Get your training from the oldest and leading provider of wilderness education in the world.

North Carolina Outward Bound School's 50-day Outdoor Educator courses are designed to provide participants with the skills and experiences they need to begin a career in the outdoor experiential education industry. Outward Bound has trained many educators and offers a premier learning experience. By learning 'hands-on,' students will gain a better understanding of both the technical and teaching skills that will prepare them for an entry-level position as an outdoor or experiential education educator.

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Title: Lead Instructor, Course Director, Whitewater Paddling Specialist

What inspired you to become an Outward Bound instructor? Did you know before you went on your Instructor Development Course? After my own student experience, I was profoundly impacted. I knew that I wanted to be able to facilitate that same transformative experience for future students, so I began my journey to becoming an Outward Bound instructor. Serendipitously, I was given an opportunity to participate in the 50-day Instructor Development Course, instructed by two other fantastic educators, Brian Arnold and Lindsay Ward. These individuals pushed us through challenging terrain, encouraged us to build strong healthy relationships, asked us to be vulnerable and trust one another, kept us safe, taught us to believe in magic, and showed us how to love nature, each other, and ourselves. It was a life-changing experience for me. 

What was the most challenging part of that 50-day course?
The most challenging aspect of the Instructor Development Course (IDC) for me was learning how to speak up and assert my ideas when I felt they were valid. Our instructors did a phenomenal job asking us as individuals to step outside of stereotypical gender roles and intentionally make space for each other to speak. As one of the more quiet and timid members of the group, it took a lot of patience and encouragement from my peers, but eventually, I found my voice and recognized that one need not be loud in volume to be a good facilitator, what weighs much more heavily is confidence in your word.

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