Dean of Faculty Office
Guidelines and approval form for curriculum-based field trips
PART A
- INTRODUCTION
This is a basic guide for seeking budget approvaland logistics arrangements for curriculum-based field trips.This guide may be updated from time to time to meet current best practices, and at the same time ensure that curriculum needs are met. Any revisions will be made known through an email notification. Softcopy of this guide is available in the faculty portal.
Field trips are an important part of the instructional program of the College, and will be supported within budgetary limits when trips clearly enhance the education of the students. While there will be logistic arrangement support provided by the Division Admin Teams, Faculty should be responsible for the actual planning of the field trip.
Trips that are closely connected to a particular class, or are only available to students who are taking or have taken a particular class, should be funded through this program, rather than through CIPE. For optimum student benefit, each field trip must be well planned beforehand and thoroughly evaluated after completion. Properly planned and executed field trips should:
a)supplement and enrich classroom procedures by providing learning opportunities in an external environment to create student interest and learning opportunities;
b)bring the resources of the community – natural, artistic, industrial, commercial, governmental into the student’s learning experience;
c)generate appropriate feedback from the students that is conveyed to the DoF office.
- PROCEDURES, AND FORM COMPLETION
a)The faculty member responsible for the course should submit the form below for all field trips in advance of the trip. Retroactive funding for trips that have already occurred will not be provided.
b)A call for field trip requests and announcement of application deadline dates will be made via the Dean of Faculty message. Requests submitted before the deadline will be given full consideration. Requests for local field trips submitted after the deadlinemay be considered only if there is fund available after the first round of approval.
c)Part B & C: Faculty member to complete, sign and submit the application form toHead of Studies (HoS) by 1 week before deadline.
d)Part D: Head of Studies (HoS) to collate and prepare budget summary for all application in their major. Summary of applications and rationale to submitted to Division Director (DD) for review before submission to DoFfor budgetary consideration and comment.
e)DoF office to update the Faculty, HoS and DD of the outcome of the application.
f)Approved application form to be forwarded to Division Administrative Team (DAT) for logistics arrangements;
g)DAT to execute logistics needs in accordance with the approved budget and guidelines.
- FACULTY RESPONSIBILITIES
a)Ensure that a due diligence site visit is conducted, when appropriate, to establish a meaningful professional or academic experience, cultural immersion, safety and security.
b)AdviseDATon all related logistics requirements for the trip upon approval of field trips. Please refer to Annex A: Checklist for field trip logistics arrangement.
c)Communicate directly with students on all matters pertaining to the trip.
d)Submit a one page field trip report to the DoF office following any overnight field trips.
- IMPORTANT POINTS
a)Required trips that necessitate missing ofclasses in other courses are strongly discouraged. In general, overnight trips or trips that involve missing other classes should be optional for students. If they are required for the course, that requirement must be clearly stated in the syllabus, and the syllabus must be available before the start of course selection. The requirement must be clearly reiterated in the first class meeting.
b)Trips connected with a particular course should never require students to miss more than 3 consecutive class days.
c)Trips outside Asia will only be supported during semester breaks or after the completion of classes and exams.
d)Oversea trips, where air travel is required, will require a student co-pay. Financial aid will be available to needy students on a case-by-case basis. No co-pay is required for field trips in Singapore.
-Regional field trips (air travel duration less than 3 hours): co-pay travel cost up to $500 or the cost of air ticket, whichever is lower
-Trips further afield to Asia, Australia, and New Zealand (air travel duration greater than 3 hours): co-pay travel cost up to $750 or the cost of air ticket, whichever is lower.
-Trips to Europe/Africa: co-pay travel cost up to $1,000 or the cost of air ticket, whichever is lower
-Trips to North and South America: co-pay travel cost up to $1,000 or the cost of air ticket, whichever is lower.
e)Increase of more than 10% in expenses from the approved budget will have to be re-approved by the Dean of Faculty.
f)Division Directors and Heads of Study should keep in mind that resources to support field trips are finite, and all good ideas can not necessarily be supported. Not every course requires a field trip, and curricular impact and learning outcomes should guide recommendations.
g)To request support of student attendance and presentations at conferences, students can apply for the Student External Presentation Award (SEPA), through their Vice-Rectors, from the Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.
h)Alcohol consumption during field trip will not be covered by college.
