Penn Abroad Ambassador Joyce Lee

Program:

• PGS: Becoming Zimbabwe

Ask me about...

• Traveling abroad as part of a writing seminar

• Finding ways to integrate my interests in medicine with the focus of the course

• Staying safe on a walking safari

My Experience Abroad:

Through my experience in the Penn Global Seminar: Migrancy in South Africa, it was fascinating to engage with border jumping between South Africa and Zimbabwe, especially since I previously did not have any experience with this topic. By choosing to take this PGS, I was pursuing one of my academic goals, which is to explore different of areas of study. Because of my interest in medicine, the classes I was taking in conjunction with this course were STEM-focused, and it was refreshing to engage in deep conversation and research on the ethical and historical context of what it means to be “legal” or “illegal” and how events like the struggle for independence in South Africa and Zimbabwe shaped the current social and economic situations in the two countries. The study abroad aspect of this PGS was instrumental to our understanding of the way history shapes the country and enabled us to meet with people in South Africa who would offer invaluable insight into our course topics.

Other Highlights:

• Viewing the Mapungubwe Confluence, the point where Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa meet

• Meeting students at the African Leadership Institute and sitting in on classes

• Hearing from a panel of people who’d migrated from Zimbabwe to South Africa

• Visiting the Wits Art Museum and getting a tour of a featured gallery led by the artist