May Term Travel Courses
Redlands students have the opportunity to select from short term, international and off-campus curricular options that expand their scope of learning while broadening their sense of self and providing global spaces for reflection on difference and diversity.
Students at Redlands benefit from a Faculty that is deeply committed to off-campus education and study. A clear manifestation of this is the Faculty’s activity in leading travel courses during the university’s May Term period each year.
Experiential in practice, these courses are frequently interdisciplinary in design and offer distinct opportunities for exploratory and creative course content. The mixture of travel, experiential learning and interdisciplinary design allows for a series of study options that are unique in composition and provide educational opportunities that are not possible during regular semesters. Typically, many of these courses also satisfy Liberal Arts Inquiry requirements.
Approximately 10-15 credit-granting courses are offered each May Term session, some of which may require pre-requisites. The majority of these courses take place outside of the United States though there are commonly multiple domestic options in a variety of academic areas. May Term travel courses either fully take place away from the university or offer a split model where courses are divided between a period of on-campus study, with a minimum of 10-14 days off-campus. The average class-size is 14-15 students per course.
Current Offerings 2025
Austria - POLI 362: Politics of Eastern Europe
Faculty: Graeme Auton
Austria - REST 245: Race and Science
Faculty: Ben Aronson
Greece - JNST: The Greeks War with Troy: The Stories and the Evidence
Faculty: Nancy Carrick
Palau — EVST 281: The Palau Expedition: Sustaining Life on a Blue Planet
Faculty: Lei Lani Stelle
Panama - EVST 351: PanaMapping: Geodesign to Conserve the Rainforest
Faculty: Daniel Klooster
Scotland - THA 260: International Festival Fringe
Faculty: Gregory Ramos and Trevor Norton
United States: Marin Campus - ENGL 261: Walking in the Sower’s Footsteps
Faculty: Heather King Shamp
United States: Washington D.C. - POLI 257: Policymaking in Washington D.C.
Faculty: Greg Thorson and Art Svenson
May Term Travel Grant
All students participating in May Term travel courses who demonstrate financial need are eligible for Travel Course Grants. While not exclusively a need-based award, a student’s financial circumstance, as determined by the university, is a priority consideration in the selection of grant recipients.
Application & Deadline
In order to apply, students need to submit the online May Term Travel Course Grant application by the application deadline of Monday, September 30th. You must use your Redlands account to complete this grant application. No late applications will be accepted. Application will open on September 1st.
May Term Travel Grant Application
Eligibility Criteria
Students from first-years to seniors are eligible to apply for May Term travel grants. Financial aid eligibility is required. Students are only eligible for one May Term travel grant during their time as undergraduate students at Redlands.
Priority will be given to students who have not previously studied off-campus in a University of Redlands approved semester-long study away program, participated in a previous May Term travel course, or been confirmed to participate in an upcoming semester study away program.
Travel Grant Amount
Each student applicant may request up to a $1,000 grant. In exceptional cases, the selection committee may award more than $1,000 based on such factors as student need, course cost, available grant resources, total number of grant applicants, and strongly articulated student justification.
Students whose grant applications are successful will have the award amount automatically deducted from their total course cost and will not receive cash or check rewards. Grants can be used for no other purpose than to support their May Term Travel program costs and are non-transferable. Students who do not accept the award or who are not admitted into a May Term travel course for May 2024 cannot defer the grant to a May Term session beyond 2024. The grant in its full amount will be rescinded.
Selection Process
The May Term Committee will review applications. All applicants will be notified of the committee’s decision no later than Monday, October 16th. This provides students one week before the Monday, October 23rd deadline for signing the Registration and Financial Commitment Form provided by the faculty member who has admitted the student to the course.
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