The Ultimate Orientation to College

Posted on Monday, May 26th, 2014

It is one of the most exhilarating college programs on earth, but it’s not necessarily the right choice for everyone that wants to work in the adventure tourism industry. Algonquin College’s Outdoor Adventure program was launched in the fall of 2000 and has attracted hundreds of students from across the country and abroad over its almost 15 years of existence. Graduates now scatter the globe working in various fields from leading rafting trips in Costa Rica to being ski instructors in British Columbia.

Future ODA student taking part in the 5 km running portion of the duathlon.

The program is appealing because of its interactive elements that allow students to earn more than twenty industry recognized certifications while blending their practical experiences with theory classes that cover everything from risk management in outdoor education to business skills like accounting, marketing and finance. Of course, there’s also several expeditions including a culminating experience in the final term of the program that requires students to plan and execute an adventure tourism trip anywhere in the world.

So what’s not to like about the Outdoor Adventure program? Not much, but for some students they may not be prepared for the physical rigor of the program or it simply takes them our of their comfort zone when taking part in the practical skills like rock climbing or white water kayaking. That’s why the faculty hold a program readiness camp that is imbedded in the admissions process. It is an opportunity for the teachers to evaluate the student’s preparedness for the program and for the students to self-reflect on whether the program is right for them.

Gear Talk

Each May, the applicants spend two days at the Wilderness Tours Resort, where they participate in a number of outdoor activities including white water rafting, mountain biking and repelling from a Bungee Jumping tower, a means of determining their comfort level with heights. These activities are designed to promote team work and to measure an applicant’s anxiety level when taking part in high adventure exercises.

It’s a long way down!

For most applicants, it is the ultimate orientation to college, and they are fully engaged and can’t wait for the program to start. But for others, the camp and its high adventure experiences, are a bit more than they anticipated, and it helps them choose a program that better suits their personality such as Outdoor Adventure Naturalist, the more passive sister program to Outdoor Adventure.

There is a lesson to be learned from the Outdoor Adventure program readiness camp for all college applicants. Take the time to get to know your program before enrolling. Participate in pre-enrolment events such as Open Houses, campus tours, meet and greets with faculty, or Student Association social outings. All of these opportunities to connect with a college help inform the decisions students make.

Getting ready to go whitewater rafting.

At the end of day, being flipped out of a raft into a rapid, may be the best pre-college experience a student will have, because it will help them decide whether the odd gulp of river water is right for them, or they prefer a more traditional college program with less adventure. I think that is time well spent!

I’d love to hear about your pre-college experience and how it helped reinforce your program choice, or helped you choose a different career pathway? Please post your story.

Posted by: Jamie Bramburger

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