Shoals 101 & FAQ

Undergraduates can sign up for a course up to one week prior to the first day of the course. We recommend you do sign up as soon as possible to ensure you get a seat in the course.

High school students should refer to the high school admissions page for application deadlines. However, the deadline usually falls around February 14.

Merit-based scholarships have an application deadline! Please visit our Financial Support & Scholarships page.

Need-based scholarships are awarded on a rolling basis; that is, first-come first-served.

Multi-course scholarships are automatically awarded to students taking more than one course in the same summer.

All undergraduate students who can demonstrate need (e.g., via FAFSA or CSS documentation) are eligible for need-based scholarships from SML.

Need-based scholarships are not available for high school students at this time.

Please visit our Financial Support & Scholarships page.

Undergraduate students may be eligible to receive summer financial aid if enrolled for 6 or more credits. The aid is in the form of student loans. There are other special situations that may make you eligible for summer scholarships. Please contact your SML Academic Coordinator. Students who do not attend Cornell University or the University of New Hampshire must check with their home institutions regarding eligibility.

If you have submitted your request for financial support as per instructions on the Financial Support & Scholarships page and have not heard back from our admissions team, please email shoals.lab@unh.edu again, or call (603) 862-5346. 

Yes! Enrolled undergraduate students may work on Appledore Island before or after their SML course (not during). Must be 18 or older. SML alums who are not enrolled for the upcoming season can be added to a waiting list for open Student Staff spots. For more information, jump to our Student Staff page.

Unfortunately there is NO parking at the SML dock (located at 315 Market Street in Portsmouth, NH) when you arrive on the first day of your course. SML recommends a free, long-term parking lot called the Portsmouth Transportation Center, a 5-10 min drive from the SML dock. SML does not provide shuttling services to/from this long-term parking lot. It is the responsibility of the student to get to the SML dock for check-in prior to departure.

Yes! Appledore Island is six miles offshore, but within range of cell towers for most cell phone service providers. There are areas of the island where service can be 'spotty' but we are not aware of standard service providers (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, etc.) that won't work on the island for calling and/or texting. That being said, we encourage students to disconnect from their mobile devices during SML courses in order to fully immerse themselves in the field station experience.

Thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) several years ago, SML upgraded to a high-speed, wireless network that provides excellent WIFI coverage to all of SML's buildings on the island. Reliable internet access across the island facilitates better access to articles/references for coursework and research projects, file downloading, streaming video, video-conferencing, the Appledore Webcam, etc.

Yes! Mail delivery occurs at least once a week. Mail must be delivered to Appledore Island on one of our research vessels, so please be patient. (There is no such thing as "overnight shipping" or "next-day shipping" to Appledore Island.) If you are expecting an urgent package, please contact the Appledore Island staff so we may be on the look-out!

Appledore Island mailing addresses (May - September only)

Call SML's Appledore Island Office: (603) 724-3404

Faculty members may or may not have final grades ready to share with students by the last day of an SML course. Official grades for SML courses are typically posted via the registrar's office within 3-4 weeks after a course ends. To find out your SML grade(s):

• Cornell students: Your SML course grade will be posted to your Student Center, just like a grade in an on-campus Cornell course.
• UNH students: Your SML course grade will be posted to Webcat, just like a grade in an on-campus UNH course.
• Undergraduates from all other schools: A copy of your UNH transcript can be requested online here: https://www.unh.edu/registrar/transcripts If your UNH login credentials no longer work to access the transcript request service under "Webcat (Current Students)", use the "Online (Alumni)" instructions to order a transcript.

• High school students: Use your Cornell NetID to request an official transcript from Cornell here: https://registrar.cornell.edu/grades-transcripts/ordering-transcripts. You should have received an email from Cornell IT with your NetID information when you first enrolled in your SML course. If you cannot find your NetID information, contact Cornell IT at itservicedesk@cornell.edu or (607) 255-5500.

Course deposits, room & board, and fees are nonrefundable. Your tuition refund amount will be determined by the number of days from the start of the course that you withdraw.

Refund schedule (days since program start date):

• Days 1–3: 100% tuition refund
• Days 4–5: 50% tuition refund
• Day 6 or later: 0% refund

To withdraw from an SML course:

• Cornell and High School students must notify the SCE Registrar's Office and SML (shoals.lab@unh.edu) in writing.
  If you want to appeal the refund schedule based on special circumstances, please download and complete the petition form and submit it to B20 Day Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853. The form will be reviewed by committee, and you will be notified if your appeal is approved.
   
• UNH and Other Undergraduate students must email the UNH Registrar’s Office (registrars.office@unh.edu) and SML (shoals.lab@unh.edu). Include your UNH ID and your course number. UNH students should use their official Wildcat email when contacting the Registrar's Office.
  If you want to appeal the refund schedule based on special circumstances, please download and complete the petition form.