Emy Noel
Age: 23
NOLS Spring Semester in the Rockies, 2001
University of North Carolina, May, 2002
NOLS Marketing Intern, May-December, 2002
NOLS Recruitment Coordinator, January, 2003 - present

My Story

By the time Thanksgiving of my junior year rolled around, I was burnt out on the traditional classroom. I had always been a good and motivated student, but I needed something different. Sure, I took the “right” classes and got the grades, but something was missing. My education lacked inspiration. I needed a change.

A friend did a Semester in the Southwest last year. After hearing about all of her incredible experiences I decided to look into NOLS. I knew I needed a semester with adventure. After extensive research I decided a Spring Semester in the Rockies was right for me.

It was time to talk to my parents, so I made a list of all of the reasons why I should do the semester with NOLS. This not only helped convince my Mom and Dad to let me do it, but they started acting like it was their idea. (Here's the list I used: click here…)

My NOLS Semester was the educational experience of a lifetime. On one section of my semester my course paddled the Green River in Utah, a spectacular stretch of wilderness that has recently been the subject of political controversy. In September 2004, 380,000 acres of land in this area of Utah, including 40, 000 acres of legislatively proposed wilderness and NOLS classrooms, were auctioned off by the BLM to the oil and gas industry. Along with traveling through such diverse wilderness landscapes, I developed leadership skills that have stayed with me ever since my course ended.

After that 2001 semester, I headed back to UNC with a fresh outlook and graduated–thanks to the college credit I earned on my NOLS course!

I couldn't wait to get back to NOLS and Lander. After interning in the marketing department, I now coordinate NOLS on-campus recruiting. I or someone else from NOLS will be on your campus soon. Check out our schedule: click here…