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GEOLOGY SUMMER FIELD CAMP IN SARDINIA, ITALY - for 2008

May 17 - student to arrive at camp
May 18 - first day of camp activities
June 20 - last day; student departure date

Overview:  Geology Field Camp
Geology Field Camp is the capstone experience in most undergraduate Geoscience programs - this is a course designed to integrate and apply material learned in the undergraduate Geoscience curriculum.

Field camp is usually taken in the summer following the Junior or Senior year. The philosophy of the class,  and the challenge given to student participants is: "Now that you are almost a fully-trained geologist, combine all of your accumulated knowledge and skills to investigate and interpret the geology of an unknown area."

After arriving at camp and couple introductory exercises, a typical exercise for field camp takes 3 or 4 days and centers around accurately recording observations in a field notebook, making a detailed geologic map of an area, and writing a summary report interpreting the geologic history and significance of the area. The class consists of several such exercises, with generally increasing level of complexity.

The Boise State University field camp in Sardinia offers additional valuable experiences for students such as: international travel, exposure to other cultures and a broadening of their scientific worldview. We strongly encourage students to take full advantage of their trip to Europe, and the majority of students make plans for additional travel (individually or in groups) to surrounding areas after the field camp.

GETTING TO SUMMER CAMP IN SARDINIA
Students are responsible for their own airfare and travel arrangements to and from Alghero, Sardinia. However, Professor Spinosa can provide assistance with travel arrangements (cspinosa@boisestate.edu).

In the past we suggested taking a flight to London and then taking a direct flight to Alghero via RyanAir. RyanAir is inexpensive and flies directly to the Alghero airport. Although this route is economical it does involve the added expense of changing to the Stansted airport in London and usually one overnight in London. One could take a flight to Rome and from there, a direct flight to Alghero. The latter may be more convenient.

If you do decide to take RyanAir, make sure that you travel with a minimum of baggage because RyanAir’s excess baggage fees are very expensive.

Camp staff will meet participants at the Alghero airport; students arriving in Sardinia at other airports (e.g. Olbia, or Cagliari) cannot be met by camp staff.

Camp formally begins in the morning of Saturday May 18. Make sure you arrive no later than the afternoon or evening of the day before - May 17.  Students may arrive earlier and housing and food can be made available, however, cost of housing, food, and local transportation incurred prior to May 19 will be the responsibility of the individual.

The following sites offer discount airline tickets:
Student Universe
(affiliated with Travelocity, offers big discounts for students and faculty)
Travelocity
Expedia
Orbitz
Bargain Travel
Ryan Air (provides very inexpensive tickets from London to Alghero and to elsewhere in Europe)
Grandi Navi Veloci (literally "large fast ships") provides good ferry service from Genova in Italy to Porto Torres Sardinia, near Alghero.
Moby Lines (http://www.moby.it/mds/web/home.xpd?lang=it) provides service to Olbia (about 2 hours from Alghero).

COST
The 2008 Summer Camp Fee is $4500.00; this fee covers the cost of all meals, hotels, museum admissions, and ground transportation for the duration of the camp (May 17 to June 20). The Summer Camp Fee DOES NOT include Boise State University tuition, airfare to and from Sardinia, nor the cost of personal items and services such as laundry, non-emergency telephone calls, or alcoholic beverages.

NOTE that this year’s $4500.00 summer camp fee is somewhat higher than last year; reflecting the loss in value of the US dollar in comparison to the Euro. We retain the right to augment the Summer Camp Fee with an emergency fee, hopefully minor. We would exercise this option before April 30 only if the value of the dollar decreases more than 5% from the November 2008 value of 1.47 US dollars.

Boise State University will also charge tuition for 6 summer school credits; tuition during the summer is the same for in-sate as it is for out-of-state students. The tuition is $222 per credit for a total of $1332 for the 6-credit summer camp course.

NAGT Summer Field Scholarship
The National Association of Geology Teachers (NAGT) has scholarships to cover part of the expenses of field camp. Log onto the following site for information:  http://www.nagt.org/nagt/programs/field_scholarships.html
In addition, there are regional sectional groups of NAGT or GSA that may offer scholarships.

HOUSING and MEALS
Summer camp students and faculty stay in modern condos, hotels and hostels. Click here for a link to one of our hotels.

Meals are professionally prepared and include some exceptionally fine Italian meals.

The Special Summer Camp Fee covers all costs for housing and food.

INQUIRIES
If you have questions, or wish additional information, please contact Claude Spinosa, Camp Coordinator at (cspinosa@boisestate.edu) or the Field Camp Director CJ Northrup at (208) 426-1581 or e-mail him at CJNorth@boisestate.edu

BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CANCEL OR ALTER THE PROGRAM OR TO CHANGE FEES FOR CONDITIONS BEYOND THE UNIVERSITY'S CONTROL.

For more information contact: Claude Spinosa cspinosa@boisestate.edu

Boise State University
Department of Geosciences MS-1535
1910 University Drive
Boise, ID  83725-1535
Phone: 208-426-1631
Fax: 208-426-4061