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Short Term Faculty Led Courses

May Away, an academic study away-only term, features faculty-led, three-credit hour study away courses which requires 120 hours of student engagement. Pre-travel and course preparation will likely begin during the preceding spring semester, with a sufficient number of faculty/student hours to fully prepare students for the study away component. This preparation may include on-campus and on-line sessions. Even though students will begin coursework, the official start of the May Away term is the day after the last scheduled final exam day for spring semester.

May Away departures will begin within a few days after graduation; no on-campus housing will be provided for May Away students (faculty and students will meet at the airport or another pre-arranged place).  

Being approved to study away as part of the curriculum of LaGrange College is not automatic but may be granted through the Office of Global Engagement based on:
  • A completed application, references and required travel documents
  • The student’s fitness for travel
  • Meeting all academic, procedural, financial, and other prerequisites
 
 
May Away Courses
Important dates and deadlines:
September 1-30 - Applications accepted online. 
November 15 – $500 deposit or another specified amount from all approved travelers is due in the Business Office. 
February 15 – All travel documents completed and a valid passport are submitted in your online application.
Course fee paid in full through the Business Office. 
May -  May Away begins.                         
 
Eligibility
As part of completing the on-line application, students must meet with the course instructor to obtain all necessary information, requirements, and the signature of the instructor. Eligibility for May Away travel courses requires that the student:
• Is age 18 by May 1.
• Be a first year, sophomore, or junior student.
• Has a valid passport that will not expire within the time limit specified by the country visited.  LaGrange College strongly recommends that your passport be valid for at least 6 months beyond your planned date of departure from the country you are visiting.

Non-LaGrange College Students
Students are not permitted to bring accompanying guests.  A non-LC student who wants to enroll in a May Away course will need to be admitted to the College as a transient student. Once admitted, they will need to pay the required tuition and the course fee, and complete the online application and approval process.

Costs and Refunds
The costs listed in the online brochure are the anticipated per-participant travel charges for that particular course and include a fee for emergency health and travel insurance.  It is possible that these costs may require adjustments. If so, you will be notified by email and it will be updated on-line. 
 

If you need to withdraw from the course, you must email the Office of Global Engagement so it is documented.  The date of the withdrawal could affect the amount of a refund.

Refund Schedule:
  • ​January 1:  Deposit will no longer be refunded after this date.
  • February 15:  Final payment for course is due. *Full refunds may no longer available after this date.
*Funds paid out to ​Program Providers will not be fully refundable.  
 
Airline Upgrades and Flight Deviations
If participants want to upgrade their airline ticket, they must pay for the difference in price between the upgraded ticket and the student economy airfare ticket.
 
Participants on faculty-led study away courses travel together as a group. In very rare and specific cases, students may be granted a flight deviation to travel separately from the group or purchase their own ticket. Flight deviations will not be granted in the following cases:
 
1. Participant wants to use air miles or thinks they can find a cheaper ticket individually.
2. Participant wants to join program late or leave early (e.g. for personal travel plans).
 
Students who think they may qualify for a flight deviation must contact Global Engagement before October 31 for information about the flight deviation approval process.

Faculty are expected to fly to and from the program destination with the student group and on the same flight as the student group. Any deviations by faculty or students must be pre-approved by the Global Engagement.

These travel programs offer opportunities for off-campus study either beyond the campus or beyond the borders of the United States.  Such travel inevitably involves risk: accident, injury, illness, civil unrest, and other unforeseen circumstances.  These risks are ones which neither those who sponsor travel nor those who travel can control.  Participation in such an off-campus study program is purely voluntary on the students' part.  As a condition for participation, LaGrange College requires that student travelers and their parents read and execute liability releases and other documents which signify they acknowledge, accept, and assume all risks.  The College expects that students and their parents will use their own due diligence in informing themselves of current global conditions and in determining whether they wish the students to travel to given sites.  The LaGrange College State Department Travel Warning Policy will determine if travel will be approved and it additional waivers need to be signed by the students.

Students participating in College-sponsored travel are expected to comply with all rules of behavior set forth by the course instructor and the College.  After approval for travel is obtained, the College may terminate the student’s travel approval based on any disciplinary or other concerns which the College deems would make the student unsuitable for travel.  Non-compliance with behavior rules during a trip may make the student subject to dismissal from the trip and the course, requiring the student to pay for an early departure for home.
 

Although no major revisions are anticipated, LaGrange College reserves the right to make necessary changes in the status, costs, requirements, or other details of its faculty-led, study-away courses.  Any course may be canceled for adequate reason, such as lack of sufficient enrollment or a U.S. State Department Travel Warning or CDC Health Advisory.