Outdoors and Academics

Hampden-Sydney offers a minor in Environmental Studies, which explores both the scientific and humanistic dimensions of environmental issues. Adventurous students may travel to the Galapagos with the evolutionary ecology course, or to the South Carolina coast to study the history, culture, and natural environs of the Lowcountry and the Sea Islands, while sea-kayaking, beachcombing, and sailing. Hampden-Sydney students interested in marine science get priority admission to the Duke University Marine Laboratory in Beaufort, NC, for summer sessions or full-year courses.

Freshman Seminars often explore the connection between writing and the environment (including occasional research overnights in the Appalachian Mountains), while the English department offers a course in Nature Writing.