2026 Travel Seminars

What is a travel seminar?

A travel seminar is a short-term Drake faculty-led course that travels to either international or domestic locations. The courses are usually comprised of 10 to 20 Drake students and are between one and three weeks in length during the month of January. J-Term travel seminars are 3-credit courses, many of which include a Drake AOI designation.

How to View J-Term Travel Seminars and APPLY!

1. Go to Via
2. Click "Go to Portal". This will sign you in using your Drake SSO.
3. Click the Explore Programs tile along the top of the page.
4. In the Search bar, you can type in the name of a program, or use the filters:
   • "Term Name" (such as J-term)
   • "Program Type" (such as Faculty Led or Group Travel, etc)
5. Within Program search results, all Drake J-term Travel Seminars are listed first and with an *.  Click "Learn More" at the bottom of the tile of the program you are interested in learning more about. 
6. When you find the program you are ready to apply for, click Apply Now button on the top right side of the page. If no Apply Now button is available, the program is no longer accepting applications.

*Please note: applications for J-Term 2026 travel seminars opened in Via on March 12th, 2025 during the J-Term 2026 Fair. The priority deadline for all travel seminars was Monday, April 1. 

Minimum Requirements

All travel seminar participants must have a minimum 2.5 GPA and pass a disciplinary check. Additionally, some seminars have program specific requirements; acceptance criteria for each course will be listed in Via when applying.

Application Process

Start your J-Term travel seminar application in Drake’s online portal Via. Click "Go to Portal" to use your Drake SSO to login and apply for a program. For more details, see above.

• April 1, 2025 was the priority deadline to apply for a Drake J-Term 2026 travel seminar
• Students can apply for one J-Term travel seminar programs, but can typically select an alternate choice during the application.
• Acceptance criteria for each course will be listed in Via when applying. If criteria is not noted for the course you apply to, the default criteria is Student Classification (first preference given to graduate students, then seniors, then juniors, then sophomores).
• Drake will accept students to the primary program of their choice, unless the program is full, in which case we will accept the student to their alternate choice. Acceptance is contingent on course availability.
• Students who meet the priority deadline and apply by April 1, will be notified of their application(s) status (accepted, waitlisted, or denial) on April 15.
• Students are given two weeks or less to pay a $500 non-refundable deposit and commit to the program in Via.
• You will NOT and should not apply, register, or withdraw from the travel seminar course through Self Service. Once you are committed to a travel seminar, Drake Global Affairs will register you (and withdraw you, if needed) through the Registrar's Office. Students apply for travel seminars through Via: https://drake.via-trm.com/authV2/welcome 

J-term 2026 Travel Seminar Timeline and Payment Schedule

• Wednesday, March 12: Applications open in Via during the J-Term Fair. Students can now view and apply for J-term 2025 programs.
• Monday, April 1: Priority deadline
• Monday, April 15: Notification of acceptance, waitlist or denial
• Wednesday, May 1: $500 deposit due and committing to program
• Sunday, September 15: program cost due in full

Scholarships

Students apply for Drake travel seminar scholarships by completing the “Global Learning Scholarship Application” form in Via as part of their application. Applications will be reviewed based on the quality of their essay and based on financial need, except the Levin Scholarship which is not financial need based.

Outside scholarship sources for international experiences can be found at: https://www.drake.edu/global/studyabroad/finances/scholarships/

Questions?

For questions about your specific travel seminar, contact the course instructor. For general study abroad questions or issues with Via, contact studyabroad@drake.edu.