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I understand the University of Oregon has two outdoor programs. What are the main differences between the Outdoor Pursuits Program and the Outdoor Program? The Outdoor Pursuits Program offers a comprehensive selection of courses for academic credit, and is a component of the Department of Physical Education and Recreation. Our program is largely funded by the activity fees levied for our courses. While our courses are open to everyone (including community members), priority is given to U of O students enrolling for credit. The Outdoor Program serves mainly as a resource for the University community. It's funded by incidental fees, and is located in the Erb Memorial Union. Combined, these two programs provide unparalleled opportunities for outdoor enthusiasts. The September 1998 issue of Sports Afield rated the University of Oregon best overall among the nation's colleges and universities for the quality and selection of outdoor pursuits activities. What's included in the cost of a course? The activity fee covers the cost of instruction, the use of some equipment, transportation to and from most of the field outings, and contractual fees (for those courses requiring contracts for the provision of equipment or instructors). Tuition is not covered in the activity fee. Students enrolling for credit use Duckweb to enroll during their priority registration time. If a course is full, log into Duckweb frequently to check for an opening. Someone may have dropped the course. If this strategy proves unsuccessful, you are STRONGLY advised to attend the first class session. Since first day attendance is required in all of our courses, absentees are dropped from the instructor's roster and replaced with qualified students in attendance. Please note the following:
Can courses be taken non credit? Are courses open to community members? Non-credit enrollment is available to students, faculty, staff and community members. UO tuition is not assessed and non-credit courses do not appear on student transcripts. Non-credit students may register at the PE Office, 102 Esslinger Hall, with a permission to add form provided by the course instructor. Students may pay the activity fee by cash, check, or be billed. The fee waiver for senior citizen auditors does not apply to PE & REC courses. Please note that:
I understand that Wilderness Survival is a required prerequisite for most of your courses. Can I waive this prerequisite if I've completed an Outward Bound, NOLS, or similar course? Wilderness Survival is our gateway course, and cannot be waived. The information covered in this course is critical to outdoor safety and environmental awareness, and we want to make sure that everyone has a solid comprehension of all the course topics before participating in outings. There's no guarantee that students who have completed similar courses receive all of the information covered in this course. For safety and liability reasons, it's imperative that everyone participating in a backcountry outing take Wilderness Survival. Not all courses require Wilderness Survival as a corequisite or prerequisite (e.g. the rock climbing and water-based courses). The Outdoor Pursuits Leadership Training Program. The Outdoor Pursuits Leadership Training Program is designed to provide training and experience in safe and responsible leadership of outdoor pursuits activities. The Program includes skills courses in a variety of land and water-based outdoor activities, professional development courses in environmental education, adventure education, outdoor leadership, and field leadership experiences. The Program consists of a minimum of 28 credits, of which a minimum of 15 are upper division credits. PLEASE NOTE: Since we are not affiliated with an academic department, we cannot offer a degree, major, or even a minor in outdoor pursuits leadership. In essence, we are a stand-alone program that is supported by the activity fees we charge. We have no admission requirements per se. By and large, our participants are students who have been admitted to the university (and are working towards their degrees) in other departments. The amount of time that it takes to complete the requirements of the leadership training program depends upon the experience level of the participant. Please note that the requirements cannot be met in one academic year. We encourage participants to blend in a mixture of skills courses and practicum opportunities over at least two academic years. Full time students working towards completion of their undergraduate degree take at least two years to meet the requirements. Upon completion of the leadership training program, students receive an in-house certificate of completion and the training and experience required to be considered for employment with institutions like Outward Bound and NOLS. Can I transfer credits from other programs or universities in order to meet the requirements of the leadership training program? No, since we are not affiliated with an academic department and do not offer a major or minor, we cannot accept credits earned at other institutions of learning. Participants with exceptional skills and/or recent experience in equivalent courses may negotiate with the Program Director for partial or complete waiver of up to three credit hours of skills course requirements. No other exceptions are allowed since the skills courses provide exposure to current teaching methods and to a variety of teaching styles. For information about the requirements and structure of the Outdoor Pursuits Leadership Training Program requirements and structure, visit the Outdoor Leadership Training Program page. Where can I get information about the OPP's term-by-term course offerings? Go to our Course Offerings Page for a list of general term by term offerings. Current promotional brochures (in pdf format) are posted at the bottom of the page and offer an overview of upcoming courses. Check the online schedule of classes to access specific information about times and dates that courses are offered. Download a pdf version of our general promotional poster! Preparation vs. Outing Courses There is a distinct relationship between preparation (i.e. classroom-based) and outing courses. In essence, the preparation course "prepares" students for participation in an outing course. In many cases, the relationship is clear. For example, students interested in snowcamping enroll for the Snowcamping Preparation AND Snowcamping Outing courses. This is an example of a 2-credit course sequence. The majority of our backcountry courses are two-credit preparation/outing course sequences with distinct connections (e.g. Mountaineering Preparation/Outing, Backpacking Preparation/Backpacking 1), etc. In other cases, the connection between a preparation course and an outing course is less clear and requires an understanding of our program's structure. For example, Backpacking Preparation is sequenced with the following courses in Fall Term: Backcountry Navigation and Backcountry Survival, AND with the following courses in Spring Term: Backpacking 1 and Ultralight Backpacking. In other words, students must enroll in Backpacking Preparation if they are enrolled in either Backcountry Survival or Backcountry Navigation in Fall Term, and Backpacking 1 and Ultralight Backpacking in Spring Term. The student interested in taking BOTH outing courses in either fall or spring term (e.g. Backcountry Navigation AND Backcountry Survival in fall, and/or Backpacking 1 AND Ultralight Backpacking in spring) would enroll in Backpacking Preparation just once. Consider the following example: Joe enrolls in Backpacking Preparation and Backpacking 1 in spring term. He enjoys the backpacking experience so much that he intends to take Backcountry Navigation AND Backcountry Survival the next fall term. Because Joe took Backpacking Preparation the previous spring term, he does not need to enroll for it again in fall. Joe must, however, attend the first Backpacking Preparation course session in fall, and participate fully in preparation course sessions that will prepare him for this outing courses. Please note the following:
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