In the summer of 2004, I lived in Accra, Ghana as a participant of Professor Steeves’ SOJC journalism internship program. I worked as a news editorial intern at the Accra Daily Mail and wrote a regular column called the “American Obroni in Accra.” I devoted my column to the exploration of Ghanaian culture and spent my days exploring the city while meeting the many wonderful residents of Accra. I delighted in this internship role, embarking upon daily adventures across the city in pursuit of great story ideas. During my internship, I wrote more than 10 columns for publication. I grew incredibly attached to Ghanaian culture and at the conclusion of the program, I left with a deep appreciation for a wonderful African nation.

Looking back, those five weeks of experiential learning in the sweaty streets of Accra have had the greatest influence on my career. I’m the Director and Co-Founder of VACorps, a professional internship program based in Cape Town, South Africa. In 2016, we were rated the #1 internship organization in Africa. In many ways, VACorps is modeled after Professor Steeves’s Ghana summer internship program. Like the Ghana program, we give our participants a great deal of personal freedom to make discoveries on their own terms. And like Professor Steeves’s course curriculum, we arrange a series of cultural encounters to introduce participants to the unique aspects of South African culture. Most importantly, like Professor Steeves’s program, we help our participants discover a global way of thinking.

I would highly recommend the Ghana program to any SOJC student. Your internship experiences in the Ghanian media will place you far beyond your comfort zone but you will return to campus with newfound confidence and a belief that your career need not be limited to the borders of the United States.