Registration Policies
Before you apply for a course, please read this information about admission, tuition and fees, cancellations, refunds, transfers, and other policies.
Admissions
Boulder Outdoor Survival School is an educational nonprofit and is open to all who wish to attend. Our admission process does not discriminate by race, creed, gender, color, religion, disability, sexual orientation or national origin (courses do carry age restrictions). We reserve the right to refuse admission to our program if we consider that the physical or emotional health of the applicant may present a risk to the applicant or other participants.
Applying
As is the case with most extended trips, the earlier you can make your plans, the easier it will be to arrange. We suggest you apply for your BOSS course as early as possible.
Prospective students must first apply for the course they want to attend. There is a $50 non-refundable application fee for each person. Here’s how to apply:
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- Explore the courses BOSS has to offer.
- Choose your course and apply online by following the “Apply Now” links on our course schedule or course description pages.
- Pay the $50 application fee to reserve your spot on the course.
- Schedule a call with a BOSS admissions specialist at the end of the application process. This call is required, and will determine if you can officially enroll in the course.
Enrollment
If the BOSS admissions specialist approves your enrollment, they will walk you through the next steps, including how to pay for your course. Participants who wish to pay for the tuition with student loans, Americorps awards, or want to apply for tuition assistance or a discount, should discuss these options with the admissions specialist.
BOSS offers two options for tuition payments:
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- Pay the tuition in full.
- Pay a deposit and make payments towards the tuition until 60 day before the course starts. If there is a balance remaining at 60 days before the course starts, we will automatically charge the payment method we have on file for the remaining balance.
Deposits are $500 for all courses. The deposit is non-refundable 7 days after the payment is processed (see below for last-minute registrations).
If a course starts within 60 days, tuition is due in full.
Confirmation
A confirmation email and course documents will be sent to you after submitting an application, assuming there is space available in the course. If you are approved for the course, you will then have to fill out your enrollment form and upload all required paperwork to your student portal before your course starts. Final acceptance is dependent on receipt and review of the paperwork, especially the Health and Physical Exam Packet, which is due 60 days before your course starts. Applicants who fail to send in completed paperwork will be placed on a waiting list and may lose their place on the course.
Waiting list
If a course is full, you can join a waiting list. There is no cost for joining the waitlist.
The BOSS waitlist is first-come first-served. If a space becomes available, we will contact the first person on the list by phone, email and text message. That person will have the chance to accept or decline the spot. After 48 hours, if there is no response, that person is removed from the waitlist, and we will send an invitation to the next person.
Tuition and Fees
There are three main expenses for a BOSS course: tuition, travel, and field gear. The tuition will cover the BOSS experience, some materials and equipment, and any food during the course. Participants are responsible for all other expenses.
Extra costs, including equipment purchases, fishing permits, etc., may need to be paid during orientation. Any academic credit fees should be paid directly to the granting institution before the course start date.
To see a breakdown of where your tuition money goes, see here.
Tuition discounts and assistance
We offer tuition assistance and discounts to eligible students.
Cancellations, Refunds, and Transfers
BOSS incurs most program expenses while preparing for your course. These cancellation and refund policies reflect the fact that it is impossible to recover these costs for late cancellations, no-shows, or withdrawals from ongoing courses. It is also very difficult to fill a space on a course if you cancel at the last minute. Please note that the deposit is non-refundable 7 days after the payment is processed. Cancellations made within the 7-day grace period will receive a refund of payments minus the application fee. For registrations made 30 days or less from the course start date the tuition is non-refundable after 24 hours.
BOSS does not make exceptions for cancellations made due to personal and medical emergencies. We strongly encourage students to purchase trip insurance. We recommend DAN.org or World Nomads for adventure travel insurance.
Those who cancel their registration with BOSS after the 7-day or 24-hour grace period will be charged a cancellation fee in the following amount:
| Days Before Start Date | Cancellation Fee |
60 days or more: Full Deposit per course per person
45-59 days: 25% of tuition per course per person
30-44 days: 50% of course tuition
29 days or fewer: 100% of course tuition
A student who wishes to transfer enrollment from one course to another may do so if there is space on the new course and will be charged a transfer fee in the following amount:
| Days Before Start Date | Transfer Fee |
60 days or more: $150 transfer fee
45-59 days: Full Deposit per course per person
30-44 days: 25% of course tuition
29 or fewer: 100% of course tuition
A participant will be responsible for all costs associated with late arrival or early departure, including transportation and evacuation costs. Once a course begins, late arrivals will not be allowed. Participants who arrive late and miss the course or who leave a course voluntarily or involuntarily once it has started, due to medical emergency, dismissal, evacuation, or any other reason, will not be entitled to refunds of any tuition or fees, and will not be transferred to another course.
Standards of Behavior
On BOSS Courses all participants are expected to maintain high standards of honor, morality, and integrity. We require participants to abstain from all use of intoxicating substances for the duration of the course. BOSS instructors and staff have the sole discretion to remove any participant from a course if perceived to be endangering themselves or another BOSS student or staff member. Participants will be removed if they present a safety concern, medical risk, disruptive behavior, engage in illegal activity, or anything else the staff believes detrimental to the course. BOSS courses also require students to abstain from using tobacco and nicotine products. Smoking and vaping are not allowed on the course.
All prescribed and “over the counter “ drugs taken at the time of your course must be listed on the Health and Physical Exam Form. Failure to do so may jeopardize the health and safety of the participant and group and may be grounds for expulsion from a course. All BOSS students are required to have adequate health insurance to cover personal injury and evacuation while on the course.
If you do not have health insurance, DAN.org or World Nomads and some other insurance companies offer temporary health & accident insurance policies. Not providing proof of adequate coverage will cancel your acceptance to the BOSS program and forfeit your tuition. All students, must agree to these terms and sign accordingly on their course registration materials.
