It’s that time of year again! During assembly on November 15th, Meredith and all travel course teachers presented their trips for the 2025-2026 school year. We have new locations such as England, Europe, and returning locations like Tanzania, Africa. Thanks to the $17.75 million donation, these trips be included in the cost of tuition and therefore will now be more accessible to students. Two crucial questions arise for many students: What are the benefits to going away? Do they outweigh some of the cons that could arise? What better way to know than to ask the students who have just returned from their service trips. As there are so many, I wanted to get as many opinions as possible. I asked teachers to send out a Google Form that I made which asked questions about the highlights, drawbacks, and impacts from their experiences away. 28 people responded, and here is what they have to say.
Highlights:
The trips that returned this October/November include Brazil, Bonaire, Italy/Türkiye, Greece, and Transformative Justice’s Philadelphia course. Students’ favorite parts about these trips included a surprise birthday celebration for a trip leader, viewing historical sites, eating, doodling in museums, bonding, swimming, experiencing culture, counting the Caiman at night at the lodge, and data collection.
Drawbacks:
As some people remind us in their responses, it is super important to be prepared for the weather (some weren’t and it really does affect how much they appreciated each moment. Sometimes the heat can feel like a bit much. Some students expressed disappointment with some of the accommodations, sharing that they stayed in a small room with many more students than anticipated and couldn’t decompress well with so many people. Someone got stabbed by a stingray, though they seem to be okay. Unexpectedly in one trip, some students fell ill which resulted in some early departures. This was understandably frustrating and disappointing for other student travellers. Most students just really wanted a longer trip for more fun and learning.
Impacts on Schedule:
Summer trips only take up one mod of the last term of an individual’s schedule. This is not a huge commitment and quite manageable for most– though one should be wary that summer plans might have to be shifted for this trip. When it comes to academic trips throughout the year, the course must take up an entire term of a schedule. As one student puts it, this situation “makes one term exponentially easier compared to the rest, making all other terms much heavier in (terms of) difficulty.”
Diploma Candidate Perspectives:
Most of the students who responded to my form weren’t diploma candidates, but those who were did mention the added benefit of being able to use their trip as CAS projects. Though, since CAS reflections were due soon after the trips were completed, some students had to think ahead on how they were going to get all of their reflections done along with the impending deadlines of the IB Extended Essay Prospectus and the outline. For one student, it “added a bit of pressure to finish everything in time and with high quality.”
Whether you plan on biking while exploring sustainability in the Netherlands or hiking while understanding micro and macroeconomics at a global level, you will grow academically and socially on these trips which are designed to be challenging. There is a lot of effort and care involved in creating itineraries and figuring out travel. Teachers are genuinely excited to show off what they know and explore the world with students. If you are debating about whether or not you should partake in these trips, I suggest that you consider student input while also understanding that not everyone’s experience will be the same as yours. In fact, someone else’s bad experience should not be a driving factor for not going on a trip. I wish you safe travels, no stinging, an amazing adventure, and time to decompress from the excitement of George School on your service trip
Written by: Allie Betancourt ’26
