The College of Natural Resources has opened applications for next fall’s Semester in the Wild program — a semester-long program of five interdisciplinary courses taken while living in the remote Frank Church Wilderness. Applications for the program are due April 11.
Jodi Walker | Courtesy
Students from the Fall 2013 Semester in the Wild program participate in a lesson for one of their classes on top of a mountain in the Frank Church Wilderness. Applications for the Fall 2014 semester-long program are due April 11. Students from any university and degree porgram can participate in Semester in the Wild and earn 16 credits to be applied toward their degree and core requrements.
Next fall will be the second time the University of Idaho offers this program. Last fall, 11 students from various universities were part of the initial program. Students received fifteen credits in English, leadership and science classes after spending an intensive semester living in the Taylor Wilderness Research Station.
Sadie Grossbaum, a UI student majoring in recreation and minoring in psychology, said she applied for last year’s Semester in the Wild program, because she was tired of the traditional university environment.
“I went to get a semester out of the classroom,” she said. “The opportunity to take all my classes in a wilderness area sounded awesome.”
Grossbaum said she enjoyed drinking fresh mountain water straight from Pioneer Creek, and walking without seeing anyone else. She said she would recommend the program to anyone interested in the outdoors.
“You don’t need to be a hardcore backpacker, you don’t need to have gone camping before. You just have to have an open mind,” she said.
Tom Gorman, associate dean of the College of Natural Resources, is the primary coordinator for the program. He said the program stemmed from ideas of previous faculty and leaders in the CNR and English Departments. Gorman said last year was the first time organizers could coordinate all the necessary elements enough to effectively start the program, which he said went very well.
“It (was successful) because of the dedication of the faculty, and the student group was just stellar,” Gorman said. “They went into it wanting to make it succeed and did a great job.”
Gorman said applicants for the program were handpicked based on several criteria, including their ability to coexist in close contact with others while living in a wilderness setting. Students interested in applying for the program must be working toward a bachelor’s degree at an accredited university, and must be eligible to take upper-division classes. Applicants must submit several documents including a written statement showing interest or experience in the emphasized academic areas, two letters of recommendation and a resume indicating the student’s compatibility with the program goals and objectives.
“The things you’ve done in the past lead to your success in a Semester in the Wild experience,” Gorman said. “It doesn’t mean that you have to have already had summer jobs in the forest or anything, but you’ve had experiences that would lead to a successful three month experience in the wilderness.”
The students this year will live in wall tents heated by woodstoves, rather than the single cabin used by the first group, which will allow up to 18 students to participate.
Tuition for the program is $3,262 for residents and $9,800 for out-of state students. Additional costs include room and board for $4,950 and a fieldtrip fee of $450. Students are required to bring their own gear, and provide their own medical insurance while in the program.
Gorman said the program will offer the same five classes — Environmental Literature and Culture, Outdoor Leadership, Environmental Writing, River Ecology and Wilderness and Protected Area Management — with some modifications to improve credit transferability. For the next program, the course in river ecology will be four credits rather than three and count as a science course with a lab. One of the English classes may soon be recognized as a university core class, though this development is still in progress, according to Gorman. He said transferability is an important aspect for many students, and something developers have been working on.
“I’d be glad to work with (students) on the transferability of these courses to their degree programs,” Gorman said. “They should first talk to their adviser.”
Preferential applications for Semester in the Wild are due by April 11. Gorman said he and the faculty will review and consider student’s applications on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Daphne Jackson can be reached at [email protected]