Structuring your day means choosing the courses and workshops you’ll take and the activities, evening events, and trips you’ll explore and participate in. Below, you will find an outline of what an EXPLO weekday (and weekend) looks like.
The Daily Atlas, our campus newspaper, is your map to the day. Every morning at EXPLO, you’ll receive a copy which lists all of the opportunities and activity offerings available that day. Experience a day in the life at EXPLO.
There are required academic periods and check-ins throughout the day, as well as abundant time to investigate new passions through clubs, activities, and events that connect students. After class, enjoy lunch on the Quad, a walk into the Vil with your friends, or engage in a riveting student-led discussion. The choice is yours.
| Weekday Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
| 7:45 a.m. | Residential Student Morning Huddle
The Morning Huddle is when students and staff meet with their living groups, review the day’s schedule, learn about afternoon activity options, issue the day’s challenge, play games, and share goals with their groups. |
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| 8:15 a.m. | Breakfast + Day Student Arrival | |
| 8:30 a.m. | Day Student Morning Huddle
The Morning Huddle is when students meet with their advisors and day groups, review the day’s schedule, learn about afternoon activity options, issue the day’s challenge, play games, and share goals with their groups. |
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| 9:30 a.m. | Courses
Students take one 135-minute course in the morning, with a 10-15 minute break about halfway through the period. |
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| 11:45 a.m. | Lunch | |
| 1:00 p.m. | Workshops, Course Extension, or Explosé
Monday + Wednesdays: Students continue their exploration during two 90-minute workshop sessions each week. Tuesday + Thursday: Students extend their course learning beyond the morning class period. Course extensions may build on the morning’s lesson, or introduce another exciting activity such as a field trip or guest speaker. Friday: Students showcase the projects they have completed in their courses, in the form of an all-campus gallery and performance. |
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| 2:45 p.m. | Clubs, Leagues, The Vil, or Community Meeting
Monday – Thursday: Students participating in clubs and leagues have the chance to delve into topics they’re passionate about (such as art, board games, philosophy, improv, soccer, basketball, Ultimate Frisbee, and Community Service/Common Good Initiatives). Once a week, students also sign up to take a (staff-supervised) trip to The Vil, Wellesley’s downtown cafés and shops, just off campus. Friday: All students gather for a community-building event, filled with important updates, musical performances, house challenges, and the occasional lip-sync battle. |
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| 4:00 p.m. | Afternoon Huddle or Day Student Dismissal
Day students who are heading home for the night gather for a brief Afternoon Huddle and Day Student Dismissal. All residential students — and day students who choose to stay late or spend the night — take part in Afternoon Huddles, where they review daily goals and challenges, and participate in living and day group games and activities. |
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Day Students are encouraged to stay late and stay over. To get the most out of their EXPLO experience, day students can stay as late as 8:15 p.m. every day (and they can even make that decision the day of!). Day students can also sleep over two nights per week, getting even more of a taste of residential student life.
| 4:15 p.m. | Independent Time
Independent time is (staff supervised) chill time, when students can hang out with friends on the quad, join a club, play games, get creative in the Art Studio, or relax in the Student Lounge. |
| 5:15 p.m. | Dinner |
| 6:45 p.m. | Evening Events
Each evening students participate in an event. Evening Events might include live entertainment, movie screenings, creative time in the Art Studio, or friendly competition in our Board Game Studio. |
| 8:00 p.m. | Evening Winding Down Time
Students have some relaxing time to themselves, during which they might enjoy music on the quad, toss a Frisbee, or make next-day plans with friends. |
| 8:15 p.m. | Day Student Late Dismissal |
| 10:00 p.m. | Room Curfew |
Weekend trips are a chance to experience a side of EXPLO not found on campus and make new friends along the way. All residential students participate in weekend trips and day students are highly encouraged to take part in them as well, though they’re not required to do so.
| Weekend Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
| 7:00 a.m. | Breakfast | |
| 7:45 a.m. | Quad Check-In | |
| 8:00 a.m. | Day Student Arrival | |
| 8:15 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. | Weekend Trips | |
| 5:00 p.m. | Independent Time + Dinner
Dinner is open until 6:15 p.m. to accommodate late trip returns. |
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| 5:30 p.m. | Day Student Dismissal | |
| 6:15 p.m. | Evening Events | |
| 7:30 p.m. | Evening Winding Down Time | |
| 8:45 p.m. | All Students on Floors (Check-In) or Day Student Late Dismissal | |
| 9:15 p.m. | Room Curfew | |
