Over the course of the trip, I kept a spreadsheet with all my expenses for the entire trip. This included everything from start to finish - the costs of visas, prescriptions, doctors appointments, field trips, cash spent, etc.
Here are the results:
All costs (the total cost for all field trips before any discounts, costs for doctor's appointments, visas, travel to and from the ship, all purchases made on the ship, all cash spent): $10,057.51
Adjusted costs (I subtracted all of the discounts I got for being trip leader, reimbursements and stipends given for shipping items to and from the ship, for visas and travel to/from the ship): $7314
Expenses after deducting what I was paid by Semester at Sea (I got $1919.14 deposited into my bank account once a month for three months as payment for my work on the ship): $1557.06
I could also theoretically make an argument that I was paid more than the $1919.14 a month because I had all my meals on the ship included and I didn't have to pay for my cabin or any utilities on the ship either...if I factor that in, I probably made a profit by doing this trip. As far as actual money I'm out in doing this trip, having an out-of-pocket expense of $1557.06 for a semester of traveling around the world - you can't beat that!
If I really want to be a jerk, I could even factor in the money I was getting paid from Pine Manor College during this time too. They initially were going to deduct whatever I got paid by Semester at Sea from my paycheck because they said I couldn't be "paid twice" for things done on a sabbatical leave. This never happened though because others have pointed out that you could be making money doing consulting during a sabbatical leave as well. Hence, I WAS essentially "paid twice" during my sabbatical leave - I got paid by Semester at Sea AND I continued receiving my salary from Pine Manor. For the number of weeks I was away, I have figured that my earnings from Pine Manor totaled approximately $8021.23 after taxes. If I subtract the $1557.06 out-of-pocket expense from the regular salary I was getting from Pine Manor on my sabbatical leave, that leaves me with a PROFIT of $6464.17...so I actually MADE money by going on this trip around the world!!!!! Wow! How crazy is that!? I'm definitely very, VERY lucky! Of course, I'm still struggling to make ends meet on my regular salary in general, but I can't complain about the great opportunity to take a sabbatical leave and travel the world!
