The Semester in Space is a program run through the University of Pax, in which eight students and two professors were sent on the Ingenuity in order to further their education in a way nobody had done before. The application process was rigorous, requiring passing the entrance exam into the University of Pax and subsequently completing a detailed application evaluated by the program's professors. Because of funding restrictions by the IUSC and the University of Pax, students from outside the IU were not permitted to apply to the program.
Students in the Semester in Space choose each semester to take four of five classes offered by their professors, and are encouraged to participate in life on the ship in other ways as well. There are not traditional majors due to the small size of the faculty, but the program is small so students guide what they want to learn, and were expected to complete the requisite coursework for a major and degree at the University of Pax upon returning to Unda. Guest lecturers and TAs have also been present in the program.
The program is technically called "Semesters in Space", but most people drop the 's' when talking about it.