Morehouse men who want South Africa on their college record have five days to act. The college’s Office of International Education is taking applications through Monday, November 9, at 11:59 p.m. for the Oprah Winfrey South Africa Leadership Program, a fully funded study abroad trip running May 22 to June 4, 2027, and this cycle the invitation is open to all Morehouse scholars, not only the Oprah Winfrey Scholars themselves.
The itinerary covers three regions in fourteen days: Johannesburg, Pilanesberg, and Cape Town. The program is built around the country’s history and the people who made it, with visits planned to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, Robben Island, and the Apartheid Museum.
What the two weeks hold
The South Africa Leadership Program is the travel arm of the Oprah Winfrey Endowed Scholars Program, which Winfrey established at Morehouse in 1989 to support students with financial need, academic strength, and a record of service. On the ground, the days mix the classroom with the country. Students meet community leaders and sit down with faculty and students at South African universities, among them the University of the Western Cape, the University of Cape Town, the University of Pretoria, and Stellenbosch University.
History is taught where it happened. Alongside the Mandela Foundation and Robben Island, past cohorts have visited the Apartheid Museum and the Leah and Desmond Tutu Foundation, and the schedule leaves room for service days and for the landscape itself, including Pilanesberg National Park, Cape Point, and Table Mountain. Each student keeps an electronic portfolio of the trip, a written record of what he saw and what it changed.
Why this cycle is different
The endowed scholars program is selective by design. Its scholars must hold at least a 3.0 Morehouse grade point average, complete 15 credit hours a semester, and give service back at home, mentoring middle and high school students in Atlanta. The program is directed by Dr. Jann H. Adams through the Andrew Young Center for Global Leadership, the college’s home for international study.
This year’s call widens the gate. By opening the 2027 trip beyond the endowed cohort to Morehouse scholars generally, the college is treating South Africa as a leadership classroom for the whole student body, with the costs covered. For a student who has never left the country, a funded seat removes the usual reason the answer is no.
The deadline
Applications close November 9, 2026, at 11:59 p.m., through the Office of International Education portal linked from the office’s announcement. The plane leaves in May. The decision is due Monday night.
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