“Beginning a placement at a hospital in a foreign country can be difficult but WTW took us to the hospital (on public transport so we knew how to use it ourselves) and introduced us to the doctors. Straight away there were many opportunities to get involved with patient care. ”
Matt Hauser (Medical elective)

Arusha has a small town feel but is a bustling centre of commerce - particularly due to the growth in tourism. It can offer you a great insight into how government regional hospitals and clinics cope with the demand of a growing city whilst at the same time giving you a fantastic base from which to take advantage of the many African adventures available.

We have developed strong relationships with both large and small government regional and community hospitals, as well as private and charity clinics, and have dedicated in-country staff there to support you and ensure you have a structured placement in an area that matches your interest. We have also developed a Village Healthcare Experience that will give you the opportunity to live in a rural Maasai community, taking part in local activities and helping deliver primary healthcare.

Read more about available placements and specialist areas through the “available elective placements” links on the side menu.

“Once a week was the much anticipated BBQ night. You really ate until you burst that night!”
Denise Crozier (Medical elective)

The Work the World house has a fantastic setting on a hill just outside the town centre with spectacular views of Mount Meru (Africa’s fifth highest mountain) from the balcony. It accommodates up to 22 healthcare placement students in spacious shared rooms, with very large living and dining areas as well as a big garden to chill out in and brush up on your Swahili language lessons!

Witness, our House Manager, lives in a bungalow within the compound and does an amazing job of looking after the house while you are busy on your elective and making sure there’s always plenty of tasty food! Breakfast and dinner are cooked for you and the fridge is always stocked for you to help yourself to lunch, snacks and purified water. To ensure you feel completely safe and comfortable in your placement home we also employ 24-hour security.

“Having looked at Mount Meru from the terrace of the Work the World house in Arusha every day for a few weeks, some of us decided to attempt to climb ... being able to see the sunrise next to Mount Kilimanjaro certainly made the climb worth the effort.”
Lisa Timpe (Medical Elective)

Arusha has plenty of bars and restaurants to keep you entertained, whether you want a taste of Tanzanian food and music or just pizza and a beer. It’s also a great place to wander and you can spend hours in the Maasai market buying gifts to take home. Lots of our elective students have also got involved with the Paradiso orphanage or enrolled on the Village Healthcare Experience, both of which can be really fulfilling ways of spending your time

Heading out of Arusha on weekends is easy and lots of our students group together to take the short drive into the Northern Safari Circuit to spot lion, buffalo, elephant, wildebeest and even leopard in Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro. For those that want a real challenge there are also the towering peaks of Kilimanjaro or Mount Meru to climb. If chilling out is more your thing though, it’s just a short flight to Zanzibar island where the white sand awaits!