Life at Sea

Co-Curricular Programs

Learn, grow, and connect with shipboard programs and activities that enhance your classroom experience.

Learn, Grow, and Thrive

Semester at Sea is an extraordinary experience that engages your entire self, in and out of the classroom. Take advantage of opportunities to learn through action, contemplation, reflection, and connection, along with the acquisition of knowledge and information.

Our co-curricular programming will enhance your in-country travel experiences, provide you with fun and enriching shipboard activities, and support your physical, social, and emotional well-being.

Seminars, Discussions, and Events

As our floating college circumnavigates the globe, it becomes an immersive shipboard community where you’ll learn about globalization and individual cultures to prepare you to be confident for in-country travel.

Explorer Seminars
Enjoy non-credit learning opportunities presented by shipboard participants each evening while at sea. Learn about upcoming ports and topics such as career development, service learning, and more.
Seaside Chats
Learn directly from primary sources in these intimate discussion and question-and-answer sessions, hosted by an expert.
Pre-port Seminars
Before each port, the shipboard community comes together to learn critical logistical and cultural information to prepare you for the countries that await.
Post-port Reflections
The evening the ship leaves port, you will gather in a small group or with the entire learning community to share meaningful experiences and key learnings in sessions facilitated by faculty and staff.
Diplomatic Briefings
As part of our sustained relationship with the U.S. State Department, diplomats and consular officials provide the shipboard community with in-country political briefings at each destination.
Interport Lecturers
International scholars and professors living abroad join the community for a segment of the voyage to share their deep knowledge of culture, practice, or field of study.
Interport Students
Undergraduates from around the world are invited to join the shipboard learning community between destinations to take part in classes and give presentations about their cultures.
Events
Enhance your learning or get a much-needed respite with special events scheduled throughout the voyage.

Organizations & Activities

Share your passions and skills, and learn from your shipmates through recreational student organizations and clubs. Get involved with established activities that exist on each voyage, or start your own traditions based on your interests and passions.

Sports & Fitness

Get moving, with intramural tournaments in your favorite sports, and enjoy group exercise classes in dance, yoga, Pilates, martial arts, and more.

Arts & Performance

Join a band, learn to salsa, practice your writing or drawing skills, or take part in a coffee house or theater performance — the possibilities for engaging your creative side are as limitless as your imagination.

Spirituality & Personal Growth

Nourish your soul with spiritual and religious services and discussion groups, or join a self-help group to support you in your personal growth journey.

Diversity & Culture

Find your niche in a cultural affinity group, including clubs for students of color, LGBTQIA+ students, multiple religious identities, and more.

Leadership & Service

Develop leadership skills and contribute meaningfully through the shipboard Model UN, Sea Council, Amnesty International, Sustained Dialogue, Environmental Club, and more.

Student Life Support

The Student Life team is dedicated to the purposeful and holistic promotion of student learning and development, enhancing your educational experience through the dynamic, synergistic relationship between academics and co-curricular learning.

Our Community Is Our Greatest Strength

Time and again, we hear from our voyagers that the shipboard community is the most meaningful part of their Semester at Sea experience. That’s because we cultivate an engaged and diverse community of undergraduates, faculty and staff, interport lecturers, international students, and Lifelong Learners — all of whom live and learn together on our floating college.

Through meals, casual conversations with professors, co-curricular programming, and in-country experiences, you will build bonds that last a lifetime.

Ready to Set Sail?

Take the first step on the journey of a lifetime.

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Become a Lifelong Learner