Backpacker Magazine ranks Northland second in a list of the nation’s best colleges for hikers and other outdoor enthusiasts.

The reasons? Our proximity to trails, rivers, forests, Lake Superior, and the Apostle Islands; our outdoor rec opportunities, student clubs, and Outdoor Orientation; and our outdoor education program. You’ll be working with the best in the profession in one of the wildest, most beautiful locations in the country.

In this minor, you will learn the skills you need to teach people in and about the outdoors. We emphasize experiential learning, even in our most basic courses. This means that you’ll get your hands dirty and your boots wet. You’ll learn in a supportive environment and gain skills and confidence.

Make no mistake; you’ll be in the classroom, too, learning the philosophies and theories at the heart of your profession. You’ll create lessons, design programs, interpret the natural world, and make the outdoors accessible to everyone. At Northland, we focus on the role outdoor education can play in social justice and environmental stewardship. Our graduates tell us that these are the things that set them apart from the competition.

You’ll discover the ways people learn and how to reach them using different teaching styles. You’ll do real teaching with diverse students and audiences, break down that experience and learn from it, then do it again. You won’t come away with a folder full of canned lessons—we’ll help you find your own voice as a teacher.