1. Definitions
1. Potential participant: person who has signed up for the trip and has agreed to these terms and conditions, but is not guaranteed of participation, because the drawing of lots has not taken place yet.
2. CTF: Stichting Cover Travel Foundation, registered with the Chamber of Commerce in Groningen with number 62172875.
3. MxCee: the Mega Excursion Committee, committee of the CTF organizing this trip.
4. Case: a job of around 50-60 hours that is to be done at one of several companies within a reasonable distance from Groningen.
2. Establishment agreement
1. The day on which the registration takes place is the day the agreement takes effect.
2. This document describes an agreement between the Mega Excursion Committee (MxCee) of the Cover Travel Foundation (CTF) and the potential participant signing this agreement.
3. Potential participants should have the intention to be studying at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen at the moment the trip takes place, which is from the 24th of November till the 16th of December of 2017, as well as being a member of Cover at that time.
4. Bachelor students have to be enrolled in the Artificial Intelligence or Computing Science bachelor at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen at the day of the registration deadline.
5. Bachelor students have to have received a positive Binding Study Advice (of 45 ECTS) for any of the study programs at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen at the day of the registration deadline. People that do not meet this criterion, will not be able to enroll for the trip.
6. Master students have to be enrolled in the Artificial Intelligence, the Human Machine Communication or the Computing Science master or have previously completed the Artificial Intelligence or Computing Science Bachelor at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.
7. Pre-masters are not allowed to sign up for this trip.
8. Upon registering the potential participant is obliged to pay for and participate in the trip to the West Coast of the United States from the 24th of November until the 16th of December of 2017 and complete the case as mentioned in section 6 of this agreement.
9. In case of over-registration, the MxCee will determine, in a weighted drawing of lots, who will be able to participate. Registration and all ensuing obligations are void if the participant is not chosen at random this way. These potential participants can choose to enter the weighted drawing of lots for an ordered waiting list. Rules regarding this weighted drawing of lots are the same as for the regular drawing as mentioned in section 3.
10. Participants on the waiting list will get priority, based on their position on the list, over any other individual when places become available. Rules regarding replacing original participants can be found in section 7.2, 7.3 and 7.4.
11. The content of the programme is determined by the information as it appears on the website or in other publications of the MxCee. Obvious mistakes or errors of the MxCee do not bind the MxCee. The MxCee cannot be held responsible to the content of information that is published by third parties.
12. If the participant expressed certain preferences at the establishment of the agreement regarding the services to be provided by the MxCee, the MxCee will take these preferences into account. However, no rights can be derived from the expressed preferences.
13. The MxCee reserves the right to change the terms and conditions, also with regard to agreements already entered, before the registration deadline (February 28th, 2017). Should this occur, the MxCee will notify the potential participant in writing and the potential participant will be able to cancel the agreement free of charge.
3. Weighted drawing of lots
1. There will be a weighted drawing of lots to determine who can participate in case of over-registration. The amounts of lots that will be given to each participant is based on the amount of relevant ECTS obtained by that person. Relevant ECTS are in this case ECTS counting towards the bachelor programs Artificial Intelligence and/or Computing science and the master programs Artificial Intelligence, Human Machine Communication and/or Computing Science. The amount of ECTS is the amount of ECTS that the participant had on the day of the registration deadline (28th of February).
2. The amount of lots that will be given to each participant will be determined as follows:
1. The amount of lots is determined by the participant’s obtained relevant ECTS, which are in this case the ECTS that count towards the study programmes mentioned in section 3.1.
2. Master students will receive the amount of relevant master ECTS + 180.
3. Bachelor students will receive the amount of relevant bachelor ECTS, with a maximum of 180 ECTS.
3. The MxCee reserves the right to request a proof of the amount of ECTS that a participant has obtained. Participants found to have provided false information regarding the amount of ECTS can be excluded from participation in the weighted drawing of lots and further participation in the trip.
4. MxCee members will not partake in the drawing of lots but will get a guaranteed place on the trip.
4. Payment
1. The participation fee is €1100,- (one thousand and one hundred euros) barring printing or typing errors.
2. MxCee members will have the right to a 10% discount on the participation fee.
3. Payment is done through transferring the amount as specified in 4a to the bank account of the CTF.
4. If the amount is not sent on time, the participant will be contacted by the treasurer of the CTF.
5. The amount (€1100,-) will either have to be sent in six (6) terms, namely €200,- on March 24 2017 and €180,- on April 24 2017, May 24 2017, June 24 2017, July 24 2017 and August 24 2017, or in a single term on March 24 2017.
6. If the treasurer of the MxCee and of the CTF note that a participant does not meet their financial obligations, after demand for payment, the participant will not be admitted to partake in the trip. The participant still owes the fee to the CTF.
5. Participation fee
1. The published rates are per person and include only the services and facilities as defined in publications made by the MxCee.
2. The participation fee is based on prices, exchange rates, fuel prices, charges, taxes and subsidies, as they were known to the MxCee at the time the publication went to press. The MxCee reserves the right to increase the participation fee due to changes in the aforementioned expense factors, also with regard to agreements already entered, up to 2 months before the day of departure. The MxCee will do everything in their power to keep the increase to a minimum and will keep the participants informed on changes regarding the participation fee.
6. Case
1. The case is a job of around 50-60 hours that is to be done at one of several companies within a reasonable distance from Groningen. Participants will be assigned a case by the MxCee at a company. Any preferences towards cases will have to be made clear towards the MxCee at the moment of registration. However, no rights can be derived from the expressed preferences.
2. The case will be made in such a way that it will match the knowledge level of the participant as best as possible.
3. The cases will start around the 18th of April 2017 (the start of the fourth academic period).
4. The case will have to be finished before the date defined in the case contract. This can be different for different cases. Failing to work for the amount of hours that was set in the case contract will result in removal from the trip.
5. Participants that do not want to do a case can contact the MxCee to try and make an agreement. They will have to pay the €600 earned by this case themselves and based on the circumstances may be required to find a substitute to do a case.
7. Cancellation
1. Cancelling the agreement by the participant must be in writing. If cancelled, the traveler owes a part of the travel fee to the CTF. This amount depends on the date of the termination, as displayed in the table below.

