There are many decisions to make and steps to complete in planning an academically rigorous, cross-culturally enriching, safe, and engaging Travel Study program. Developing a Travel Study program can be a more involved, time-consuming, and challenging process than developing an on-campus course. Though we are eager to support faculty in the development of a new program, it is also important to fully understand what is involved before deciding to pursue this opportunity. We recommend reading through the information in this guide thoroughly to help you understand the process beyond the strictly academic pieces.  

Who?

• Will your program be geared toward undergraduate students, graduate students, Professional and Continuing Education (PACE) students, or some combination?
• Will the program be designed for students in specific degree programs or a specific school/college, or open more broadly to UVM students?
• Will the program appeal to a large enough population of students to meet minimum enrollment requirements?
• Will your program have any pre-requisites or other eligibility requirements (language proficiency, physical/health requirements, etc.)?
• Many Travel Study programs are required to have two program leaders. Who on campus may be well suited to co-lead your program, or serve as a TA?
• Would this program be well suited to be led by other UVM colleagues in the event you leave the university, go on sabbatical, retire, etc.?

What?

• Will your program be embedded into a semester-long course? Will you have pre-/post-travel meetings?
• How will you structure the program itinerary, assignments, etc.?
• How will you introduce students to the culture and history of your host destination in a meaningful way?

Where?

• Why is your destination the best one to meet your academic objectives?
• What do the US Department of State’s travel advisory(ies) say for your destination(s)? Note that not all destinations will be approved for travel depending on risk ratings, travel advisories, and risk assessments by the UVM International Travel Advisory Group (ITAG) and the UVM Provost’s Office.
• What is the US Center for Disease Control’s advice for your destination?
• How realistic is it to get to and from this destination during the desired period – both in terms of the logistics of travel, and the impact of jet lag if any time zone changes?

When?

• How many total days and/or weeks will the travel component be?
• What is the proposed term (winter break, spring break, or summer), including departure and return dates? NOTE: Instruction/travel must not interfere with students’ other courses. Travel to/from locations may occur outside of designated terms; for-credit instruction must fall within a term. See UVM’s Academic Calendar.
  • Winter Break Courses: Considered part of the spring term course/credit load.
  • Spring Break Courses: Travel needs to fall within spring recess dates, but coursework may be assigned during the duration of the spring semester.  
  • Summer Courses: Must follow standard summer meeting patterns and all travel and coursework must occur within the pattern dates. It is expected that the instructor assigns coursework to fill the full standard summer meeting pattern. Depending upon when in the summer, students may be balancing summer jobs, internships or other commitments that could dissuade their enrollment in a travel course in the middle of the summer. Summer courses also require additional tuition payments on top of program fee and airfare costs, which can be challenging for students to afford. However, the summer term offers the greatest flexibility in terms of program length and timing.  
• What will the weather be like in the host destination during the period of travel (rainy season, extreme heat, tropical storms/hurricanes, lack of daylight, etc.)?
• Will there be any major holidays in your host destination during the period of travel? Will it be peak tourism season, impacting availability and cost of accommodations?
• Will this program be offered yearly? Will there be sufficient student interest to sustain this frequency, or would offering the program every other year be more sustainable? 

Why?

• What will students gain from taking this course abroad that they could not from taking the course on UVM’s campus?
• How will the travel component enhance the student experience and meet the learning objectives of your program? 
   

Program Costs

Students are billed by UVM for two different costs associated with participating in a Travel Study program: 

1. UVM tuition for the credits they are receiving;
2. A program fee that typically encompasses accommodations, in-country transportation, program activities, and some meals. 

Additional costs not billed through UVM include international airfare, out-of-pocket meal costs, and personal expenses such as immunizations, travel insurance, etc. 

While tuition costs cannot be changed, the program fee is quite variable based on the cost of living in the host destination(s), the length of the program, the types of transportation available/utilized, and the number of activities included in the itinerary. These factors should be kept in mind when conceptualizing your itinerary to create the most affordable program possible. That being said, these types of international travel experiences will inherently cost more than, for example, a vacation to the same location due to the quantity/types of activities and the additional levels of health and safety support involved. 

