About
The Institute for Shipboard Education (ISE) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Fort Collins, Colorado, that administers Semester at Sea, a study abroad program that uses an ocean-going ship as its traveling college campus. In conjunction with its academic partner, Colorado State University, ISE takes students on multiple-country voyages that combine interdisciplinary coursework with experiential learning around the world.
Mission
Semester at Sea's mission is journeys of discovery that spark bold solutions to global challenges. The program takes a global comparative approach to study abroad: with the world as its campus, it integrates multiple-country study, interdisciplinary coursework, and experiential learning for meaningful engagement in the global community. ISE's vision is to be an internationally recognized leader in educating global citizens who engage in comparative learning experiences and positively impact our interdependent world.
What they do
- Operate the Semester at Sea study abroad program aboard the MV World Odyssey, the program's shipboard campus since 2015.
- Provide accredited academics through Colorado State University, the program's academic partner since June 2016; prior sponsors were the University of Virginia (2006-2016), the University of Pittsburgh (1981-2006), the University of Colorado Boulder (1976-1981), and Chapman University (1963-1976).
- Offer field programs and in-country experiential learning during port stays, along with gap year, undergraduate, and lifelong learner enrollment options, scholarships, and financial aid.
History
The idea of a floating university dates to New York University psychology professor James Edwin Lough, whose vision led to a maiden around-the-world voyage of the SS Ryndam departing Hoboken, New Jersey on September 18, 1926, with 504 students from 143 colleges. The concept was revived in the 1960s as the University of the Seven Seas, whose first voyage sailed in 1963, and renamed World Campus Afloat under Chapman College in 1965. When Chapman withdrew in 1976, Hong Kong shipping magnate C.Y. Tung — who famously said ships "could carry ideas" — and Dr. M.A. Griffiths founded the Institute for Shipboard Education, and the program, renamed Semester at Sea, sailed on under the University of Colorado's sponsorship. Successive shipboard campuses have included the SS Universe, SS Universe Explorer, MV Explorer, and today's MV World Odyssey.
Scale and impact
Since 1963, more than 73,000 individuals from 1,700 institutions have traveled to more than 60 countries on Semester at Sea and its predecessor programs.
Financials
According to its Form 990 on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, the Institute for Shipboard Education reported total revenue of $44,270,325 and total expenses of $42,098,625 for the fiscal year ending May 2025, with net assets of $37,609,540.