In an effort to expand offerings for students, CAS is launching Domestic Travel Study as a new option for students and faculty! This effort aligns with UVM’s mission to prepare students for life after college, allowing them to experience new communities, engage with issues first-hand, and communicate with diverse populations in their own backyard.
CAS Faculty-led Domestic Travel Study courses can be offered during winter break, spring break, or summer term. Typically, students will earn between 3-6 credits for these courses, which run between 1-4 weeks.
Please note that new programs typically require 12-18 months for development.
Planning & Development
Faculty who wish to plan and run a domestic Travel Study course will need to complete the steps below. Any questions should be directed to CAS Associate Dean for Student Success, Paul Deslandes.
Please note that domestic programs do not route through UVM’s Office of International Education (OIE) and are handled at the college-level.
Course Proposal & Approval
First, consider whether your course idea meets department needs? Student demand/interest? Does it help students fulfill various academic requirements in your discipline?
Then, submit the CAS Domestic Travel Study Course Proposal form by the deadline listed below.
If your course is approved at the Dean’s Office level, you will be directed toward next steps by Paul Deslandes, Associate Dean for Student Success, and Sophia Trigg, Experiential Learning Program Director, starting with the Domestic Travel Study Course Snapshot Form (different from above). This second form is intended to be a jumping-off point for the course planning process (detailed below) and will inform your first planning meeting with WorldStrides, our program planning partner.
Course Planning
Your first meeting with WorldStrides, UVM’s travel program provider, will allow you to enumerate your wants, needs, and dreams for your course and learn about on-the-ground supports and travel details. You will work with WorldStrides over a period of weeks to solidify a travel plan, secure and book activities, and on course contingencies.
Once you’re happy with the plan created, WorldStrides will create a draft budget for your course that you will submit to CAS alongside your syllabus and a travel schedule. See timeline below for deadlines.
Upon budgetary approval, you will be able to start recruitment for your course.
Important Dates and Deadlines
Faculty and Department Chairs should follow the schedule below for Domestic Travel Study course planning. Deadlines are firm as there are also processes happening behind the scenes that aren’t explicitly stated here, such as health & safety reviews and budget approvals that need to remain on track.
Additional specific dates will be communicated to relevant groups as needed. Contact Sophia Trigg, CAS Director for Experiential Learning, with any questions at strigg@uvm.edu.
Course Planning Timeline
PLEASE NOTE: Courses for Winter, Spring & Summer 2026 will be operating on an abbreviated timeline. Please contact strigg@uvm.edu for more information and correct dates.
| Timeline | Winter Break | Spring Break | Summer Term |
| Faculty submit course proposals for the following academic year (both new and repeat) to the CAS Associate Dean for Student Success via the Course Proposal Form. | December 1 | December 1 | December 1 |
| CAS sends instructions and next steps to faculty whose courses have been approved to run. | December 18 | December 18 | December 18 |
| Faculty meet with Assoc. Dean for Student Success re: workload implications, course focus, etc. | by Jan 20 | by Jan 20 | by Jan 20 |
| Faculty Course Snapshot Form due. | January 20 | January 20 | January 20 |
| Faculty will meet with WorldStrides to begin course planning. Meeting arranged and attended by Sophia Trigg (CAS EL Director). | Jan – Feb | Jan – Feb | Jan – Feb |
| Completed draft budget and supporting documentation (syllabus/schedule) due to CAS (WorldStrides + Faculty). | March 15 | March 15 | March 15 |
| Faculty begin to recruit students, applications open. | July 1 | September 15 | November 1 |
| Student application deadline. | September 5 | November 18 | January 27 |
| Faculty will provide list of admitted students to the CAS EL team. CAS EL team will send important information and next steps to admitted students. | September 12 | November 25 | February 3 |
| Student deposit deadline | September 17 | November 30 | February 8 |
| Go / No-Go deadline – Decisions made by CAS Business Office and Associate Dean for Student Success based on deposits and college pedagogical needs. | September 20 | December 2 | February 11 |
| Faculty issue course registration overrides to students. | November | November | March |
| Faculty pre-departure budget meeting with CAS Business Office. | November 1 | January 15 | March 15 |
| Student pre-departure meetings. | December | February | April |
Post-program financial deadlines
- Faculty submits expense sheet & receipts within 7 days of travel completion to CAS Business Office.
- Supporting Department reconciles program expenses, submits reconciled budget to CAS Business Office within 30 days of travel completion.
Recruitment & Student Application Process
While faculty are primarily responsible for recruiting and selecting the students who will enroll in their courses, CAS’s Experiential Learning Team will assist with the student promotion, application, and deposit processes.