Part B – Approval request form for curriculum-based field trip
Please check boxes accordingly (double-click to check/uncheck box & click OK).
Faculty Name: / Division: Humanities Science Social SciencesRequest is made for:
Group/Class (eg. Foundation of Science, Class of 2017):
Number of students involved:
Names of faculty involved (including ensuring safety and supervision of students during the trip):
Names of departments & staff involved for students details & communication
Number of parent volunteers involved (if any):
Place/destination & state country for overseas trips:
Dates:
*Trip may not include more than 3 class days. / From: to
Departure time:
Aims, Objectives and Learning Outcomes (provide a minimum of one paragraph explanation)
Rationale (relevance to curriculum)
Draft of program (provide a separate sheet for program which is more than 1 day)
Part C – Budget Proposal(consult DAT for assistance)
State N.A. for Non-Applicable items. Edit items and add rows as necessary.
Budget ProposalItem description / Unit cost (SGD) / Quantity / Total Cost (SGD) / Specify name of budget (eg. SUG, division)
1 / Flight
2 / Ground Transportation
3 / Lodging
4 / Meals
Alcohol consumption during field trip will not be covered
5 / Others
TOTAL / SGD
I understand and accept that this request (and any subsequent changes) will be subject to approval by the Divisional Director, Dean of Faculty and/or relevant Approver(s) who are contributing funds to cover the expenses of this trip.
Signature of ApplicantDate:
PARTD – for approver’s use
Signature of Head of StudiesNameDate
Signature of Division DirectorNameDate
Signature of Dean of FacultyNameDate
Annex A
Dean of Faculty Office
Curricular Field Trip Checklist: Faculty Responsibilities
Field trips are an important part of the instructional program of the College, and faculty members planning these trips will receive support by The Divisional Admin Teams (DATs).
DATs experienced a significant workload increase created by the rise of field trips in AY 2016/17. In order to ease the process of offering logistical support to all trips, alongside other ongoing Division tasks, the DATs have developed a checklist of the main tasks that faculty members leading field trips should aim to complete themselves, with limited assistance from the DAT. This checklist will be reviewed periodically.
Faculty should estimate 10 hours of pre-trip work per day (e.g. 30 hours for a three-day trip). Planning can begin over summer after receiving the Application outcome.
Proposal Process (with estimated costs):
Source Flight costs with Price BreakerSource Ground Transportation costs (including bus to and from airport)
Source Lodging costs, suggesting 1-3 hotels
Source Meal costs (student meal budget: S$10 breakfast, S$15 lunch, S$20 dinner)
Research events for itinerary
Compile Budget Proposal
Complete Proposed Itinerary
Submit “Approval Request Form for Curriculum-Based Field Trips” to DOF
Appoint a Student Lead from the course to liaise with DAT on logistics
After Approval of Field Trip: Faculty and/or Student Lead to liaise with DAT as necessary
Provide list of confirmed student names with ID numbers to DATProvide “Instructor Permission Form” to students if they are missing other courses
Collect passport scans from all students and send to Divisional Executive
Collect Indemnity and Medical Emergency Profile forms for students to complete
Purchase travel, hotel, and activities. If tour or other activity packages are required, faculty must make the payments and seek reimbursement after the trip.
Submit Per Diem request
Provide a list of students on Financial Aid
Provide a list of students with visa requirements
Present final itinerary to students
Collect first aid kit from DAT before departure
Collect Student Medical Emergency Profile Forms from DAT before departure
After Completion of Field Trip
Submit one page Field Trip Report to the Dean of Faculty within 2 weeks of the tripSubmit neatly pasted receipts for TRAC reimbursement to Divisional Executive, clearly indicating the purpose of expenses
Return leftover Per Diem, if any, *in Singapore dollars* to DAT
Page 1 of 7 - April 2018
DoF: Curriculum-based field trip guide & form