Sea|mester: Academics: Florida Keys Community College (FKCC) Approved Academic Courses - Scuba Diving School, Summer Semester at Sea Program

ACCREDITATION INFORMATION

Academic Credit Through the State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota

Seamester is accredited through the State College of Florida
In association with the State College of Florida (SCF), Sea|mester is approved by the State of Florida Department of Education to offer credit for SCF academic courses taught during all Sea|mester voyages. The standard academic courses currently offered by Sea|mester are as follows.

SCF Approved Academic Course Information
Course Title	SCF Course Code	Credit Hours
Basic Seamanship	PEN 2930	3 Credit Hours
Student Leadership Development	SLS 2261	3 Credit Hours
Introduction to Oceanography	OCE 1001	3 Credit Hours
Introduction to Marine Biology	OCB 1001	3 Credit Hours

Students Enrolling in Voyages through 2010:

Students enrolling in Sea|mester voyages through the end of 2010 may select to enroll for any or all of the SCF credits offered during their program. This decision should be based upon the individual student's credit needs, as well as the determined transferability of the SCF credits back to the home institution. All costs incurred while enrolling through the State College of Florida are additional to the Sea|mester tuition and are paid directly to SCF. The state of Florida mandates the per hour credit costs and these additional fees are shown in the table below.

SCF Credit and Enrollment Costs
Florida Residents	$87.88 per credit hour
Non-Florida Residents	$313.40 per credit hour

Regardless of whether students opt for total or partial credits from the SCF, all are issued Sea|mester transcripts, reflecting grades and contact hours for both academic and vocational courses.

Students Enrolling in Voyages starting January 2011:

Starting in January 2011, all students will be automatically enrolled in the State College of Florida for all academic classes. These costs involved for this registration will be included in Sea|mester's standard tuition costs.

Academic Credit Through the University of Florida...

Seamester offers courses accredited through the University of Florida Academic credit through the University of Florida (UF) is also available to those selecting to enroll in UF Correspondence Courses as a Personal Educational Project (PEP). Any Sea|mester is a voyage of discovery and we understand and support the fact that some enrolling or repeat students may have academic needs that are not satisfied by our standard classes offered through the State College of Florida. The PEP class, in conjunction with the University of Florida Flexible Learning Department is designed to fill that gap and ‘put the classroom wherever you are.’ For more information on UF Correspondence Courses available and credit costs, please visit the Personal Educational Project page of our website.

Vocational Credit...

Seamester offers courses accredited through the American Coucil on Education Credit recommendations are also available from PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) through ACE (The American Council on Education College Credit Recommendation Service.) Through ACE, students can earn up to three recreational credits for scuba diving. The following table outlines the number of credits available for each course. Students may order an American Council on Education transcript for credit recommendations earned during the PADI scuba diving courses. Please call the Florida office, 800.317.6789, for clarification or further information on credit structure.

Vocational Credit Information
Open Water Diver	1 Credit
Advanced Open Water Diver	1 Credit
Rescue Diver	1 Credit
Professional Divemaster	2 Credits

Academic Transcripts...

Students may receive a range of academic transcripts dependant upon their course selection. If students have selected to take courses through the State College of Florida, upon request they will receive those grades on a transcript directly from that institution. The same is true for those enrolling for courses accredited through the University of Florida. Credit recommendations can be given for the scuba diving classes on an ACE transcript. Finally, all grades and certifications will be reflected on an official Sea|mester transcript.

The How's and Why's of Credit Transfer...

What is involved in transferring credit?
Transferring credit from one institution to another is an involved but particularly important process for those who wish to receive credit for their time aboard with us . There are no written rules stating that colleges and universities must accept credit. Each have developed their own individual policies and procedures. If credit transfer is important to you, you must first check that the credits are transferable to your host institution prior to the start of the course. This may be more complex for those in an interim year between high school and college, as many colleges and universities require you to be formally enrolled before they will evaluate your transcript. In all cases, Sea|mester staff will aid in any way possible to achieve credit transfer by acting as liaison between student, institution and credit issuing agencies.

Which universities have your alumni represented?
Our alumni have REPRESENTED the following US universities and colleges. Please note that this is not a list of schools that have definitively TRANSFERRED SCF or Sea|mester credit as this is difficult information to keep track of as it is so dependent upon the individual requirements of the student.