Recruitment & Promotion
CAS’s Experiential Learning Team (and WorldStrides) will:
- Create a webpage for your course listing the description, credits, course number, cost, etc.
- Collect applications for your course through a central application system.
- Create posters (8.5″x11″ and 11″x17″) and online banners/images for your course to aid in promotion.
- Promote your course to all CAS students, to campus affinity groups, post on social media and on on-campus TV screens in common spaces.
Faculty will be responsible to:
- Set eligibility requirements related to both academics and physical & emotional fitness.
- Provide CAS EL Team with:
- Notable information specific to the destination or course activities that could help a student determine if the course is a good match for them (consider aspects of student identity that might make a destination more or less friendly, for example).
- Accurate pictorial or other representation of the course experience.
- Promote the course to students and faculty colleagues via email, class visits, information sessions, department newsletters, etc.
- Direct all interested students to the course webpage and application form created by the CAS EL Team.
Application
All applications for Domestic Travel Study courses will route through a central application form. You will receive all applications upon the application deadline, but we will let you know how many applications you have received throughout the application window and you can request to have materials sent to you whenever you need them.
See timeline above for application deadlines.
If you choose to interview student applicants or require additional written work, please let the CAS EL team know so they can communicate these additional requirements to the students on the website and application form. Please also keep in mind acceptance and deposit deadlines when requiring interviews or additional work post application deadlines.
Review & Selection
As the lead faculty member, you are responsible for deciding which students will participate in your course. Selection criteria must be objective and not discriminate on the basis of any protected categories. The application process can be an important educational opportunity wherein you begin to establish behavioral expectations and begin to build rapport, which has a substantial influence on the success of any travel course.
How will you know a student is prepared to engage safely, responsibly and be optimally ready academically when they arrive in your destination?
- What characteristics will the successful student in this course possess beyond the minimum eligibility requirements? What type of student will make this an optimal learning experience for everyone?
- What criteria will you use (and apply to all applicants equally) for program acceptance?
- Note: Questions regarding mental health or disabilities are not allowed in the application process; the most effective way to screen applicants who may not be appropriate for a given program is by providing clear information about required activities, on-the-ground conditions, and what is needed to successfully participate.
Enrolling students simply because they apply and pay a deposit first come, first-serve often can lead to challenges down the road which could have been avoided for certain destinations and/or for certain types of course activities. Ask questions to understand maturity and tolerance for ambiguity.
- What will you require of students beyond basic application information so that you can determine who to admit?
- Will you require responses to several short essay questions? Brief interviews?
- How will you assess student motivation/likelihood of contributing positively to group dynamics?
- What commitments will you have students make in writing before you guarantee them a spot in the course?
Student Inquiries
As the faculty leader, you will reply to student questions related to course academic content and itinerary.
Questions related to how a course fulfills a student’s degree requirements should be directed to their academic advisor.
CAS EL staff will notify students of admission and advise them on how to pay their deposit.
Deposit & Enrollment
Deposit Process
Students accept their admission by paying a $450 non-refundable deposit by the deposit deadline listed above.
By paying their deposit, the student agrees to formally register for the course when registration opens through myUVM, and accepts responsibility for all course-related tuition and fees on their student account.
Tuition, plus the balance of the program fee, will be assessed on the student account after formally registering for the course according to the UVM Student Financial Services billing cycle.
For disciplinary reasons, a student may be sent home at his/her own expense, without any refund, if they violate a course policy or otherwise engage in behavior which endangers health and safety of themselves or others, or if they disrupt the host community. This is at the discretion of the Faculty Director after consultation with the CAS Dean’s Office (we will engage with the Center for Student Conduct and/or Office of General Counsel).
Students are strongly advised to purchase “cancel for any reason” trip protection insurance. If UVM cancels the course due to insufficient enrollment or for any other reason, students will receive a refund of course-related tuition and fees, including the full program fee. However, airline tickets or other transportation purchased directly by the student will not be refunded by the University.
Course Enrollment
At Go/No Go CAS will grant final approval or denial for the course to proceed. At that time, you will issue a course registration override (only to students who have paid their deposit!) so that the student may register for the course in Banner once registration opens for the relevant term.
Please be aware that if you issue a course override for a student who has not paid the non-refundable deposit, that means the student also hasn’t committed financially in writing; if they back out of the course, you will be left with a complicated situation where your department will be on the hook financially.
Still have questions?
Email cas.internships@uvm.edu — our team would be happy to assist.
