In Bali, encounter, treat and rehabilitate an array of animals and endangered species that are as varied and exotic as this magical island.
While here, you'll quickly discover that Bali's people are as fascinating as its animal kingdom, and true Balinese culture is on full display at a Kecak Fire and Trance Dance in Ubud, Bali's cultural epicenter. For aspiring vets, this program offers a rare opportunity to venture beyond cats and dogs and get up close and personal with orangutans, sea eagles, sun bears, cassowaries, sea turtle, peacocks and more. Open your eyes to a different way of life and leave having made meaningful connection to Bali's communities and animal kingdoms.
| Dates | Grades | Length | Tuition | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 12 - August 6 | HS | 26 days | $6,780 | Available |
Broadreach combines your thirst for fun and adventure with tangible skill development, real-world educational opportunities and a genuine commitment to service. While on program, you’ll earn documented community service hours and even college credits. It’s what we call “Earn & Learn,” and it’s what you’ll take home as evidence of your many accomplishments.
Bali Veterinary Medicine offers 3 animal science college credits through Lesley University. Additionally, students earn 20 hours of documented community service.
On this 25-day adventure, students will learn the principles of veterinary medicine in a variety of different settings and apply them to their work with rare and exotic species. This program will also provide students with the opportunity to practice critical thinking and problem solving. It teaches students not only how to care for different types of animals, but how to balance preventative healthcare and hands-on intervention as well.
Through service, we gain a more meaningful connection to the cultures and communities we explore while taking an active role to address important global issues that impact the communities. While in Bali and Sulawesi, we volunteer at wildlife refuges, rescue centers and animal clinics. Our projects are determined by the needs of the organizations at the time, but possible projects include:
Arrive in colorful and culturally-rich Bali, a tropical paradise of rice paddies, temples, volcanoes and spectacular beaches. This is the first stop on a journey halfway around the world to wildlife rescue centers where you’ll have the opportunity to work with rare and endangered species like orangutans, babirusas, sea eagles, sun bears, cassowaries, sea turtles, gibbons and peacocks. But first, begin with a thrilling rafting adventure down the Ayung, Bali’s longest river at close to 46 miles. Before digging in to the veterinary medicine you came for, visit the Tegenungan Waterfall, which is breathtakingly surrounded by lush jungle.
No time is wasted as you get to work at the Bali Wildlife Rescue Center in Krambitan. Here, part of the focus is on avian and exotic animal medicine. Log hours alongside veterinarians while learning how to perform necropsies on birds as well as fecal analysis and physical examinations. Practice both preventative and rehabilitation medicine as you help with ongoing re-release efforts. Find real reward in volunteering with endangered species at the center and make a positive impact in their chances of long-term survival. In addition to your work at the rescue center, get a behind-the-scenes look at the Bali Bird Park, learn how to handle snakes in a workshop and take a break from vet life to explore the famous Tanah Lot Temple.
A short flight takes us to North Sulawesi, a major hub for the illegal wildlife trade. Work at a rescue center that protects many species that have been confiscated from this unfortunate trade. Your focus is learning about the rehabilitation process, conservation efforts and the intricacies of the release process. As you gain up close exposure to over 40 animal species including primates, reptiles, lories and bears, your confidence and understanding of animal health deepens. In the evenings, enjoy the panoramic views of the Sulawesi Sea and wander down to the private black sand beach just steps from your Eco Lodge.
Return to Ubud, Bali’s cultural center. This area is distinct for its unique crafts and rich history and for being a place of natural healing. That healing spirit extends to animals as you volunteer at a community spay and neuter clinic, visit a monkey forest and conclude your service with check-ups of indigenous Bali dogs being protected in canine foster homes. You’ll have plenty of time to soak up Balinese and Ubudian traditions by attending an authentic Kecak Fire Dance, taking part in a batik-making workshop and spending time exploring nearby villages.
Venture to South Denpasar, in Serangan, to learn about shark conservation. Like many animals in this region, sharks have been exploited, and targeted for fins as well as the aquarium trade. Your work is focused on reversing those trends and providing sanctuary for young sharks until they are old enough to be released. Prior to heading home, explore Manta Point and drift along the pristine reef in the hopes of spotting a giant manta ray in the wild.
If you have any doubts whatsoever about doing this trip, erase them completely. This trip is one of those one of a kind experiences that you thank yourself for doing years later. It definitely opens your eyes to different cultures and ways of life in the world. To say this experience was worthwhile is a huge understatement.
The trip has strengthened my desire to be a vet. I now feel like I have a stronger sense of my path in life. I would suggest this trip to anyone interested in veterinary medicine, but also people interested in conservation, animals in general, marine biology and a whole lot of other interests. This trip not only gives us a hands on experience with veterinary medicine but also a deeper look at many problems that face our world today.
This trip far exceeds any expectation it gives you in the overview! I learned so much from the lessons and lectures, but I also had the opportunity to learn, just by walking down the street. The best part about the trip is you learn about an animal on paper first, then witness treatment and hands on activity in person.
This trip totally exceeded all expectations I had. I am going home with so much new knowledge about not only veterinary medicine, but also wildlife and habitat conservation, animal welfare and a new perspective on what I want to do in my future. I would highly recommend this trip for anyone who loves animals, adventure and exploring new places.
