Ghana

Internship: Contemporary Art & Culture

Experience West Africa through the lens of Sankofa, a Ghanaian concept that links the past with a sustainable future. Working with a local organization, you’ll learn to appreciate the importance of Africa’s tangible and imagined histories as you earn college credit and prepare for your future career.

  • Art

  • College Credit

  • Outdoor Activity

  • Peace, Politics, & Human Rights

WHY STUDY ART AND CULTURE IN GHANA?

Your Experiment program starts in Accra, the capital of Ghana, a modern city with ancient roots. This fascinating city of contrasts—a unique blend of traditional and contemporary art and culture—is where you will begin your 95 hours of formal internship.  

Deepen your understanding and immerse yourself in local culture by becoming part of a community for four weeks through your group internship, homestay, guest lectures, site visits, and community projects. The homestay experience is the cornerstone of The Experiment experience and you will have the opportunity to stay with a Ghanian family for the duration of the program. 

You’ll gain a new perspective on Africa as cosmopolitan, which counters Eurocentric narratives of deprivation and backwardness. Undergirding this program is the concept of  Sankofa, which encourages a strong engagement with the past to ensure informed and sustained progress into the future. 

Enhance your critical thinking, time management, and intercultural communication skills through your internship with a local community or research organization, business, or international NGO.  You will also be introduced to hiplife music, media houses, and institutions across the country that highlight Ghana’s position in a hyper-globalized world. Expand your knowledge of present-day Ghana through discussions on politics, democracy, human rights, gender justice, and environmental challenges. 

The Experiment strives to center diversity, equity, and inclusion in program design and delivery and the internship program is a unique opportunity to work in partnership with local communities. Therefore, the internship work is determined by the needs identified by the local communities. This may involve supporting the administrative, archival, curation, and center guidance of the local arts and cultural centers.

Upon successful completion of this program, students will earn three college credits through The Experiment’s accredited partner institution, School for International Training. 

LEARN BY DOING 

The Experiment’s programs are designed to build skills that will help you succeed. In Ghana, you will learn: 

 TECHNICAL SKILLS

  • Research and project management 
  • Email communication 
  • Writing 
  • Presentation 
  • College prep 

INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

  • Resourcefulness 
  • Intercultural communication and understanding 
  • Problem-solving 
  • Adaptability 
  • Relationship-building 
  • Critical thinking 

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

  • Be prepared to be intellectually challenged by the course content and your learning community. Participants will be expected to complete required readings, assignments, exercises, and actively participate in course discussions.
  • Rugged travel includes bus rides and/or other extended travel on bumpy roads or other rugged conditions during the excursion outside Accra. 
  • Outdoor activities include hiking and trekking. 
  • Vegetarian meals are not as common as in the United States. Although it will be difficult to remain strictly vegetarian, there are places that satisfy vegetarian concerns, especially in urban centers such as Accra.  
  • Access to the internet is limited and internet speeds and connectivity vary.  
  • The diverse personal and social identities of participants may, in part, shape their experience abroad. In-country partners will discuss cultural norms and the local context during orientation. Please read our approach to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for further information. All students will have a safe space within the program spaces and with the local staff and group leaders.  
  • The Experiment program structure is rooted in experiential learning and cohort-based learning. The participant group experience is a major source of learning for Experimenters and is facilitated by trained Experiment group leaders.

AT A GLANCE

Program Availability

Filling

Program Date

Jul 2 - Aug 1

Prerequisite

None

Program Fee

$7,096.00

(does not include airfare)
Group Airfare Cost

TBD

Departure City

TBD

WHAT'S INCLUDED
  • College credit
  • Meals
  • Lodging
  • All program activities
  • In-country transportation
  • Health insurance
  • Experienced group leaders

Families or partner organizations are also responsible for arranging and paying for participants' domestic travel to the international departure/return airport in the U.S., whether flying, driving or by other means. By its nature, domestic airfare varies by airline, timing, destination, and availability.

I’ll never forget the four weeks I spent in Ghana! While on program, I interned at an incubator for young artists, where I learned more about artistry and the mechanics of a business. It was a great way to spend my summer!

Sample Itinerary

This itinerary is only a sample and is subject to change. Because of factors such as group size and availability of in-country offerings such as festivals, your experience — including sites visited and the number of days spent in each location — may differ somewhat from the one presented below.

View Itinerary Details

Days 1-3

Orientation in Accra 

  • Learn about Ghanaian history and culture from local experts. 
  • See contemporary art in Accra during a guided tour. 
  • Bond with other members of your group and Ghanaian peers.  
  • Appreciate the social architecture that underpins one of Africa’s most important cities. 

During orientation, you will stay in a centrally located hotel/guesthouse. 

Days 4-23

Internship and Cultural Activities in Accra

  • Become immersed in the daily life with your host family.
  • Complete a group internship with an organization with a focus on contemporary art and culture.
  • Attend cooking classes and sample traditional Ghanaian cuisine.
  • Visit art museums and local markets in Accra with host community members and peers.
  • Participate in site visits, guest lectures, and dialogue with your group members.
  • Visit the Center for African Popular Culture, Nana Project, and Nubuke Foundation.
  • Explore Accra and visit Oxford Street and Gallery 1957.

During this period, you will stay with with a host family. 

Days 24-26

Excursion 

  • Learn about the history of the trans-Atlantic slave trade along the coast of West Africa as you visit centuries-old castles in Elmina and Cape Coast.  
  • Visit Java Museum to understand Africans’ complicated relationships with Indonesia and Holland. 
  • Explore the diverse flora and fauna of Kakum Rainforest. 

During this period, you will stay with your group in a small hotel/guesthouse. 

Day 27

Wrap-up and Reflection in Accra 

  • Reflect with your group on your learning experiences during the program. 
  • Go for a city walk and shopping. 

During this period, you will stay with your group in a small hotel/guesthouse. 

Day 28

Departure 

Past Group Leader

Emefa Kumaza

Emefa Kumaza is from Ghana. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Ghana, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in English and Theatre. Emefa is a first-year master’s student studying International Education Policy and Management at Vanderbilt University. For the past three years, she has worked in the education and development space. Her passion for education and development began when she joined Lead for Ghana, formerly Teach for Ghana as a Teaching Fellow. She enjoys working with young people and children. She runs a community-led social enterprise that through various initiatives is expanding educational opportunities to rural children in Ghana.

Program experts

College credit-bearing programs are led by accomplished and experienced faculty approved by the School for International Training (SIT). Faculty of record typically live in the country of study and are responsible for instructional content, classroom and field experiences, and daily program operations. They work in close consultation with SIT’s Dean of Faculty and The Experiment staff team and group leaders to craft an engaging, college-level curriculum and design field and internship experiences that match student needs and interests.

Kwabena Opoku-Agyemang, PhD

Kwabena is the Academic Director for the SIT semester-program Globalization, Cultural Legacies & the Afro-Chic. He holds a PhD in English literature from West Virginia University, where he also taught undergraduate courses in the Department of English. His research interests revolve around African literature, and he has authored publications that have focused on African electronic literature, video gaming, literature and gender, and oral literature. He teaches various undergraduate and graduate-level courses in the University of Ghana’s Department of English, where he enjoys mentoring and interacting with students.