Has anyone ever done the semester at Sea program?

Has anyone done Semester at Sea?

• Is it competitive? Would you recommend it? Do you have any advice for an applicant?

• Answer:

  SAS is a FABULOUS PROGRAM!! You will not regret the decision to go - I PROMISE! Here's some advice I've given others in the past: as far as money is concerned - it's different for everyone. i brought a lot in the way of cash for trip expenditures. that is, i bought almost nothing in countries to take back with me (which was a damn good thing, too, because i would have just lost everything in katrina, anyway). my roommate, on the other hand, bought a huge backpack and filled it with trinkets and gifts for people. she only brought about a grand for this, as she did most of her trips with SAS. it totally depends on the type of person you are. make sure you go through that itinery book thouroughly - my recommendation would be to do a good mix of trips. i personally picked about two big ones to go on with the group - i travelled in china with sas (i did tsingua university and the great wall with a short stint in shanghai for the new year) and i travelled kenya with the group (i did a 4 day safari and a day at the baby elephant orphange). for the rest of my sas adventures, i pretty much just wing'ed em. i hadn't had much travelling experience in the past, so i thought this was a great way to learn. haha. this goes back to the applying early thing - the only way to secure your spot on sas trips is to apply early. point blank - even then, it's not a guarantee. don't stress out over this - no matter what you pick, you'll have an amazing experience! as far as other advice is concerned: -go knowing no one. you'll meet tons of people and have a blast. if you know someone, you're likely to shut the two of you out from the rest of the ship. -don't invest in a satellite phone - it's just not worth it. they're expensive, and chances are, someone else will let you use theirs for a minimal fee if god-forbid there was a crisis (i.e. during our "storm incident" a few kids had em and just let us call our parents to let them know we were okay). -bring USD! despite what you may think, most of these places think cashiers checks or travellers checks are worthless. i made this mistake. don't do it. there is a safe in your cabin where you can lock up any valuables. -buy a "travellers belt" and use it! it looks stupid underneath your clothes, but it's a great way to ensure you don't get pick-pocketed (and as americans, that happens a lot). -bring lots of singles because its a great way to haggle!! also, you can exchange currency one you get to a port - they offer this service right on the ship. easy. and don't sweat the exchange rates because they'll always be terrible. haha. in the long run, you'll only lose a few us dollars by doing it the day of. the onlyonly way you'll wind up risking more is if you exchange more than you need in each county (because the exchange back will always be less - just as a rule of thumb). -don't pack more than you can carry. everyone else will have the same amount of crap and no one is going to help you because they have their own load to worry about. -it's not a fashion show. being a girl, this was a hard lesson to learn. i brought a few "cute going-out outfits" and wound up exchanging with three or four other girls when we had adventures on the town. on this note, label your clothing! it will probably, at some point, get lost in the laundry. -bring bathingsuits. lots of them. you're surrounded by water and hell, there's a pool. -if you have a laptop, bring it, but be careful. while it is a small community with tons of trust, laptops, as with other expensive electronics (ie ipods), tend to disappear. you can rent one on the ship (which is what i had to do after my television fell on mine during the 'wave') for a minimal fee - the rentals are pretty crappy. -use your ship internet time wisely. if you go to india, don't waste any of your shipboard internet minutes because internet cafes in india are like a penny a minute! by that same logic, use your free minutes in south africa where internet cafes are a dollar a minute. once you expend your shipboard internet minutes, using the on board computers get expensive. -get your shots in advance. i applied late like i mentioned above. i had to get al 3490825875467862134 vaccines in two weeks before i left. NOT FUN! also, beware of your malaria medication. mine made me sick. turns out, i was allergic. i stopped taking mine and i was fine. i don't reccommend this, though. make sure that your body can handle all the meds and such. -don't forget that this is school! the grades you earn will stay on your permanent transcript. excuses like "but i lost my paper to a fire-breathing chinese dragon" will only get you so far. the professors aboard are great ones and they are learning with you. open your mind and expand. you will learn more out of the classroom than in - they know this - but this is still no excuse to not take classes seriously. -here's some advice you may not want your parents to read: don't go with a significat other. now i don't know whether you are dating someone or not. i wasn't when i went. my roommate was. needless to say, she broke it off with her long-term beau. if you ask almost anyone that has gone, it is just not wise to go attached. you are experiencing things with people that only they will understand. and truth be told, after two months of seeing the same people day in and day out, they start to look good, haha. so avert relationship disaster. and if it's meant to be, your sigother will be waiting for you when you get off that ship and you will be waiting for them as well. but let it be known that you will be a changed woman after this trip and your relationship may never be the same (plus, they'll get totally sick of you yapping: sas this...sas that..sas..sas..sas)!! -try everything once. i did stuff i never thought i would do: cage diving with great whites, jumping from a 75 foot cliff into a freezing pool of water, horseback riding through the winelands, riding in a rickshaw... i even ate things that got me so sick i thought i wouldn't see another day. no matter the outcome, i'll probably never have the chance to do these things again and i relished even in the not-so-pleasant times. -prepare to see the worst. imagine the most horrible thing you have seen in your life thus far. you'll see worse. trust me. humanity can be cruel. learn from it and carry it with you. -HAVE FUN! this is unavoidable but take time to write in journals, snap photos, and reflect on what you are doing. less than 1% of the world's population circumsail the world and you are one of them! it's awesome. it's better than awesome. -keep in touch! i want e-mails, updates, pictures, whatever! sas was the best time of my life, and i promise it will be yours, too. hope this was of some help! if you have more questions, please don't hesitate to ask! lots of luck, Stephanie [email protected]