Frequently Asked Questions
Our How to Apply page gives you a complete rundown of our application process.
It is likely that your home institution has a separate process you will need to complete as well. Reach out to your study away office or academic adviser to learn what's required for approval at your school.
Visit our How to Apply page for our admissions timeline.
While we have a rolling admissions process, we recommend getting started as soon as possible to save your spot. Generally, we recommend applying early on during before the semester you intend to attend, and particularly if you are applying for financial aid, which is typically disbursed early in the admission cycle.
All Williams-Mystic students take four courses at Williams-Mystic: American Maritime History, Global Sea Literature, Marine Policy and either Marine Ecology or Oceanography. Accepted students will indicate their preference of science class in their pre-semester form.
Learn more about our course offerings here.
Williams-Mystic students also take a non-credit maritime skills class at Mystic Seaport Museum, where they can choose from classes like wood carving, sailing, sail making and blacksmithing. The class meets two afternoons a week when they are not traveling on a field seminar. Accepted students will indicate their preference of maritime skills class in their pre-semester form.
Williams-Mystic students live cooperatively in student houses near Mystic Seaport Museum in the coastal village of Mystic, CT. Each household works together to create an equitable plan for harmonious living arrangements--this includes sharing the tasks of grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning. (There are no dining halls, and there is no cleaning servie for the houses.) Each week every Williams-Mystic house receives a direct-deposit stipend for shared groceries and related household expenses.
Students reside in either a single or a double in a renovated 1800s house and are supported by the student life director in questions of household maintenance and household harmony. Accepted students will have the opportunity to indicate their housing preferences in their housing form.
While based in Mystic, each Williams-Mystic class participates in several field seminars, with locations and itineraries evolving each year--check with us to find out where your desired semester is traveling! Two of the field seminars are multi-day trips, and travel on field seminars can include planes, vans and ferries.
On field seminars, we stay at a variety of locations, from marine field stations to hotels. Roommate combinations will vary from location to location. Students are not responsible for making their own meals on field seminars, but will have an active daily role in supporting the logistics required to travel as a group.
Definitely not! While Williams-Mystic do students get to sample what it feels like to be on a boat, from fishing vessels to small sail boats and other vessels, your home is a cooperative living house in the coastal village of Mystic, CT. You might have a class aboard the permanently docked Charles W. Morgan, a retired wooden whaling vessel at Mystic Seaport Museum, part of your campus at Williams-Mystic. While you'll travel on field seminars to explore some of our nation's coasts, you'll travel by plane, van and the occasional ferry.
Definitely not! We are an interdisciplinary program and welcome all majors. Part of the goal of Williams-Mystic is looking at universal issues and experiences through different lenses and disciplines. A single-discipline approach won’t solve real issues.
Generally, students can transfer Williams-Mystic credits back to their home institution. Every school has different policies regarding how the credits apply to different requirements and whether GPA transfers to the home institution transcript.
Williams-Mystic is part of the 12 College Exchange, meaning credits for students at 12 College Exchange institutions will transfer seamlessly. Students at Williams-Mystic are enrolled as Williams College students for the semester, and will receive a Williams transcript for their semester grades.
Visit our Credit Transfer page for more details.
Yes! All Williams-Mystic students are eligible to have a paid campus job, either at Mystic Seaport Museum or working directly for an area of Williams-Mystic, such as the marine lab or working as a student ambassador for admissions. When you arrive for your semester, you'll learn about the variety of options and choose a spot that aligns with your interests, from the vast Mystic Seaport Museum Collections Center or working in the shipyard.
Yes, Williams-Mystic students may bring a car to campus, and there is no fee to register it. Parking is either at your house or in a lot directly adjacent to it.
Students who opt to bring a car and volunteer to drive housemates for the weekly household grocery shopping errands receive a small stipend for expenses.
Fill out our inquiry form to get in touch with our admissions team and ask any questions you have!