Forest Academy Program

Vision of the Forest Academy Program

At the beginning of each semester, MIU reserves a two-week period called Forest Academy for courses that allow students to deepen their understanding of how their own inner intelligence develops through their TM and TM-Sidhi practice-and how those universal principles of growth can be practically applied in all academic disciplines and all areas of daily life. The goal of Forest Academy courses is to deepen both experience and understanding of these timeless principles of natural law, thereby transforming that knowledge into a living and meaningful reality in the students’ lives.

To deepen experience during Forest Academy courses, students have the option to participate in a TM Retreat (or a World Peace Assembly, for those who have completed instruction in the TM-Sidhi program). During on-campus retreats, usually three days long or more, students enjoy deeper and more frequent periods of meditation along with presentations and discussions that enrich their intellectual understanding of the development of consciousness. Similarly, online students have the option to join a half-day online TM Retreat or World Peace Assembly and enjoy a full morning of extended TM practice (or TM-Sidhi practice) coupled with deeper understanding of their experiences. TM Retreats and World Peace Assemblies also accelerate the release of deep layers of fatigue and stress, leading to a more rested physiology and more profound experiences of pure consciousness.

After these Forest Academies, enriched by deeper experience of their own consciousness and deeper understanding of the universal laws of nature underlying all growth processes, students return to their studies with renewed energy and clarity of awareness, enjoying a new wave of vitality in body and mind.

Undergraduate Student Forest Academy Requirements

In their first semester, all undergraduate students are required to successfully complete STC 108 - Exploring Consciousness  as a prerequisite to all subsequent coursework at the university. This course fulfills their Forest Academy requirement for the first semester.

To graduate with a bachelor’s degree, all students must successfully complete one Forest Academy course in each subsequent semester in which they are enrolled for three one-month blocks (12 weeks) or more. Students may select any Forest Academy course from the options offered in that semester. Each undergraduate program may also have its own specific Forest requirements and recommendations. The Forest Academy requirement may be waived for one semester for undergraduate students enrolled in degree programs of three or more semesters. The Forest Academy requirement may be overridden in any given semester for online students who need to take a degree-required course offered only during the Forest block.

Graduate Student Forest Academy Requirements

Each graduate department at MIU offers an introductory course or series of courses parallel in content to the undergraduate course but tailored to the specific needs of the graduate degree. Graduate students are required to successfully complete this course or series of courses in their given majors as the prerequisite for all subsequent graduate coursework at the university. This course fulfills the Forest Academy requirement for the first semester.

To graduate with a master’s or doctoral degree, students are also expected to complete one Forest Academy course for each subsequent semester of full-time enrollment. Some graduate programs may require specific Forest Academy courses within the major. Any deviation from the general requirement is listed with the individual program’s degree requirements.

The Forest Academy requirement may be waived for one semester for graduate students enrolled in degree programs of three or more semesters.

Forest Academy Learning Objectives

Forest Academy courses cover a wide range of topics from across all departments, and each department may use different presentation and assessment rubrics to evaluate outcomes for their own students within a given Forest Academy course. However, all Forest Academies are meant to focus on the development of consciousness of the student, as well as the unifying, interdisciplinary principles that underlie this growth and that can be recognized and applied within specific academic disciplines and life as a whole. Specific Forest Academy courses may focus on only one or two of fundamental, broad-based Program Learning Objectives (PLOs) listed below.

Program Learning Objectives

Students who successfully complete Forest Academy courses during their course of study at MIU will be able to:

1. Recognize their deepening experiences of their own pure consciousness, their own core reality, and the growth of their consciousness in terms of improvements in all values of life-material, physical, mental, and spiritual.
2. Connect the unifying principles of nature’s functioning discussed in these courses to the unfoldment of knowledge in their own disciplines and to their own relationship with the world.
3. Identify improvements in their daily routine, as cultivated and discussed during these courses, and the impact of these changes on specific dimensions of enhanced mental and physical wellness.
4. Apply the greater clarity of awareness and physiological revitalization gained during these courses to generate more effective and creative contributions to their disciplines and greater success in their daily lives.