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Before
you apply for a NOLS course, you must read
this page. |
Admission Procedure
Fill out and return the application. After reviewing your application, we will enroll you on the course of your choice, if there is space available. If appropriate, be sure to provide several choices in order of preference. NOLS' final acceptance of any student is subject to NOLS' receipt and review of all necessary forms and documents. NOLS reserves the right to deny admission to anyone that NOLS, in its sole discretion, believes is unable to meet the physical, mental, social or safety demands of our courses.
An enrollment packet containing a course description, equipment list, travel information and other materials to help you prepare for your course will be forwarded to you.
All forms and a $250 non-refundable deposit are due 14 days after the receipt of your packet. The remaining tuition is due 75 days before your course.
Student Behavior and Discipline
Final acceptance is contingent upon the receipt and review of the materials listed above. NOLS seeks students who are motivated to learn outdoor skills and develop leadership, are in good health, physically and emotionally, and are socially responsible.
NOLS is not an appropriate choice for individuals dealing with behavioral, motivational or rehabilitation issues. We will deny admission to anyone we believe to be unable to meet the physical, mental, social or safety demands of our courses.
NOLS will expel any student who exhibits behavior that, in our sole discretion, is unsafe or disrupts or distracts from the educational mission of their course. Harassment, use of drugs and alcohol, theft or misuse of property, low motivation and disregarding instructions are examples of behavior that will lead to expulsion. If a student is expelled there will be no refund.
Equal Opportunity
NOLS does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sexual orientation, national origin, age or disability in the administration of its admission or employment policies. Unfortunately, if NOLS reasonably determines that a disability could lead to an inappropriate level of danger to the student or others, based upon a particular activity, then that person may be ineligible for that particular course or assignment but would not be excluded from other opportunities offered by NOLS.
NOLS Cancellation Policies
If you cancel or leave a course for any reason:
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Between 15 and 29 days prior to the course starting date, NOLS will retain 25 percent of the course tuition.
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Between eight and fourteen days prior to the course starting date, NOLS will retain 50 percent of the course tuition.
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Less than eight days prior to the course starting date or once the course has begun, there will be no refunds.
NOLS Transfer Policies
If you transfer from one course to another:
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30 or more days prior to the course starting date, there will be a $25 processing charge.
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29 days or less prior to the course starting date, regular cancellation and refund charges will apply.
Although we rarely need to do so, we reserve the right to cancel a course or change a course's duration, tuition, or location. NOLS is not responsible for costs associated in these cases. We recommend that you consider refundable airplane tickets and tuition insurance.
Independent Student Travel
At NOLS you are taught the outdoor leadership and skills you need to take others into the backcountry, comfortably and responsibly.
On most of our courses, one of the ways we help you develop into an outdoor leader is by giving you the opportunity to travel without instructors. By the end of the second week of many NOLS courses you will travel in student groups without instructors for a day at a time. To prepare for this, you'll have classes and practical experience with staff in backcountry travel. You'll learn decision-making processes from your instructors and they'll observe, critique, and help you develop your leadership.
If your instructors feel that your group is ready, the culminating experience of many courses is the Student Expedition (SE). For several days of your course you and a few of your course mates will travel without an instructor. You will put your traveling, navigation and camping skills, and leadership techniques to use.
Your instructors help the course divide into groups, select a leader and plan a route. You will know your instructor's route and campsites (usually no more than a day away). You and your group make the daily leadership decisions, but still have the indirect benefit of NOLS support systems. This is excellent preparation for the backcountry trips you will lead for family and friends after you get home and is often cited by our alumni as the highlight of their NOLS course.
Risk Management
The recognition and management of the inherent risks and
hazards of living and traveling in remote wild
areas is taught and practiced on every course. NOLS is committed
to helping promote a positive learning environment
and physical and emotional well-being for all students.
We are very proud of our excellent record managing the risks
of wilderness travel.
Most of our students first hear about NOLS
from our graduates. This is probably the best indication
of how our graduates value their NOLS experience. Yet
we are sure they would be the first to join us in reminding
you and your family that NOLS courses are not easy and
involve travel through rugged terrain in which there are
real dangers. The management of our activities with respect
to these dangers is a fundamental part of the NOLS curriculum. Good physical
conditioning and a positive mental attitude are essential. Each student plays
an important role in the success of a NOLS course.
You will be responsible for transporting your
own gear. You will sleep outdoors, possibly in co-ed tent
groups, prepare your own meals and be expected to care
for yourself in weather conditions that can be extreme. On many courses there
are opportunities for students to travel independently of instructors in groups
of at least three for one or more days. There are other times, such as in town
at the beginning and end of the course or between semester sections, when students
are not supervised by NOLS.
Wilderness activity involves hazards: rockfall,
wild rivers and freezing temperatures can pose a risk
to even the most experienced outdoor leader. Activities
ranging from simple day hikes to climbing glaciers can,
due to error in judgment or the unpredictable forces of
nature, become dangerous and potentially life threatening.
Our courses are isolated expeditions. The remoteness
of the areas in which we travel can create complex emergency
situations that have no simple solutions. It is not uncommon
to be days from medical help. NOLS has comprehensive wilderness
emergency response and evacuation procedures and is a leader in the use of
appropriate field communication technology in remote wilderness locations.
We carry a radio or satellite telephone or
other electronic communication devices on each of our
courses for life threatening emergencies, but this does
not guarantee reliable communication from the field
to our support bases. Radios and portable phones can
be unreliable depending on terrain, atmospheric conditions
and other variables. Independent student travel groups may be separated from
the radio/phone for 24 hours or more.
The majority of medical incidents (sprains, flu, diarrhea, etc.) may
be treated in the field. A more serious incident, such as a fracture, will
require evacuation of the patient to a medical facility.
It is important you understand that there are
risks. Some adventure programs say that they can guarantee
your safety. NOLS does not. The risk of injury, even serious
injury or death, is unavoidable in the outdoor environment
in which we teach. Indeed, much of the value of a NOLS
course lies in learning how to identify hazards and adapt
behavior, not only on the course, but also for a lifetime
of enjoying the outdoors.
When you come to NOLS, you will be attending
the school that sets the standards in wilderness risk
management, wilderness medicine and student well being. We
have published one of the leading texts on wilderness
first aid and are on the board of the Wilderness Medical
Society. NOLS' Wilderness Medicine Institute
(WMI) is at the cutting edge in the growing field of wilderness medicine. Practices
and curriculum developed by WMI are used on our field courses. We are the leaders
of the national Wilderness Risk Managers Committee, and each year NOLS Professional
Training convenes the Wilderness Risk Management Conference for outdoor educators
and adventure program administrators.
Before you arrive, thoroughly read all materials
we send you, and call us if you have questions. A report
on NOLS safety management and history is available from
our admission office.
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