<p>I think studying abroad is a better option.</p>
<p>It allows you to focus on one country/language, but also affords you the opportunity to travel around to nearby countries for variety</p>
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Go ahead and have a little Love Boat fun if you want to
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<p>Is it really that bad? Hopefully i'll learn more about it once i'm at UVa, but to me it seemed like a really good program. I'm pretty dissapointed now...</p>
<p>The CavDaily, UVa's student newspaper, just published an article today on the Honor Code and how UVa is pressing on it more, both to its students in C'ville and it's Semester at Sea program. I doubt it will do much for the "party scene" aboard, but I have a feeling UVa really wants to do something about the program. Maybe I should wait another summer, and go in 2 years.
<a href="http://www.cavalierdaily.com/CVArticle.asp?ID=30402&pid=1590%5B/url%5D">http://www.cavalierdaily.com/CVArticle.asp?ID=30402&pid=1590</a></p>
<p>Don't get your answers from people on this bb. When you get to UVA, you'll get a better idea about the program. You may like it.</p>
<p>shoebox:</p>
<p>If you haven't already paid your money, you might want to explore some other programs to see if you find something even more interesting. </p>
<p>For example, for (slightly) less than the $10,000 Semester at Sea summer cruise, you could do the new IHP "Emerging China and India" six week summer program in conjunction with Rhodes College in Memphis. Three weeks in Beijing. Three weeks in New Delhi, India. Live with homestay families in both cities. Fantastic field trips and lectures on issues related to growth in these two countries. The area you would live and study in Beijing is just a couple of miles from the Forbidden City and Tiannaman Square right downtown. Definitely a challenging, eye-opening experience geared towards students looking for a serious program (which is not to say that you wouldn't get to enjoy the karaoke bars in Beijing). New Delhi is in northern India. Easy day trip to the Taj Mahal and other cool touristy things.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ihp.edu/programs/eic/%5B/url%5D">http://www.ihp.edu/programs/eic/</a>
<a href="http://www.rhodes.edu/4275.asp%5B/url%5D">http://www.rhodes.edu/4275.asp</a></p>
<p>These study abroad programs are so expensive that it seems to me you want them to push you in some way....at least as much as a semester at college. If it's just a vacation travel package, you might as well just spend the summer travelling on your own. You can do it for a heck of a lot less than the cost of most study abroad programs.</p>
<p>Engineering does limit your options a bit. However, there are a few engineering programs around. But, if it's summer, who cares if you get the engineering credits? Use it to grab a couple of general ed requirements. The IHP trip above has an Econ/Poli Sci course and a Sociology/Anthropology course integrated into the travel....Lectures and field visits with local government, business, and NGO leaders. Group research projects, etc.</p>
<p>Don't let us old fogies discourage you. Lots of the American abroad programs have a Love Boat theme, shoe. (Rent the movie The Spanish Apartment if you don't believe me).</p>
<p>If a Semester at Sea sounds interesting to you, go ahead and do it. It's not going to be hard out academics--but do you need more hard core academics? Is a summer with a bit of fluff going to derail you? I doubt it--and it could be a great adventure.
You may luck out and get some fantastic professors along for the ride. You'll make some great friends out it, I'll bet. That's a big plus since you're going to UVA as a transfer.</p>
<p>I guess I must be a slacker mom, because I have no issue with college students having a little fun. Of course, I don't approve of non-stop partying, but I think that's kid-specific, not location-specific.</p>
<p>Well, time to go to work for the 1250th week in a row since I left college. Wait, I did get a 6-week break for maternity leave ... and a few weeks of vacation each year. It must be closer to 1123 weeks! :)</p>
<p>Why didn't they have this in the 70's? Just count me in as slacker mom number two. It sounds great, as long as it doesn't strap you financially. Travel when you are young!</p>
<p>An alternative to the semester at sea are the "marine biology semester (my term)" offered by several colleges, often in cooperation with a larger school that has its own laboratory and classroom facilities on the coast. Some that come to mind are...</p>
<p>Occidental College CA
Allegheny College PA
Hood College MD
Northeastern Univ (MA)
U of Washington (Friday Harbor)
U of Connecticut (Avery Point)
WHOI (summer)
Duke Marine Lab
Dauphin Island Sea Lab (AL)</p>
<p>I updated D2 on all the negative opinions that have been expressed here. LOL, her biggest concern after looking at the site was the 50-cent per minute charges for internet usage. She's not sure she could last a WHOLE semester with such limited internet access!!! And to THINK she couldn't download new songs for her IPOD or spend hours updating facebook, or IMing friends...... LOL. Welcome to today's reality. BTW, how will we refer to this decade? 80's, 90's.... 00's??? I don't see it. :)</p>
<p>Chalk me up as a slacker mom in a different way. Fat chance I'd spend $9,000- $20,000 for my little darlings to galavant around the world on a booze cruise. If anybody in our house is going to get to do that, it will be ME not them.</p>
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Travel when you are young!
