Kenya is located on the eastern coast of the African continent and is bordered by Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania.

Paul Mathewson, class of '03, spent fall semester of his junior year living close to wildlife and local Maasai communities in the Kenyan savanna. Through the School for Field Studies, Paul was able to study wildlife management in a variety of locations across Kenya. Living both in the Nairobi National Park Site and at the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Paul observed park activities and engaged in directed research that brought him into contact with park authorities and the surrounding communities allowing him to tap the indigenous knowledge of the Kenyans who live in close proximity to wildlife areas. A combination of lectures and expeditions, blended with real-life applications and research, the SFS Kenya program offered Paul something new, beautiful and challenging. Eating meals composed of rice, beans, lentils and fruits and living in bandas in a compound powered only by the sun was a new experience for Paul who hails from Plainfield, New Hampshire. Exploring limited-access parks, hiking the countryside and interacting with elephants, giraffes, monkeys and other indigenous wildlife gave Paul the opportunity to engage himself academically as well as connect to the natural beauty of the land. The SFS program's capstone project is a month-long, in-depth research project that brings students together with on-going research and real professionals working to improve Kenya's habitat. This project challenged Paul to make a difference in the wildlife management field and allowed him to give back to the community by sharing his results and engaging in community service days at the same time that the community strengthened his academic careers and life experiences. Unlike tamer programs in Western Europe and the US, the SFS Kenya program put Paul face to face with an exotic environment and cultural heritage that positively affected his life forever.

To learn more about the SFS in Kenya program, click here.

For more general information about Kenya, click here.
See what is going on in Kenya today.
Facts about Kenya from the CIA World Factbook.
Visit the Kenya Wildlife Service online.
Book a flight to Kenya.

Check the Off-Campus Study office to learn more about going abroad.

Other experiences abroad