Leadership Development and Experiential Education have always been central to both the DOC and Outdoor Programs. Outdoor activity is an ideal environment for developing leadership, critical problem solving, communication and many other important high-level skills. It is also a powerful way to connect to a community of people who actively support and respect one another, who value inclusivity and diversity, who are interested in learning through experiential and adventure education how to be effective team members and leaders of teams, and who care passionately about the natural environment. We’d love to have you be part of that community.
As an undergraduate student at Dartmouth College, there are myriad ways that we here at Dartmouth Outdoors can help you develop.
Becoming a leader or officer in the Dartmouth Outing Club is often described by alumni/ae as one of the most powerful experiences they had during their time at Dartmouth. You might start by sampling some of the trips and activities offered by the various member clubs of the DOC. Don't be intimidated by that list! It's very easy to get involved in the club. Easiest way is to get on the mailing lists and start going on trips.
Once you've found your niche and gotten some experience, consider taking part in our leader training. While each club has slightly different requirements, a general overview can be found here: Becoming a DOC Leader.
The DOC offers extensive training for students interested in becoming outdoor leaders. Each club has specific requirements, but all of them require successful completion of these seminars - the schedule for these sessions can be viewed here.
Risk Management training helps leaders assess life-safety hazards and come up with strategies to mitigate those risks.
Group Dynamics training helps leaders be as welcoming and inclusive as possible, both on an individual and organizational level, as well as working on strategies and theories to ensure that every participant has a positive experience on trips and at activities hosted by the DOC.
Logistics and Outdoor Skills trainings are a big part of becoming a leader and are an integral part of each club's training process.
Know the skills and policies in the Leader Handbook
To learn more about becoming a DOC leader, read the policies on this page.
Dartmouth has a lot to offer if you're interested in Wilderness Medicine! 1)We're the only medical school in the US in a rural setting, 2)with access to wilderness classrooms, 3)and affiliated with the largest college outdoor program!
Club officers (chairs, presidents, etc) are elected by club members usually on a termly basis. Strong involvement in the club is usually a pre-requisite but some positions are best served by younger students with a lot of enthusiasm. These positions require significant time-commitment but are usually formative experiences for Dartmouth students and can really push individual development to the next level.
Being an officer can help you develop skills like managing your peers, creating agendas and holding meetings, developing and managing significant budgets, organizing and planning events, recruiting and training volunteers, developing written and oral communication skills and much more.
Dartmouth Outdoors also has a number of employment opportunities for students, many of which require no prior experience. Working at Moosilauke, as a desk worker for Ledyard, or any other position provides many opportunities for development. All positions include training, and students can expect to come out of these jobs with a wide variety of skills.
In addition, some positions involve significant management experience. Among the most notable are the Director and Assistant Director of First-Year Trips, Manager and Assistant Manager of the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge, the Director of the summer Trail and Cabin Crew, The Business Director for the Ledyard Canoe Club and the Climbing Gym Manager.
All of these positions are management level jobs and involve hiring, supervision and training of subordinate staff, as well as significant technical and adaptive skill development. This level of work is seldom available to students and the skills and abilities developed through this work cannot be overstated.
First-Year Trips offers a wide variety of experiences and roles that are valuable to a student's personal development. Being a Trip Leader is a great way to get some training and then quickly be in a position of responsibility for a group of your peers. Trip leaders are solely responsible for day to day safety and proper execution of the individual trips.
First-Year Trips' operations are supported by groups of students called 'croos'. Croos learn how to work closely with others, manage priorities and work hard.
For more information on being a Trip Leader or crooling, see this page.
The Directorate is comprised of the captains of the croos as well as several other important positions such as the folks in charge of Outdoor Logistics, Trip Leader Training, Safety and Outreach. These positions require many months of regular commitment and these students can expect to learn a great deal about problem solving, developing and working toward goals, working with stakeholder groups and more.
The Outdoor Programs Office offers a number of services and facilities to help support group development and team building. UGA groups, athletic teams, college offices and departments and many other groups make great use of these resources.
Rock Climbing and Rescue Exercise
This program is designed to give you a unique experience in problem solving and decision making through outdoor adventure. The exercise involves two distinct agendas:
1. Rock Climbing: All participants will have an opportunity to climb the cliff and descend by rope to the bottom. Climbing is an activity that combines problem solving with the joy of movement, and does not demand great strength; climbing involves balance and mental concentration.
2. Rescue Exercise: The second half of the day you will work as a team performing a litter evacuation exercise. The group will be divided into small groups to insure maximum participation in an exercise intended to challenge your management skills. You will work in a group size of 10-12 and will have access to enough resources both in equipment and consultation to accomplish the task. You will not have enough time for everyone to become proficient with every aspect of the rescue, but you will have the opportunity to have individual members become competent with particular skills such as knot tying, belaying, lowering and rope management. Most of these skills were used in the morning climbing exercise. The consultants on our staff will teach you everything you need to know about climbing, but they will not be allowed to perform the actual task. That is your responsibility. You have to manage your time and resources to your best ability. There are standard practices we will insist that you follow, and we will insist that risks be kept to a minimum.
We can also offer a number of group programs such as hiking, backpacking or climbing gym programs located in the Daniels Climbing Gym.
We can set up custom programs for a group of any size. Simply contact Outdoor Programs.
