<p>Is Wintersession compulsory for all students, and can you stay on the meal plan for that time? Also are there any courses available during wintersession that allow students to travel?</p>
<p>Nope, wintersession is not compulsory. Students who do stay for wintersession do various things, such as take a course, work, or rehearse for the musical. When I stayed for wintersession one year, I worked, took book arts workshops, and completed my PE requirement with yoga. Yes, courses that travel abroad are offered during wintersession. My friend took a French class in Paris. This year, Intermediate Italian II was taught during the course of three weeks in Rome. Other courses have gone to Morroco, India, and Washington DC. Look at Wellesley's course catalog for all the listings :)</p>
<p>No. Sort of. You can buy into a special meal plan, but it's cheaper to cook yourself. There is slightly less stress, so you do have to time to do so.</p>
<p>Yes, half the courses are travel courses. These are the ones from this past wintersession. Most run every other year.</p>
<p>thanks for the replies. I was wondering, how much does the meal plan cost?</p>
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how much does the meal plan cost?
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<p>More than it's really worth. The dining halls are only open for specific hours (not all day), and the grocery store is only a 20 minute walk from the edge of campus.</p>
<p>Can winter session be covered by financial aid or is doing a course at the time completely out of pocket?</p>
<p>There is no fee for on campus courses. There is a $100 wintersession fee that is discounted if you take a for-credit course by the % of tuition you don't pay because of financial aid.</p>
<p>Trip courses do have fees (a couple thousand dollars). I don't know how much finanical aid covers, only that it is available.</p>
<p>where can you cook? And how many students stay for wintersession?</p>
<p>Every dorm has at least one full kitchen (stove, oven, refrigerator, microwave), and nearly every floor has a partial kitchen (stove, refrigerator, microwave). You'll need to hunt down some cookware or share with someone, but that really isn't hard to overcome. A small saucepan and a skillet are generally enough to get by on.</p>
<p>Campus is generally pretty quiet over Wintersession. I lived in Dower, my first year, and only 5 of the 28 students chose to stay during January. Other years, there would only be a small handful of students on each floor. In other words, you won't be alone, but you also won't be fighting for kitchen time.</p>