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<p>I don't think anybody would disagree with that.</p>
<p>The question is the degree to which 650 American college students pulling into port on a cruise ship constitutes travelling in a meaningful sense compared to the other opportunities that are available in study abroad programs for the same price or to simply taking $10,000 and travelling for the summer.</p>
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Travel when you are young!
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<p>Actually, it's OK to postpone travel until you have money. (Your own that is.)</p>
<p>Weenie--i'm with you--both posts!</p>
<p>My son is going on the Semester at sea trip to Central/south america this summer. We were just informed that there is no more room on the Galapagos boats, so he'll have to do the much less desirable hotel option if he wants to go. there has to be a boat available while they're there - is anyone else in this situation? would anyone like to join me in arranging a boat trip for our kids?</p>
<p>I travelled when I was young--on my own nickel.</p>
<p>I'm with jersey. There is plenty of time for working. Plenty.</p>
<p>Yeah, cheers, absolutely, if it's your own nickel. My kids have both done that, and wll continue to do that. but we don't pay for travel; they're lucky theyre getting through college scot-free.</p>
<p>We didn't have any problem with the idea of paying for study abroad instead of a semester in college. However, our requirement was simple: find a program that offers at least as much learning experience as a semester at her college:</p>
<p>a) a serious cultural eye-opener, and/or:</p>
<p>b) serious language immersion, and/or:</p>
<p>c) a compelling academic program that moved the ball in her major way downfield.</p>
<p>She pretty much knew that was coming, but we still "came to words" during one phone call in which her mother and I shot down a couple of "grand Euro vacation" trial balloons she floated early on. I think my exact words were something like, "you can traipse around Europe for a hell of a lot less than $22,000 a semester!"</p>
<p>My wife and I were in the middle of a "what's our next step on this?" conversation 20 minutes after hanging up the phone, when daughter called back and said, "I've been thinking about it and the stuff you said makes sense. I'm looking at some other types of programs that look good....." I think kids do respond to logic about the extreme cost of these programs viz-a-viz the learning experience. She had already figured out everything we told her on her own ahead of time, but figured she'd take a shot to see if we'd roll over and play dead.</p>
<p>I hear you garland--but I've chosen to pay for my sons to travel and study--though they have put up substantial amounts too.</p>
<p>Why do I subsidize their travel? I got to age 28 and Baby #1 and thought, gee, I wish I'd seen even more of the world. Plus, H's parents sent him globetrotting through his years in college. I always thought it was an amazing gift--and an amazing time to travel.</p>
<p>Even now, in my Empty Nest years--the restrictions are many and the time too precious to take a course in London or volunteer/travel/research through Africa. Forget the money--I've got too many other family and work obligations. </p>
<p>My parents opposed any sort of indulgence. They threw a blanket of condemnation on any indulgence whatsoever--even though my mother was a very cossetted young girl. Their guiding principal was "That should be good enough for you." Trouble was, they extended that concept to everything about my life--not just material things. To this day, they don't want the best for me. They struggle with my success--and the imbalance of success--material and non-material-- among their children and grandchildren. They try to make things 'equal' by knocking me and my family. It's twisted logic but there they are.</p>
<p>I've probably over-reacted in my attempt to get that 'good-enough' concept out to the periphery of my life. We wanted our boys to feel that we wanted the best for them--expecially in the non-material categories, if that makes sense. My husband was raised with that kind of support and I wanted to extend his family tradition over our 'good enough'.</p>
<p>Thank you cheers. I felt slightly stupid after reading parents not wanting to send their kids abroad to travel and such, and especially not on their dime. My parents have taken the same road you have: they never got much support/help from their parents, but have strived to provide the best for my brother, sister, and I. They feel education is important and invaluable, and will do whatever it takes to fullfill my wants in an education, as long as i'm reaching for the top.</p>
<p>With the amount you spend on that ship thing you could go to all those countries they have listed and have money left over for a cruise.</p>
<p>I was considering this but thats just way to much money.</p>