University of Southern California
AC-5: Immersive Experience

Faculty-Led Programs (FLP) are undergraduate courses designed and led by Dornsife faculty members to enhance the learning experience of Dornsife programs and its students. FLP offers international and domestic travel for undergraduate students, with a balance of learning inside and outside the classroom. FLP includes a dynamic variety of session options such as Maymesters, Julymesters, Spring Break, Spring Semester and Spring Semester Tail Programs and summer programs.

Examples of Sustainability-Focused Immersive Programs via Dornsife FLP offered in AY23:

1) Dornsife FLP: BISC 431L: Aquatic Microbiology
Aquatic microbiology integrates many different fields of science (microbiology, ecology, biochemistry, genomics, bioinformatics and molecular biology), and students apply what they’ve learned to the “real world”. Students will discover how microbes affect not only their health, but also the health of our planet.More information: dornsife-flp-aquatic-microbiology-bisc-431/

2) Dornsife FLP: ENST 483: Coastal Zone Sustainability
This course teaches field skills and management tools to investigate environmental problems in coastal zones; cultural and scientific topics; collection and analysis of environmental data.
More information: https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/2023/03/22/dornsife-flp-coastal-zone-sustainability-enst-483/

3) Dornsife FLP: ARCG 305Lg: Virtual and Digital Culture, Heritage and Archaeology
This underwater archaeology course is structured as an on-island research mission in which the entire class produces new documentation of tangible heritage materials, such as wrecks or traces of ancient sites. During the 4-week residential Maymester course at the Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island, students collaborate as team members to document and process data, images, and models of terrestrial and submerged heritage, supporting partnerships with the Catalina Island Conservancy, the California Parks Service, and other entities.The traces that students interpret and document are human heritage, from ten thousand years ago through this century. More information: https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/2023/03/22/dornsife-flp-virtual-and-digital-culture-heritage-and-archaeology-arcg-305lg/

4) Dornsife FLP: BISC 457L: Methods in Marine Biology and Biographical Oceanography
During the class, students will learn how to use scientific methodology to evaluate global environmental issues (human impacts on coastal environments, watershed interactions, ecosystem function). Students are trained in the use of oceanographic research equipment, sampling and analytical approaches, and data acquisition and processing, all authentic methods of scientific inquiry. One of the highlights of this class is an oceanographic training cruise where students conduct field sampling aboard a research vessel.
More information: ​​https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/2023/03/22/dornsife-flp-methods-in-marine-biology-and-biographical-oceanography-bisc-457l/

5) Dornsife FLP: ENST 320a: Water and Soil Sustainability in the Field
This class presents an overview of the issues related to water and soil sustainability including soil development and management, the hydrologic cycle, the cycling of nutrients through both soil and water, soil and water pollution, and food security related to soil and water issues. ENST 320a In the Field is a special section of the Water and Soil Sustainability course which are taught during Spring and Fall semesters on the University Park Campus. The ‘In the Field’ section of this course is part of the Wrigley Marine Science Center Residential College Julymester 2023. Students will reside and learn at Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island, California. The course runs concurrently two additional and thematical linked through principles of sustainability, environmental concerns and awareness.
More information: https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/2023/03/22/dornsife-flp-water-and-soil-sustainability-in-the-field-enst-320a/

6) Dornsife FLP: ENST 320b: Environmental Studies Energy and Air Sustainability
This class presents an overview of issues related to energy and air sustainability, including the science, policy, and business aspects (with a focus on the science part). This course explores these questions, considering “cradle-to-grave” issues ranging from extraction of the energy resources from the environment to pollution from emissions or disposal of wastes. For four weeks, at USC’s Wrigley Marine Science center on Catalina Island, students will take a special section of this course, which is normally taught on UPC. Students in this Julymester will get an immersive, hands-on look at energy production and distribution on the island. Typical coursework will be supplemented with lab activities, field trips, and guest lectures from experts in different aspects of traditional and renewable energy. A final project and presentation to the cohort will occur in the last week, when students present the energy projects that they worked on throughout the course. More information: https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/2023/03/22/dornsife-flp-environmental-studies-energy-and-air-sustainability-enst-320b/

- Maymester:
https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/maymester/

- Summer Programs:
https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/home/programs-and-resources/summer-programs/

- Upcoming programs: https://studenttravelabroad.usc.edu/index.cfm?FuseAction=Programs.AdvancedSearch

- Resources for Students:
https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/home/programs/resources-for-students/

- Resources for Parents:
https://dornsife.usc.edu/flp/for-parents/