Academics

Although there are many unique aspects of a Travel Study program that would not necessarily apply to a course offered on campus, these programs are still courses and as such must adhere to all standard UVM policies and protocols. For example, the workload involved in the program must be equivalent to the number of credit hours being offered. 

Additionally, consider ways to make your program widely appealing to a variety of UVM students. Programs with very specific course content don't always meet minimum enrollment requirements due to limited applicant pools. Think strategically - can the course fulfill a degree requirement? Will students from outside your department be interested in the content? Is the content unique enough so as to not compete with other Travel Study programs offered by your academic unit? 

Itinerary

Building the ideal itinerary for an International Travel Study program involves finding a balance of active time and rest time. Students will be spending their money and time on this opportunity, and it is important to make the experience a valuable one. However, trying to fit too much into the itinerary will likely leave students (and you) burnt out. Try to find intentional times to build down time into your itinerary for students to rest and process their experience - consider adding two hours in a park for students to reflect using journal prompts, or giving students an afternoon or day off to explore their own points of interest within the host city (provided it is safe to do so). This is typically most successful at the end of the program, once students have built some confidence in independently navigating the host city. We also recommend that arrival days include some free time to recover from the travel and settle in, whenever possible. 

Faculty Leader

• Conceptualize the program and develop the syllabus/learning outcomes.
• Work with an approved program provider to build an itinerary that supports the syllabus and learning outcomes.
• With the OIE, build a budget that includes the program provider costs plus any additional costs.
• Promotes the program to students.
• Makes admission decisions for applicants.

Co-Leader/TA

• Provide support in-country including helping to guide the group and providing assistance in the event of a student illness, injury, or emergency.
• May provide instructional support.
• Acts as the primary program leader in the event the faculty leader is incapacitated. 

Academic Unit

• Set strategic priority for programs that will meet the academic needs of the unit.
• Facilitate curriculum committee review process.
• Approve program budget and determine minimum enrollments needed for program to run.
• Determine whether course is supported to move forward at “go/no go” date.

Program Provider

• Collaborate with faculty leader(s) and OIE on itinerary components that match syllabus and learning outcomes.
• Coordinate logistics of accommodations, in-country transportation, etc.
• Generate quote for pricing and invoice UVM.
• Provide marketing, pre-departure, and on-the-ground support of various kinds (including health and safety support).

OIE

• Administer program proposal process for programs nominated by the academic units each academic year.
• Meet with faculty at multiple stages in process around budget and program development to follow UVM protocols.
• Support faculty in preparing for and managing health and safety considerations pre-departure and in-country 

In addition to the above key stakeholders, there are a many other campus partners who have in important role in governing this work, including Risk Management, General Counsel, Student Financial Services, the Provost’s Office, Financial Analysis and Budgeting, Purchasing & Contracts, and Tax Services.

If your program receives Go approval from your academic unit to move forward, you will be responsible for several pre-departure preparation steps. These will include communicating next steps to the students in your program, providing course registration overrides, hosting pre-departure meetings for students, completing another set of GoAbroad forms, purchasing your flights, and more. This will be outlined in detail upon receiving Go approval, but here are some highlights: 

Pre-Departure Meetings with Students 

You are required to hold at least one pre-departure meeting with students, and we recommend two or more. These can be virtual or in-person if you/your department are able to reserve a space on campus. Here are some suggestions for your meetings: 

