Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes

International Training

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Dates for the International Course in 2026

New dates for 2026: June 6 - August 1.

New! Just published, and you can read the article for free. Assessing Human Resources Development in Volcano Observatories Using the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Survey A study by Juan Pablo Sarmiento, Florida International University, interviewing scientists in countries around the world, to find out the impact of the CSAV International course.

A group of people smile with a lava fountain in the backgroundThe 2025 International course is off to a great start, as participants enjoyed a spectacular fountaining eruption after midnight on 5 June, courtesy of Madame Pele.

A group of people examine the walls of a caveMeghann Decker took the scientists on a tour of Kaumana Cave, an 1881 lava tube in Hilo. Scroll to the bottom of this page, for more images of the 2025 CSAV group!

Details of the International Training Course

The cost for this 8-week course is USD $9,000 (this cost includes housing). Participants need to provide their own airfare and food, in addition to the course fees.

To Apply: Download an Application Form; forms are due in the CSAV office on or before December 1.

Apply to the CSAV International Program

Hawaiian volcanoes are among the most active in the world, but unlike violently explosive volcanoes they can be approached and studied without significant risk. As a result, the Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes provides the ideal environment for practicing volcano monitoring techniques.

Visit the Smug Mug International site to see photos!

Overview

The International Training Program is designed to assist developing nations in attaining self-sufficiency in monitoring volcanoes. The field training emphasizes volcano monitoring methods, both data collection and interpretation, in use by the U.S. Geological Survey; participants are taught the use and maintenance of volcano monitoring instruments. Besides learning to assess volcanic hazards, participants learn the interrelationship of scientists, governing officials, and the news media during volcanic crises. A gallery of former participants showcases the 302 scientists and technicians, from 33 countries, who have attended from 1990 - 2025. The instructors come from volcano observatories of the US Geological Survey, and from the University of Hawaiʻi.

Scientists pose in front of the HVO signCSAV International scientists learn volcano monitoring techniques used by volcano observatories of the United States Geological Survey. Here, the 2011 CSAV group poses in front of the HVO sign at Kilauea Summit.

Course focus and objectives

The course is an introduction to a variety of volcano monitoring techniques, rather than detailed training with just one; hence, seismologists who attend will learn about deformation, gas geochemistry, and physical volcanology as well as geophysics. The course is not geared towards academics, but rather, addresses working in a crisis response mode, focusing on forecasting and rapid response to save lives and property.

Hawaiʻi Section: Six Weeks

The Hawaiʻi Section is held at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo and covers physical geology, webcams, gas geochemistry, rock identification and mapping, Lahars, photogrammetry, seismology, remote sensing, deformation, and dealing with the press. Field work sites are Kīlauea and Mauna Loa.

View typical apartment housing where International scientists stay during the Hawaii section of the course.

A man next to a tripodDanny Hidayat (Indonesia) sets up a tribrach at UH Hilo, for a practice leveling survey.

A man uses a hammer to collect molten lavaMikhail Herry (Papua New Guinea) collects a sample of molten lava near the ocean.

Scientists wear safety goggles in labPhilippine scientists work in the lab with samples of volcanic gas from Kilauea summit.

A scientist points at a seismogramAt the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, Matt Patrick shows the CSAV group how seismic, tilt, and other telemetered signals correlate.

Scientists stand on a black sand beachGroups are small, usually less than 12 students, so everyone gets a chance to work with scientific instruments and computer data.

Scientists work near a tripodCSAV students collect GPS data near Mauna Ulu; the information gathered will be compared to earlier baseline studies.

CVO Section: Two weeks

The CVO section is held in Vancouver, Washington and includes work at Cascades Volcano Observatory as well as field work at Mount St. Helens. Topics covered are stratigraphic sections, mapping, power systems, public outreach, event trees, and the relationship of scientists to media and Civil Defense.

The crater of Mount St. HelensMount St. Helens provides an ideal setting to analyze and map tephra deposits.

Scientists look at a map as they sit on the groundAfter hiking into the crater of Mount St. Helens, the CSAV group makes a rough map.

A man poses in front of a forest of dead treesPablo Masias of Peru views trees blasted by the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.

A group of scientists writes at a tableAfter a day of field work, the CSAV group works on isopach maps of tephra.

Scientists use a screwdriver to connect a piece of conduit to a solar panelAt CVO, the CSAV scientists learn how to assemble a telemetry station.

Scientists pour paint down a panel at a tableThe CSAV group participates in activities designed to teach the public about eruptions.

Who may apply

Scientists and technicians who work at volcano observatories in developing countries.

Scientists pose in front of a wall map of the worldCSAV International participants come from volcano observatories throughout the developing world, including Peru, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Democratic Republic of Congo, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Application deadline: Applications for each summer's course must be received in the CSAV office by December 1 before the year applied for. For the 2026 International Course, applications must be received by December 1 2025. Download the pdf version of the International Application Form (PDF ).

If you are interested in learning about volcanology, but are NOT a scientist or civil worker in a developing country with active volcanoes, you may be interested in attending some of the exciting courses offered by the Geology Department of UH Hilo, including Geology of the Hawaiian Islands (GEOL 205 ) and Volcanology (GEOL 470 ). Read more about the Geology Department!

Written requests may be mailed to:

Center for the Study of Active Volcanoes
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
200 West Kāwili Street
Hilo, Hawaiʻi 96720-4091

Tel: (808) 932-7791

World map shows which countries CSAV International participants are from.CSAV participants come from 33 different countries around the world.

The 2025 Summer Training Course is up and running!

This year, we have an outstanding group of scientists and technicians from Latin America and the Pacific, including Fiji for the first time!

Scientists sit at a picnic table.CSAV 2025 participants are from El Salvador, Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and the Philippines, Tonga, and Fiji.

A dozen people stand in front of a wall, with the ocean in the background.The group enjoyed a tour of Hilo on the first day, to get oriented before lab and field work begins.

A dozen people stand in a row next to their bicycles.Everyone received a bicycle to borrow while in Hawaii, to use in their free time. The bikes were donated to CSAV by past students who graduated from UH Hilo.

A group of people smile with ferns and a cave in the backgroundThe participants enjoyed a short overview of Kilauea summit on the first day of class, including Nahuku Lava Tube.

A group of people sit at tables indoorsThe CSAV group is seated at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory conference room, eagerly awaiting the Monday Morning Meeting briefing.

A man kayaks out towards swimmersAfter spending the day at HVO, the group went to Reed's Bay to enjoy surfboards and a SUP; here, Saula (Fiji) kayaks out to the swimmers.

People stand in a lab, at tables.Penikolo (Tonga), Manuela (Colombia), and Robert (Philippines) sieve and prepare tephra samples from a June 2025 fountaining eruption.

A man looks through a microscope.Julian (Argentina) looks for olivine crystals in the tephra sample.

A woman looks through a microscope.Folauhola (Tonga) analyzes the tephra sample under the binocular microscope.

Three people are seated at a table.Doreen (Phillipines), Marco (Ecuador) and Kevyn (El Salvador) work on tephra samples in the SEM Lab.

People hold flasks and a tube is inserted into rocks around a sulfur hole.As HVO scientists Tricia Nadeau and Christine Sealing collect gas from Sulphur Banks, participants observe.

A woman looks at an instrument, with a tall fountain of lava in the distance.Manuela Mejia from Colombia checks on the FTIR, which reads the composition of gas in the eruption of 11 June 2025.

A lava fountain produces a flow in the evening.Here is an evening view of the same eruption, photo courtesy Matt Connelly, UH Hilo Marine Science.

Galleries of Recent Participants