Field School

Summer

Each summer the Maritime Studies Program sponsors a field school in maritime archaeology.  All students must be enrolled in Field School in Maritime History and Underwater Research (History 5530, 2 credit hours).

This unique program has been developed to provide qualified students with a basic introduction to maritime history and the scientific methods and techniques employed in maritime archaeological research. The prerequisite for field school is successful completion of HIST 6820 – Research Methodology in Nautical Archaeology as well as the Scientific Diver Course (COAS 6000) offered by the ECU Diving and Water Safety Office under the standards of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences. There is a lab fee to defray training costs. For additional information on the field school contact Karen Underwood.

Scientific Diver training is rigorous and involves a swim test, modules of open water diving, and low/zero visibility training, both in a pool and in open water. Instruction in diving safety, archaeological recording, underwater photography (still and video), wireless communication and emergency search procedures will be covered.

Additional details for the Scientific Diver course can be obtained by contacting Mark Keusenkothen. Applications for COAS 6000 – Scientific Diving are available online through ECU Diving and Water Safety.

Fall

In the fall semester, every eligible second year graduate student can attend the fall field course in maritime archaeology. Students spend four weeks working on various underwater sites as designated by the project director. Eligibility is determined by required courses taken during the previous year. HIST 6820 – Research Methodology in Nautical Archaeology and HIST 5530 will generally fulfill these requirements. Students must also complete the Scientific Diver training.

Field school locations and lab fees

As noted above, field schools have additional consumable costs (e.g., lodging), and carry a lab fee that is in addition to tuition costs.

Faculty must work within a budget dictated by partner contributions, program investment, and monies from student lab fees, with the latter being capped accordingly:

• For field schools in the state of North Carolina, program faculty must cap lab fees at $1,000 per student with lodging and travel included.  Food costs are borne by the student;
• For field schools in the Continental USA, program faculty must cap lab fees at $1,500 per student (lodging included), with airfares (if required) and food representing additional student costs;
• For field schools at overseas locations, program faculty must cap lab fees at $2,000 per student (lodging included), with airfares and food representing additional student costs.

Field school locations are determined on the basis of a predetermined faculty rotation, where faculty select projects at locations associated with their expertise and research/teaching interests. Field school planning is often done years in advance — faculty endeavor to seek partners to make in-kind contributions, or make seek external grant support.  Due to the complexities of planning field schools, students do not get to decide where the field school occurs and they may only attend the ECU field school for course credit (no petitions for credit are taken for external field school completion).

Summer tuition costs are determined according to whether a student has resident or non-resident status.  First year tuition remissions granted by the graduate school generally do not include summer sessions.  It is up to the individual student to petition to receive resident status (see: https://www.ncresidency.org/) ahead of summer session classes.  These rules are not determined by the Program in Maritime Studies or the Department of History.

International Students

International students should note that field school participation in the summer is a requirement of the MA in Maritime Studies, and therefore they must ensure that their VISA incorporates summer classes in the USA, or allows for additional travel outside of the United States for attending the field school.  As HIST5530 (summer) is a prerequisite for HIST6850 (fall), we cannot give exceptions due to VISA restrictions.