This trip taught me so much about myself as well as so many animal welfare issues that I am happy I know about. I cannot put into words how this trip has changed my understanding of animals and their conservation. I feel so much better being informed and now can help to make a difference.
Tuition is all inclusive for instruction, food, accommodations, and activities from the time you arrive in country. However, you are responsible for your airfare, spending money (we suggest about $150-200 depending on the program), any required textbooks, and student expenses such as medical fees. Some trips require scuba gear which can be rented, purchased or in some cases borrowed from Broadreach. Finally, for our high school trips that offer college credit, you can elect to receive an official Lesley University credit transcript for approximately $180 per credit hour. For more information about expenses that might apply to your program, click here.
Airfare is not included in the program tuition cost, mostly because students join our programs from all over the U.S. and other countries around the world. Some programs also have internal flights which are not included in the program tuition, and we’ll provide details on exactly how to book those once you are enrolled.
For most programs, we have a few recommended flights and an arrival time range, and we usually give you the option to book flights on your own or through our travel agency partner. A few programs have required group flights, which we set up in advance. Students travel independently, but often meet up along the way, and we collect student itinerary details. Broadreach instructors will be waiting in the arrivals hall of the destination airport to greet each student, and they’ll be wearing special shirts and holding a Broadreach sign. We also mail students Broadreach shirts to wear while traveling which makes it easy for them to identify each other. Typically, making travel arrangements and the actual travel days go very smoothly.
Safety is our top priority, and it is something we evaluate from every angle throughout the year. We’re very proud of our safety record over the past 26 years of running international programs for students. There are so many ways to address how we handle safety, including the extensive experience and training of our instructors, the specific locations we choose to visit, the relationships we have established with our local partners, and the 24/7 support we provide our groups. We have extensive program-specific risk management plans and safety standards that we adhere to. We’d be happy to talk about safety in more detail for the program you’re considering if you’d like to call our office.
Most participants come alone, so there is no need to be concerned if you don’t know anyone else on your program. It’s normal to be a little nervous about not knowing other students in advance, but within a day of starting your program you’ll be laughing and sharing exciting adventures with new friends.
Students will call home within a few hours of landing in the destination airport to let parents know they have arrived safely and have met up with the group. For most programs, students will have the option to call home once a week, typically on Sundays. Timing for calling home depends on the schedule of the trip and location. Usually, students call home with the in-country instructor cell phones or via Skype if good internet service is available. If you’d like to learn more about our full communication policy, please call our office.
We require that students have at least $100,000 of emergency evacuation coverage and some kind of international medical coverage, as well as coverage for scuba diving for programs that include diving. We offer two different policy options, or if you already have a policy that meets this criteria, we would just collect those policy details after enrollment.
Our Tuition Protection policy covers cancellations for medical reasons up to 100% and for any other reason up to 75% (except for residents of NY state). It’s also a great comprehensive travel insurance policy, including medical coverage, emergency evacuation, travel delay, baggage (loss or delay), etc. The cost of the policy ranges from $319-379 based on the program duration. For more specific coverage details, please call our office.
Broadreach instructors are highly experienced, passionate, energetic and supportive. The average age of our instructors is 28 years old, and depending on the program, they meet specific qualifications (a Master’s degree in the subject area, PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor certification, foreign language fluency, Wilderness First Responder certification, etc).
We do our best to accommodate allergies and food preferences but we consider the situation, country and the program to determine whether it will be a good fit for the specific dietary restriction. It’s important that you let Broadreach know well in advance of any food preferences or allergies so we can determine whether your restrictions will work on your program.
Absolutely! Just call our office and we can put you in touch with past participants who have joined the programs that interest you. Our alumni families are happy to share their first-person experiences.
We require a non-refundable deposit of $1000 to lock in your spot, and then the final balance can be spread out and paid in a few different ways. The final payment is requested by about 3 months before departure. Our optional tuition protection plan covers cancellations for medical reasons up to 100% and cancellations for any other reason up to 75% (except for residents of NY state).
We provide an extensive packing list for each program that we revise every year based on student and instructor feedback, and most of the items you probably have already. If you’d like to look at a packing list for a certain program, just let us know and we can email the most current version to you.
Academics will vary by program but usually include journals, discussions, lectures, research projects, and a midterm and final exam. We expect all of our students to participate fully in the academic course work on our programs, regardless of whether they have chosen to take it for official college credit.
Our levels are loose guidelines to help families determine which programs might be the best fit. Discovery level programs do not require any prior experience and are great first-Broadreach options. Explorer level programs build on existing skills and knowledge, and often delve deeper into the program focus. Expedition level programs are usually in more remote or challenging locations, require prior experience, and often include more student ownership of the experience.
We partner with Lesley University in Cambridge, MA to offer college credit for our academic high school and college programs. Those credits are widely accepted at colleges and universities all over North America, and we can often let you know if an alumni student has transferred those credits to a specific school in the past. For more details, click here.
In the fall, we have a few different early enrollment discounts– please call our office for more information. We also offer a 5% discount on the second enrollment from the same immediate family in a summer. This offer is available to an individual student or siblings. The 5% discount will be applied to the program of lesser cost, and cannot be combined with any other discounts.
We do offer some scholarships through the Broadreach Foundation. Please visit www.broadreachfoundation.org for more information and to apply online for scholarships.
