My internship at St. Joseph’s Home for Chronically Ill and Disabled Children allowed me to utilize the skills I learned in my Human Services classes at my university, while giving me the freedom to take on new challenges that come with being a social worker in a disadvantaged community. My supervisor made sure I felt comfortable in the new environment and was eager to see that I learned all that I could in my short amount of time there. She took me on home visits in the townships and trusted me with several tasks such as writing up treatment plans and calling outside social workers.
I’m so grateful that I stumbled upon the VAC page while searching for an internship experience because these last 3 months have been unforgettable and amazing and I am genuinely homesick for Cape Town. Nowhere else in the world can you go to work on a Wednesday and be on a safari with elephants and close friends on a Thursday. So thank you VAC staff for being friends as well as the people in charge, thank you St. Joseph’s for teaching me that generosity goes a long way, and thank you Cape Town for bringing out my adventurous side, aka making me feel bad for wanting to sit in bed all day and watch Netflix, you’ve really outdone yourself.
Michelle is studying Zoology at Michigan State University. She joined the VACorps program from January – March 2024 and participated in a marketing internship at a marketing and brand management company.
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As soon as Bethany arrived in Cape Town, she hit the ground running. She didn’t want to waste a single moment, either at her internship or traveling around southern Africa. Below she describes the highlights from her time at Read...
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Jenna joined the VACorps program in January 2024 as part of her GAP year, and participated in a human rights law internship. She will begin her studies in Psychology and Political Science at the University of Colorado Boulder in September...
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