• Use the time to begin building community norms, expectations, and trust among the cohort. Consider facilitating some team building activities or brainstorm another way to build a sense of community.
• Give students a good understanding of what to expect on the course – a draft itinerary, for example, is a great thing to review. Set behavioral expectations and begin to build trust that will encourage students to come to you with any concerns during the travel.
• Relay important health and safety information about your destination country (areas to avoid, healthcare standards, expectations re: staying in groups during free times/after dark) as well as the resources available to UVM travelers. If a medical clearance form is required for your course, you can help students understand more about the health considerations on the course. UVM’s International Travel and Medical Assistance Provider is a great resource for this.
• Begin to discuss the culture of your destination country (cultural differences, culture shock, norms to be aware of), especially the things students may experience immediately upon arrival.
• Review important logistics (flight details, currency conversion, anticipated out-of-pocket expenses, packing lists, cell phone/communication expectations, etc.)
• Give students clear next steps – a preparation checklist, for example, can be helpful. Their GoAbroad forms are not specific to your course, but if there are things you want students to do, read, pack, or share with you, a list will help keep them on track.
• We recommend advising students to pack light, consider wearing a mask on the plane to avoid illnesses upon arrival, and always use the buddy system during free time.

Pre-Departure Meetings with OIE

You will be required to attend at least two meetings with the OIE between the Go decision and departure for your program. The first is a pre-departure budget meeting with OIE and representatives from your academic unit to review what has been paid ahead of travel, where the budget stands, and what you need to keep in mind for Purcard/Cash transactions during the program. The second is a pre-departure health and safety meeting with OIE staff in which we will review important health and safety information related to emergencies, injuries/illness, behavioral concerns, etc. This may be split into one longer, group-format meeting and a shorter individual meeting, or may be one longer individual meeting. 

Depending on the provider you work with, you may also have pre-departure meetings with their team. 

GoAbroad Requirements

All students and faculty will have a set of pre-departure requirements in GoAbroad. For faculty, this will entail reading through important information and reminders, as well as a few forms such as uploading a copy of your passport and a final itinerary. Student requirements are a bit more extensive and include outlining any medical conditions/allergies/health concerns. Prior to departure, the OIE will send you a final student roster that includes emergency response information such as flight information, emergency contacts, health considerations, and passport information. We will also send you pre-departure packets for you and the students that include important contacts and emergency protocol information. 

Healix

Healix is UVM’s International Travel and Medical Assistance Provider. They provide pre-departure guidance as well as assistance in the event of an emergency or urgent situation during travel. 

STARR Insurance

STARR provides international medical and security insurance for students, faculty and staff for the duration of their time outside of the U.S. on university-affiliated travel. STARR services are connected to Healix, so if you contact Healix regarding an injury or illness that requires medical care, they will work with you to engage STARR insurance as appropriate. 

You can find more information about Healix and STARR on UVM Risk Management's website. 

Medical Clearance Forms 

Some programs may require students to complete Medical Clearance Forms with their medical providers, depending on the nature of the program activities and/or the availability of quality medical care in the host destination(s). The OIE manages the review and approval process of these forms and will loop in faculty program leaders as appropriate if there are any concerns with a student's participation in the program. 

Health and Safety

Faculty and students are expected to follow emergency response protocols in the event of an emergency during travel. This will nearly always involve looping in the OIE via your OIE emergency contact, which will be shared with you prior to departure. Faculty should also contact OIE if any student behavioral or safety concerns are starting to arise so that a plan can be developed to address the concerns. 

If you need to pivot your itinerary for any reason, this should also be relayed to the OIE so that we are aware where the group is at all times for emergency response reasons. 

Documenting the Experience

A student in your program may be asked by the OIE to serve as a photo ambassador, which involves taking high-quality photos throughout the program and doing an Instagram takeover on the study abroad Instagram account for one day of the program. Regardless of student participation in the photo ambassador program, we recommend taking good photos to use for marketing purposes and to document the experience your group is having! 

Additionally, we recommend taking detailed notes throughout the program of what is going well and what could be improved in future years to refer back to during future iterations of the program. 

Faculty and students will be asked to complete a post-program evaluation to share feedback on the program and on OIE processes/support. 

After your program concludes, you will be asked to complete a few remaining tasks, including wrapping up submission of any receipts from purchases during travel and scheduling a program debrief meeting with OIE staff. 

Many faculty enjoy staying in touch with the students in their programs and some choose to host reunion events after conclusion of the program for students to come together and continue processing the experience they had.