Frequently Asked Questions

You are welcome to contact us if you have any questions about aspects of a particular course of College activity. However, there may be an answer to your question in the list below so please double check before contacting us.

How do I get masters credits for a short course and where can I use them?

Masters credits are available for three week courses only and are accredited by the University of Plymouth subject to University approval. Please contact Schumacher College directly if you are interested in exploring Masters Credits for a course you are going to attend.

Can my family come and stay whilst I am at the College?

Although guests are welcome at weekends, subject to space availability, we are not otherwise able to accommodate family members who are not participating in the course. This is partly due to the small size of the College. But this is also to do with the nature of the course activities which tend to be intensive and creative, which is difficult to engage with when family are around- understandably so. We want to ensure participants can focus on the course and benefit as much as possible for their time here.

Can I join a course on-line, via email or by some form of distance learning?

Currently we are not able to offer courses in this way. The actual content of the course is only a part of the experience of attending Schumacher College. We lay great stress on the importance of living in community, sharing experiences and ideas with the international group of participants, experiencing the natural beauty of the area and having the opportunity to use the library and other facilities. However, we do acknowledge the need to broaden our technological capability and extend our welcome to those far away, particularly in considering our carbon footprint. So we are exploring how we can maximise the Schumacher College experience, which is so unlike other universities, through our website. Watch this space.

Can I work for the College in exchange for fees?

We do not have a programme of trading extra work for course fees. Routine work is shared by staff, course participants and volunteers who have already attended at least one course at the College and shown that they have the appropriate skills for such a role. We do have a limited amount of bursary support for people who are genuinely unable to afford our full fees, and some scholarship awards for certain nationalities and professional groups. Additionally a course is a very engaging experience and participant contribution to the running of the College is scheduled, additional work time of any significance is usually not available within a participant’s time table.

Where can I get funding to come on Schumacher College courses?

The College has a very limited budget for bursaries for those with real need for help in meeting the cost of fees. We always refer people asking about financial assistance to their own institutions, if they are students, as universities generally have professionals who know about potential sources of funds for their students. For all applicants there are directories of grant-making bodies available in public libraries in many countries.

Although the British Council can’t usually assist with course fees, the office in your country may have information about grant-giving or educational trusts which you could apply to. Sometimes their web pages also give this information. We would like to maintain this information on our pages but we do not have the resources to do so – it would be a very large task to cover this information for all countries.

Can I extend my stay at Schumacher College, before or after a course?

We have very limited accommodation therefore the availability of rooms is limited and will be determined by course activity at the College. We are happy to accommodate you as long as we have space. However, we may not know if a room is available until the last minute. Cost of a room for course participants either before or after their course is £35 per night per person plus £5 per meal per person. Please contact us at the time of booking if you would like to be considered for an extended stay at the College.

Why do your courses cost what they do?

The maintenance of our facilities and activities is costly – and like most charitable institutions we have to work hard to cover these costs. Whilst we endeavour to keep these expenses to a minimum we also balance this with a desire and need to produce quality educational experience for all participants with the high level of teaching and facilities that people expect from us. Therefore, we need to bring income into the College, which we do with course fees, which is only one source of income – and which alone does not cover our costs. The Dartington Hall Trust funds some of our activities and we work hard with other institutions to secure further funding for different aspects of our work.

Part of our fundraising efforts has been to secure bursaries for those from around the world that are unable to pay the fees but who are engaged in important work. We will continue our work to secure money through fundraising – although this is a competitive market.

This year, we have introduced a two-tier system for fees. We hope that this will ensure that people pay at the rate which is most applicable to their circumstances rather than everyone paying the highest price. We would dearly like to reach as many people possible but obviously this has to be within our practical means.

When you say “participants from all over the world” what really do you mean?

Exactly what we say! As long as you can speak English and are prepared to engage with ecological issues in a creative and challenging way, you can attend a course at Schumacher College, So far, 73 nationalities have been represented on our courses, with as many as 19 different countries represented in one course group.

How long has Schumacher College been around?

Our first course, on Gaia Theory, led by James Lovelock, started on 14th January 1991.

Schumacher College is part of the Dartington Hall Trust, a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and as a charity (company no. 1485560, charity no. 279756). Registered office: The Elmhirst Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK.