Students at College of the Atlantic are urged to attend an Outdoor Orientation Program upon enrol...Students at College of the Atlantic are urged to attend an Outdoor Orientation Program upon enrolling, where small groups of older students lead groups of new students on expeditions into the wilderness of Maine. Each trip is focused on either kayaking, rock climbing, or even backpacking. Credit: Aubrielle Hvolboll ’20

A few decades ago, a college was labeled adventurous if it had an outdoors club and a climbing wall. Now those are standard fare at every school. To really stand out, universities are offering majors like outdoor education and ecology, sending kids around the world for fieldwork, or taking them into their own backyards for wilderness expeditions. “It’s beyond your wildest dreams, there’s just so much out there,” says Deena Maerowitz, a private education consultant who helps teens navigate the admissions process.

…There is only one major at this school on Maine’s coast: human ecology. Students may design their own focus within that major, but the environment and our human impact on it is present in almost every class.

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