Alfred State University, NY	Marquette University, WI	Tulane University, LA
Appalachian State University, NC	Massachusetts College of Art, MA	University of Alabama, AL
Babson College, MA	Miami University, OH	University of Alaska at Anchorage, AK
Bard College, NY	Middlebury College, VT	University of Arizona, AZ
Bentley College, MA	Montana State University, MT	University of Arkansas, AR
Boston College, MA	Mount Holyoke College, MA	University of California - Berkeley, CA
Boston University, MA	New England College, NH	University of California Santa Barbara, CA
Bowdoin College, MA	Northern Arizona University, AZ	University of Colorado - Boulder, CO
Brandeis University, MA	Northeastern University, MA	University of Denver, CO
Bridgewater State College, MA	Northwestern University, IL	University of Delaware, DE
Brown University, RI	North Carolina State University, NC	University of Florida, FL
Bryn Mawr College, PA	N. Seattle Community College, WA	University of Hawaii at Hilo, HI
California State, CA	Oberlin College, OH	University of Maine, ME
Case Western Reserve University, OH	Ohio State University, OH	University of Maine at Farmington, ME
Coastal Carolina Community College, NC	Ohio Wesleyan University, OH	University of Mary Washington, VA
College of Charleston, SC	Penn State University, PA	University of Miami, FL
Colorado College, CO	Polk Community College, FL	University of Montana, MT
Colorado State University, CO	Pomona College, CA	University of New England, ME
Community College of Rhode Island, RI	Portland State University, OR	University of New Hampshire, NH
Connecticut College, CT	Princeton University, NJ	University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, NC
Cornell University, NY	Providence College, VT	University of North Florida, FL
Curry College, MA	Radford University, VA	University of Notre Dame, IN
Dartmoor, WA	Reed College, OR	University of Oregon, OR
Dartmouth College, NH	Rhodes College, TN	University of Puget Sound, WA
Davidson College, NC	Ringling School of Art and Design, FL	University of Richmond, VA
Dickinson College, PA	Roanoke College, VA	University of Rhode Island, RI
Drexel University, PA	Rochester Institute of Technology, RI	University of St. Thomas, MN
Duke University, NC	Rollins College, Fl	University of San Diego, CA
Eckerd College, FL	Rosseau Lake College, ONT, Canada	University of San Francisco, CA
East Carolina University, NC	Rutgers University, NJ	University of Southern California, CA
Elizabethtown College, PA	Saint Anselm College, MA	University of Texas at Austin, TX
Elon College, NC	Salem State College, MA	University of Toronto, ON
Florida Atlantic University, FL	Santa Barbara City College, CA	University of Utah, UT
Florida State University, FL	Sarah Lawrence College, NY	University of Vermont, VT
Georgia State University, GA	Savannah College of Art and Design, GA	University of Virginia, VA
Georgetown University, DC	Scranton University, PA	University of Washington, WA
George Washington University, DC	Seattle University, WA	University of Wisconsin La Crosse, WI
Gettysburg College, PA	Simmons College, MA	University of Wisconsin - Madison, WI
Green Mountain College, VT	Skidmore College, NY	Vanderbilt University, TN
Greensboro College, NC	Smith College, MA	Villanova University, PA
Hamilton College, NY	Southern Connecticut St University, CT	Virginia Commonwealth University, VA
Hampden-Sydney College, VA	Southern New Hampshire University, NH	Virginia Tech, VA
Hawaii Pacific University, HI	Southern Oregon University, OR	Wake Forest University, NC
Harvard University, MA	Springfield College, MA	Washington & Lee University, VA
Haverford School, PA	Stanford University, CA	Washington College, MD
Hobart and William Smith College, NY	St. Edward's University, TX	Washington State University, WA
Indiana University, IN	St. Mary's College, MI	Washington University, MO
James Madison University, VA	Stetson University, FL	Wellesley College, PA
Johns Hopkins University, MD	Syracuse University, NY	Wesleyan University, CT
Kent State University, OH	Sweet Briar College, VA	Western State College, CO
Langara College, BC, Canada	Tech University of Budapest, Hungary	Western Washington University, WA
Lewis and Clark College, OR	The College of William & Mary, VA	Wheaton College, MA
Linfield College, OR	Transylvania University, KY	Whitman College, WA
Loyola Marymount University, CA	Trinity College, DC	Wofford College, SC
Lynchburg College, VA	Tufts University, MA	Yale University, CT

Where do I start and who do I talk to?
The decision makers on transfer could be the chairperson of the department that offers your degree program, a college faculty transcript review committee, the dean of the academic area, or most likely, an admissions officer, the registrar, or a faculty advisor.

What will the college advisors require or be looking for?
1. Number of transfer credits
Colleges usually have limits on the number of credits they will transfer. You should check your college catalogue for this information. This is generally about 50 or 60, therefore, it should not be an issue unless you have already transferred a large number of credits from another institution.

2. Appropriateness and Comparability of the Courses
Each degree program has specific credit requirements. Should the course descriptions fit within the college's guidelines, there should be no problem with the transfer. Comparability of the semester's courses with those offered by the host institution is important. Review your college's course catalogue to see whether similar courses to those offered by Sea|mester programs are available. If so, there is a high possibility that the credits could be applied towards your major or used as electives.

3. Grade Received in a Course
Most colleges require that a certain grade be achieved before accepting it for transfer credit. All academic courses are graded using a standard system as seen below.

Of a possible 100%

90 - 100% = A

80 - 89% = B

70 - 79% = C

60 - 69% = D

59% or less = F (Fail)

Should a student not reach the minimum standard for successful completion of the course (D- or higher), he/she will officially fail the course and not receive any credit transfer recommendation. Be sure to check with your institution about grade transfer policies.

4. Course information and transcripts
In all cases, you will be required to provide your college or university with all academic information about Sea|mester and the State College of Florida before the voyage. Official copies of your transcripts should also be provided upon your return, so as to allow for a formal evaluation to be conducted.

Other programs we offer...