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Only incoming first-year Honors College students who will start at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University in Fall 2025 are eligible for this program. Students must be accepted into the Honors College and need to confirm their enrollment at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University in Spring 2025 before applying to this study abroad program. When students confirm their enrollment at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University, this confirms their enrollment in the Honors College.

Program Dates: Monday, August 11, 2025 - Tuesday, August 19, 2024

Monday, August 11, 2025 is move-in day for all Belize participants.

All Honors students participating in this pre-semester study abroad program will move into their ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University residence hall on Monday, August 11 and will fly as a group with the program directors together to Belize on Wednesday. All program participants will have early access to their Honors Residential College room beginning on Monday, August 11. Program participants will meet together in-person for the first time for dinner on Monday, August 11th.

Tuesday, August 12, 2025 will be spent together in Oxford, Ohio. This is a required day of pre-departure orientation activities, goal setting, and group building activities.

Wednesday, August 13, 2025 is travel day. The program will travel together to the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport and fly to Belize. We will be greeted at the airport upon landing and will be transported to our home-away-from-home at the Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center.

Wednesday, August 14 - Tuesday, August 19, 2025 will be spent in Belize. The Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center are located inland, in the jungle. On Saturday, August 16, we’ll leave the jungle and head for the Tobacco Caye on the beach, where we will spend our final three days.

Tuesday, August 19, 2025 is departure day from Belize. We will travel as a group back to Oxford, arriving home to Oxford late in the evening, and all students will spend the night in their new residence halls.

Wednesday, August 20, 2025 is a rest & recovery day.

Thursday, August 21, 2025 is Honors College move-in day. All Honors College first-year students will move into their new homes in the Honors Residential College today. This will be a great opportunity for Belize participants to volunteer their time to help families move in, meet their new neighbors, and join the kickoff evening events for Honors College Launch for Success, the Honors College’s ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Bound program.

Friday, August 22, 2025 is a day Launch for Success engagement, which is required for all first-year Honors students. All Belize participants will be able to participate in all Launch for Success activities.

All first-year Honors students are required to take an honors course each semester of their first year. This 7-day study abroad program in Belize is connected to a 2-credit fall semester honors course that will serve as your required first-year honors course. Upon returning to campus from Belize, students will enroll in an honors course designed to bridge the learning experiences from study abroad to related course content, continuing to introduce students to research and the Honors College curriculum. The course culminates in a research proposal designed around the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and aligned with each student's area of interest.

The mission of the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University Honors College is to produce citizen scholars: students who emerge from their honors education equipped not only with a lifelong love of learning, but also a lifelong commitment to use their talents, interests, and ambitions to advance the common good. This Belizean pre-semester study abroad program is intended to set the foundation for this group of students to become citizen scholars and start on a path towards the best version of their futures. Community-Based Conservation and ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉúhip in Belize and its corresponding fall honors course provides the perfect incubator for teaching the Honors College values of creative scholarship, leadership, service, reflective learning, and building a community of learners, while also supporting first-year Honors students as they transition into life at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú.

The Honors College selected Project Dragonfly as our study abroad provider for this program, in part because of their extraordinary programmatic focus on global sustainability, civic responsibility, and their ability to introduce students to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through their work with local communities. These three areas of focus allow for students to engage deeply and intentionally throughout every part of their study abroad program. Belize was selected as the study abroad location to allow for real-world exploration of sustainable practices. Engaging with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and current sustainable practices allows our students to jumpstart their journey in developing as citizen scholars.

Cultural immersion experiences include behind-the-scenes exploration of the Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center, aiding researchers with ongoing biology projects such as bird tagging, evening expeditions to experience the thousands of exclusively nocturnal species living in proximity to the Zoo, snorkeling, exploration of rainforest coffee and chocolate production, and Service Learning with local conservationists. Students should be prepared for light-to-moderate physical activity, with plenty of breaks, nourishment, and rest throughout the week-long trip. Belize was selected as the travel destination because, while in-country, the program will focus on leadership development, friendship building, cross-cultural communication, and building a stronger global perspective, all through the lens of conservation and sustainability.

The program is now open for confirmed incoming first-year Honors College students.

Applications are due by March 15, 2025. Honors students must confirm their enrollment at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University before applying to the program.

Completed applications include:

• General application, including demographic and academic information.
• Supplemental essay; to be reviewed by Honors College staff.

Applications submitted by March 15 will be reviewed during the week of March 17-21. Decisions will be communicated to all applicants before April 5.

If space allows, the application will remain open through Monday, March 31st, 2025. In the event that applications exceed the number of spaces available for this program, a waitlist will be created.

Your deposit deadline will be communicated to you when you are admitted to the program. Admission into the program does not secure a spot in the program. Deposits are required to secure placement in the program. If a deposit is not submitted by the communicated deadline, the spot will be offered to a student on the waitlist.

The full program fee (Program Fee less your Deposit) is due from all program participants by Monday, May 5, 2025.

with the Honors College in Belize now!

If you have any trouble accessing this application, please contact ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú IT services at 513-529-7900 and indicate you are trying to complete an Honors College Google Form (ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University Honors College Pre-Semester Study Abroad: Community-Based Conservation and ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉúhip in Belize Application).

The total anticipated cost of the program is $3,450. This is broken into an all-inclusive program fee of $3,200 which you will pay directly to ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú and approximately $250 in personal expenses, which includes GeoBlue health insurance, out-of-pocket expenses, such as meals and snacks on travel days, and any incidentals associated with your travel. The $3,200 program fee is all-inclusive, meaning this includes your round-trip flights between Belize and Cincinnati, OH, lodging, and all meals while abroad.

A $1,000 program fee deposit is required to secure your place in the program. This program fee deposit contributes towards your overall $3,200 program fee balance. The program fee deposit is non-refundable after it is paid.

All Honors students are required to complete honors experiences, which can come from a combination of honors classes and co-curricular activities that allow for learning opportunities beyond the classroom.

Honors Abroad programs provide students with the opportunity to earn up to two honors experiences upon successful completion of their program. Each Honors Abroad program involves taking one honors course and every student has the option to submit a proposal (prior to the experience) and a reflection (after the experience) to earn their second experience. Full details explaining the proposal and reflection process for co-curricular and research activities can be found on the Honors Student Canvas site, which all current honors students are able to access.