay( the cheapest rooms there are $250 a night), we will stay in the University of Western Cape(UWC) dorms. Although the dorms are quite plain, they are clean, safe, and at $500 for 31 nights, a bargain given the cost of other housing in Cape Town. The UWC campus is lovely and you will have easy access to class, to the UWC Union, to laundry facilities, to an indoor swimming pool and to a common room where all of the games will be televised.

This ABA-accredited summer study-abroad program will consist of three two-credit course in different areas of comparative law.

The three courses will be taught by a combination of faculty members from the University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) School of Law and the Law Faculty at the University of the Western Cape (UWC):

Air travel into South Africa for next June will fill up extremely quickly. Thus, we are encouraging students who want to study in South Africa next year to commit as quickly as possible. You can reserve one of the 22 spots in the program by:

submitting an application along with the $50 application fee and a deposit of $250
buying an airline ticket to South Africa so that you can be in Cape Town on June 9 at 3:30 for the orientation. Upon submitting your flight itinerary to Denise Boessen you will be deemed to be accepted into the program. Before purchasing your ticket, however, you must email Denise Boessen at boessenN@missouri.edu to obtain approval and to ensure that space is still available in the program. If you are paying for your trip with financial aid, once you have been accepted into the program, you will not have to pay any additional amounts until you receive your aid.

Kruger Trip

For those of you who decide to study abroad in Cape Town next summer, Prof. Uphoff and his wife, Marsha, will lead a group of 11 students on an optional trip to Kruger Park immediately after the program is over on July 10. The trip will include 5 nights in bungalows in Kruger Park at Crocodile Bridge, Lower Sabie and Skukuza Camps, transportation to and from Johannesburg to the Park, daily self drives in the park, 2 sunset game drives led by a Kruger Park Ranger, and all conservation fees in Kruger. Food and drinks are not included but there are fully equipped kitchens in the bungalows and very reasonable restaurants available for those who do not want to cook.

Prof. Uphoff has been taking friends to Kruger Park the past 8 years and is very familiar with the game rich area around Lower Sabie and the other 2 camps. He is confident you will find the game viewing truly extraordinary. Go to South Africa National Park website to view the bungalows and learn more about Kruger. The trip will end with a drive back to Johannesburg’s OR Tambo airport on July 17th. The cost of the trip will be $800 per person, not including airfare. Roudtrip airfare last year was $130, and Prof. Uphoff will will try to arrange a group rate. Prof. Uphoff was able to book the last places in Kruger Park for June/July 2010 so that this trip represents your best chance to experience Kruger unless you book an expensive package through a travel agent. You reserve a spot by notifying Denise that you are committed to Kruger, pay a nonrefundable $150 deposit, and purchase an airline ticket with a return date from South Africa to the U.S. on July 17 or a later date.

Why South Africa?

The globalization of the world economy has redefined the tools needed by today's lawyer. This summer study abroad program provides American law students the opportunity to gain an international, multi-cultural perspective. Not only will they be exposed to one of the world's most fascinating new democratic regimes in one of the world's most vibrant, diverse cities, but they will interact with South African law students and professors from the University of the Western Cape.

We chose South Africa because of its unique role as the most developed country on the continent. The United States, the European Union and the multitude of NGOs are looking at South Africa as a political, economic, legal and social model for the continent. American lawyers and American law students interested in international business and law will benefit by understanding South Africa's unique legal system; a legal system that mixes a tradition of Roman-Civil Law and Common Law with the statutory and constitutional law that has developed in the ten years since the post-apartheid government was formed in 1994.

Finally, even if the World Cup were not being held in South Africa, Cape Town is one of the world's more beautiful and dynamic cities. For more information about South Africa and Cape Town, visit the official South African Tourist site at http://www.aboutcapetown.com/.

Why The University of the Western Cape?

We also chose South Africa because the University of Missouri has had a special partnership with the University of the Western Cape since 1986, involving more than 40 academic disciplines. 2010 will mark the 7th year of the law school's study abroad program. For more information about the University of the Western Cape, go to http://www.uwc.ac.za/.