BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS, NC

Because the Appalachians were once one of the largest mountain ranges in the world they have many different geologic landforms, climates and soils. This long evolutionary history and temperate climate create an area which is teeming with life. Participants can expect to share the wilderness with over 700 different kinds of trees, more than 50 types of mammals, 150 different types of birds and about 40 species of amphibians. 

This course area is situated within a million acres of national forests, federally-protected wilderness areas, and other public lands. Its diverse landscapes have been featured in many motion pictures, including The Hunger Games and The Last of the Mohicans. <Click to learn more about this course area.>

This course is designed to provide participants with a basic foundation needed for a career in outdoor and experiential education. The Outdoor Educator Course (OEC) combines the objectives of a traditional Outward Bound course together with professional development. As a student of the OEC, you are expected to participate in all scheduled and independent activities. You must commit to being a team player as well as respectful and supportive of your fellow students and instructors. While most of your course takes place in the wilderness participating in various outdoor activities, you should be prepared to spend a fair amount of time in formal, lecture-style presentations.

The following information describes the components of your course. These components may not follow the sequence as listed. 

IMMERSION PHASE

You begin the Outdoor Educator Course as a student of Outward Bound. This experience includes expedition backpacking, travel on and off trail, navigation, Leave No Trace camping ethics and practices, campcraft, risk management, group management and group facilitation skills. You will see what we do best and enhance your development as an educator and professional. This phase of the program will include the following activities (length and depth will vary depending on your crew, weather and instructor planning): 

BACKPACKING

While backpacking you learn safety precautions for backcountry foot travel, how to find campsites, how to navigate terrain as well as how to use a map and compass. After practicing these skills, your instructors will step back and let you and your crew work together to collectively navigate through the wilderness. Since your crew’s navigation depends on individual and group decision making, your crew could make some navigational errors along the way. You may hike 12 to 15 hours in one day to reach your destination or you could go three miles uphill one day and 12 miles over varied terrain the next day. The backpacks can weigh 55+ pounds. Remember, PHYSICAL PREPARATION IS KEY!

ROCK CLIMBING - ROPES COURSE

During this section you may spend one day participating in a climbing-related activity or ropes course.

SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PHASE

You practice being a student and teacher by giving and receiving peer and instructor feedback necessary to becoming an outdoor educator. This phase focuses on the essential skills of judgment and risk management and will include the following:

Rock Site Management: Knots, anchors, top rope and slingshot setup, belaying, equipment, site assessment and management, facilitation skills and multi-pitch climbing.

Ropes Course Management: High ropes course experience, harnesses, equipment, rescue techniques, self-belay systems and facilitation skills.

River Site Management and Whitewater Canoeing: River safety, strokes, ferries, eddy-turns, peel-outs, rapid swims, river reading, rope throws, river rapid classification, rescue concepts, hydrology and group management.

Workshops: Possible topics include: Outward Bound philosophy, adolescent skills games and initiatives, teaching styles and techniques, group facilitation and debriefing, diversity, educational philosophy and environmental ethics, leadership theory and conflict resolution.

WILDERNESS FIRST RESPONDER CERTIFICATION PHASE

Wilderness First Responder (WFR) certification is recognized as the standard level of expertise in backcountry first aid. This nationally recognized, 80-hour, program trains participants to respond to emergencies in remote settings. About half of this program will be spent completing practical skills, case studies and scenarios designed to challenge your decision-making abilities. Students will develop the following skills: Patient assessment, knowledge of body systems, equipment improvisation, trauma, environmental medicine, toxins, wilderness protocols, backcountry medicine and wilderness rescue This certification is offered through a partnership with Landmark Learning, who is an accredited organization. After successfully completing the WFR and Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certification students are eligible to apply for academic credit for this certification.

OTHER ACTIVITIES 

SOLO

Solo typically occurs more than halfway through your course and may last up to 72 hours. Your instructors will assign each participant an individual campsite within a designated area. Your instructors will teach you procedures to follow during solo and monitor you during this experience. You will know the location of your instructors’ campsite should you need to contact them; otherwise it is essential that you remain in your designated area. If your course has an overnight solo you will have your clothing, food and water.  In addition, you will have Outward Bound issued gear: including rain gear, shelter, sleeping bag, compass and whistle. Due to a decreased need for caloric intake, you will have less food available than you would have during your other course activities. Solo is a not a “survival test.” You will not be physically active during solo, as solo is a time for rest, recharge and reflection. Solo is also a good time to write in the journals we provide. If you have questions or concerns, please discuss with your Student Services Representative or your instructors.  

SERVICE 

Service will be a continuous theme throughout your course. The ethic of service is practiced through Leave No Trace camping techniques, reaching out with compassion to your fellow crewmates and working together as a team to overcome the challenges of Outward Bound. On your course, the ethic of service is practiced in greater depth and often includes a service project. Projects range from campsite restoration and maintaining hiking trails in the wilderness to supporting the surrounding communities by assisting families in need, sharing outdoor activities with disadvantaged children or helping in local wildlife restoration centers. Service projects typically last 6-8 hours. Alert your instructor AT COURSE START if you need written verification or documentation of service project hours.

PERSONAL CHALLENGE EVENT

At the end of your course, you will participate in a personal challenge event. This is a great time to see how much your physical fitness and endurance have improved since you began your course. This event will be a running activity. It is not a race. Your instructors set a certain route for your crew and you complete the route at a level that will challenge you the most.

TRANSITION DAYS

Transition days are spent packing food, showering, planning the next section of the course and often include an evening meal prepared by our staff in the base camp dining hall. Due to a full schedule, there will be only one scheduled morning or afternoon visit to town. You will be able to send emails, make phone calls, do laundry and buy items that you may need. This is the only time you will be able to send emails and make phone calls.

Here are some books that we encourage you to read as you plan for your course:

• The Outward Bound Wilderness First-Aid Handbook by Jeff Isaac
• Leave No Trace: A Practical Guide to the New Wilderness Ethic by Annette McGivney
• Knots & Ropes for Climbers by Duane Raleigh and Mike Clelland
• The Outward Bound Backpacker's Handbook by Glenn Randall
• The Outward Bound Map & Compass Handbook by Glenn Randall

Please refer to your Applicant Portal to confirm your balance and make payment. 

If you are unsure of your balance due, please call 1-800-878-5258 or email [email protected]. 

Please review the Application & Cancelation Policies. 

If your payment is not received by the due date listed in your Application Portal, you will risk losing your position on the course and your $500 deposit. 

While in the mountains, each crew will be given large tarps to set up as shelters. You will also be given a ground sheet and a foam sleeping pad to place under your sleeping bag.

Please review the Essential Eligibility Criteria (EEC) for the "General" EEC as well as for your specific program activities, and if you have questions, reach out to your Student Services Representative.

The wilderness environments in which our expedition based programs take place are challenging, remote, and exposed. The health and safety of our students and staff are a top priority, along with the educative quality of the course experience for all participants. To achieve essential group goals, the individuals on each course must be fully capable of and committed to learning and using wilderness skills, meeting physical and social challenges, and taking care of themselves and each other.

The EEC are applied to all students on expedition-based NCOBS courses that take place in a backcountry environment. A person is eligible for admission to a course if that person meets the “General” EEC for NCOBS and the EEC for your specific program activities and program areas.

If an applicant does not meet specific criteria, NCOBS might be able to accommodate an applicant, but will not do so if it significantly alters the fundamental nature of the course activity, jeopardizes the health and safety of NCOBS students or staff, or places an undue administrative or financial burden on NCOBS.