The A+ Academy, which will be based on the Norwegian ship, The Sørlandet, will enrol 60 students from over 20 countries and will make stops at many destinations on its voyage across the globe.

The students, from grades 10, 11 and 12, will take classes from the Cambridge curriculum, or, if they are in their last year, the Advanced Placement curriculum.

The academic year costs each student €40,000 and in order to apply, students will need to be working solidly at or above their grade level.

“There is no question that our world is based less and less on domestic political, social and economic influences”

In addition, they need to submit an essay, two reference statements and participate in an interview, as well as passing a medical assessment and meeting the swimming requirements.

No sailing experience is required, but students will learn how to sail the ship and take four hours of watch per day in addition to their studies on board.

The owner of the academy, Terry Davies, told The PIE News how he believes the experience on board the ship will set students apart from others, making them unique candidates for the job market.

“The students are ideally suited for the first time in their lives to observe and assimilate the depth and breadth of the geopolitical reality in which they live,” he said.

“And the diversity that extends to understanding and working with others of different culture.”

Some of the stops along the way include Easter Island and the Galapagos Islands, as well as Cabo Verde, where students will learn to fish with the locals, and Morocco, where they will stay alongside a Bedouin tribe in the desert. Each stop will last on average five days, with some longer than others.

Before the inception of the A+ Academy, Davies took thousands of students on similar programmes at sea, most notably “Class Afloat”, founded in 1984.

He believes that the practical experience the students will gain from the A+ Academy will give them an advantage in an increasingly globalising world.

Of the 1,200+ students he has seen graduate from similar programmes, over half end up in “multinational or global endeavours” he said.

“There is no question that our world is based less and less on domestic political, social and economic influences,” added Davies.

“The sooner we understand that these are global influences, the more easily we will integrate and hopefully enjoy some success.”