   Date of cancellation	Cancellation costs
   Before the registration deadline (28th of February)	No fee
   After the registration deadline (28th of February)	All the expenses that have already been made or agreed upon, such as the costs of the hostel and plane tickets (these costs may exceed the participation fee)
   After finishing the case but before the trip	All the costs that have already been made, minus €600.

2. A participant who is unable to take part in the trip may suggest another suitable person to take their place, taking into consideration that persons on the waiting list have priority, under the following conditions:
   1. that the MxCee, the CTF or other service providers, like the companies supplying the cases, involved in the implementation of the agreement not oppose the substitution;
   2. that the replacement person meets all terms and conditions linked to this agreement;
   3. that the replacement person sends a written statement, stating that they have taken note of the details regarding the trip, the rules regarding cases and the terms and conditions;
   4. that the replacement person agrees to these terms and conditions;
3. The participant and the replacement person are jointly and individually responsible to the CTF for payment of the outstanding costs at the time of substitution and any additional costs made to effectuate the substitution.
4. In consultation with the MxCee exceptions to the abovementioned terms can be made in extreme cases, such as mortality or severe illness.
8. Luggage and travel documents
1. The participant must have all required travel documents in possession on departure.
2. The MxCee and CTF are not liable if the participant is unable to attend the trip, or parts thereof as a result of deficiencies in his travel documents (or lack thereof) or other circumstances that hinder the participant to attend.
3. To enter the United States, a Visa Waiver program applies for residents of most European countries. The participant has to check for themselves whether they are eligible for this program.
4. If the participant is eligible for this program, the MxCee or CTF can do the ESTA application for them, however the participants remains responsible for the validity of their own travel documents.
5. If the participant is not eligible for this program, they will have to get permission to enter the United States themselves.
6. The MxCee and CTF are not liable for damage to, or loss of luggage and travel documents.
9. Accountability
1. In case the MxCee and/or CTF are accountable, this accountability is limited to which is agreed upon in these terms of agreement.
2. The MxCee and CTF are not accountable for any damage as the result of:
   1. shortcomings in the implementation of the agreement based on conditions which are attributable to the participant, including damage as a result of health conditions of the participant;
   2. actions and influences of third parties, which are not related to the implementation of conditions;
   3. conditions which are not due to the fault of the MxCee or CTF and/or, under the law or standards in social interaction, cannot be reasonably attributed to the MxCee or CTF;
   4. the MxCee or CTF is not accountable for any indirect or consequential damage as a result of actions of the participant;
3. The MxCee or CTF accepts no liability for damage for which travel and/or cancellation insurance coverages tend to provide.
4. Insofar the MxCee or CTF can be held liable for damage suffered by the participant, such liability shall be limited or excluded in accordance with the relevant international treaties.

If you need to bring prescription medicine with you to the US, make sure that you can! First of all you will need a medicine passport which your pharmacy can supply you with. Secondly for some medicine you will need a medical declaration from your doctor that is also signed by the CAK. How this procedure works can be found here.

Examples of the special medicine are, the full list can be found here.

• ADHD-medicine s methylfenidaat (Ritalin®)
• sleepmedicine or sedatives, like oxazepam and temazepam
• strong painkillers, like morfine
• medicinal cannabis

If you have any questions, please contact your doctor as soon as possible, as the approval from the CAK could take 2 weeks!

Some products are not allowed through customs. For more information, click here.

Hand luggage

You’ll possible have your hand luggage on your lab during the roadtrip, so it’s better if you do not bring a second suitcase. We will be flying with Swiss and you can bring one piece of hand luggage, max. 8 kg and max. 55 x 40 x 23 cm. Hand baggage that is too big or too heavy will be taken at the gate and carried as checked baggage, for which there is a charge. You can bring food into the USA as long as it is still closed and you have to tell the customs about this once we’ve landed. More information about what you can and cannot bring with you in your hand luggage here.

Checked baggage

We will be flying with Swiss and we can all check in one piece of luggage (max. 23 kg and sum of sides max. 158cm). If you want a lock on your baggage it must be a TSA lock, otherwise the customs might break open your suitcase. You can bring food into the USA as long as it is still closed and you have to tell the customs about this once we’ve landed. More information about baggage here.

Amsterdam -> Los Angeles

• Amsterdam -> Zurich (LX725) - Departure: 9:50 CET - flight time: 90 minutes
• Zurich -> Los Angeles (LX40) - Departure: 13:10 CET - flight time: 12 hours

Seattle -> Amsterdam

• Seattle -> Frankfurt (LH491) - Departure: 23:05 CET - flight time: 10 hours
• Frankfurt -> Amsterdam (LH992) - Departure: 12:30 CET - flight time: 70 minutes

Because there is no start date and end date on our student card, often it will not be accepted, unless you print this document as well.

1. Go to Nestor
2. Click on 'Enrollment and Photo'
3. Click 'Download'

LA runs deeper than her blonde beaches, rolling hills and bumper-to-bumper traffic would have you believe. She’s a myth. A beacon for countless small-town dreamers, rockers and risk-takers, an open-minded angel who encourages her people to live and let live without judgement or shame.

(source: Lonely Planet)