Quest First-Year Leadership Experience
The Quest First-Year Leadership Experience (FLE) is designed to introduce incoming students to the outdoors, make friends, build leadership skills, help with the adjustment to college life, and teach specialized backcountry skills! You are coming to college to build yourself and your skills, there is no better place to do so than with the First-Year Leadership Experience. Join a supportive community of people who are stoked to get outside, learn, have fun, and make friends! You can even earn paid positions after the conclusion of the program!
Quest First-Year Leadership Experience Info
Move in early and make friends through experiential learning in the backcountry! Practice leadership and learn backcountry skills in a fun and safe environment. No experience necessary. Only 15 spots available.
Quest has built a friendly and welcoming community for any body to come in, try new things, challenge themselves, grow themselves both personally and professionally and we are very proud of what our students are able to accomplish through our program. In short FLE is the most impactful way to get involved with the outdoors and explore your own capabilities. We provide everything you need, gear, guides, transportation and provide you with the opportunity to learn how to function and lead safely in the outdoors. It really is the inside track to learning special skills safely and earn a paid position at the end of it!
- Move in to your dorm early, 8/10
- Make new friends
- Learn specialized skills
- Build your leadership
- Earn a paid position in Quest at the conclusion of the program
Programming and Fee
- The fee for the FLE program cover the entire school year worth of private backcountry trips for a total of 13 backcountry programs!
- No backcountry experience is necessary! Our programming is designed to teach the skills needed to function safely and fun in the backcountry!
- Your first 5 days at college will be spent taking day trips into the backcountry making friends and having fun! FLE gets access to special trips, course areas, and leadership/learning opportunities that nobody else gets!
- Also included are skill building nights and training, and community building events throughout the entire school year! Backcountry programs include:
- Sunset Kayaking
- White Water Rafting
- Rock Climbing
- Backpacking
- Caving
- Zip lining and High Ropes Course
- Frozen Waterfall Hike
- Hiking
- Low ropes
- You will get the opportunity to learn new skills and build leadership utilizing outdoor experiential learning as our framework!
- There are paid job opportunities with Quest after completing the FLE program where you can be paid to lead the very trips you are excited to go on! Quest positions don't conflict with work studies so you can keep your work study and still be paid by Quest!
- The fee is $500 covering the entire school year and the entire program!
- Only 15 spots total are available so don't hesitate, apply now!
Housing
- You will move in early on August 10th between 8am-3:30pm.
FLE Fall 2026 Schedule
- 8/10 Move in early
- 8/11 Group intros, lake day, skills and games
- 8/12 Backpacking
- 8/13 Backpacking
- 8/14 Sunset Kayaking
- 8/15 White Water Rafting
- 8 private trips throughout the school year (still being scheduled)
- Private trainings and skills nights (we will schedule with you at the start of the semester)
FLE Spring 2027 Schedule
Schedule is being created currently!
