In Spring 1999, Western Illinois University geology major Kristen Shinglman from Oak Park set aside the typical learning experiences of classroom lectures, discussions and Internet searches and set sail for a 100-day Semester at Sea educational adventure. Students could take up to 15 credit hours during the semester tour, including a mandatory class which prepared the passengers for each port of call through historical and cultural studies.
Students pay tuition for the ship fare, meals and cabin accommodations.
Side trips and explorations were added expenses, but well worth the money, Shinglman said. Classes included faculty directed practicums, which involved field trips with the professors in several of the countries. In addition, she completed a three-hour independent study class for her University Honors Program curriculum through WIU, which included keeping a journal and writing nine papers. One of the papers, about how tourism affects cultural changes, was written after a four-day safari to the outskirts of Nairobi and the Masai Village. I was able to spend quite a lot of time interacting with them, and found them fascinating.