What
is a Gap Year?
Gap Year is largely a UK term
so some content here is UK specific but generalisations apply to people worldwide who want to take a year off from their current activities, whether it's school, university, college, work or on retirement.
Life
can often conspire to keep you in a work routine or committed
to someone or something in a way which will prevent long-term
travel, and it usually starts once you begin 'proper' work, though it could just as well kick in when you retire, have been 'let go', or are between jobs.
If
you are still in full-time education these years could be your
last chance to escape before the work ties begin to tighten.
The head of policy at the UK
Institute of Directors, Ruth Lea, says that 'going to university
is not always a golden road to a golden career' and a year exploring
options can offer alternative career paths, as well as broadening
the minds of those going on to university or college.
Employers and universities alike favour 'gappers' as they are
less likely to drop out, have more self confidence, a more realistic global
outlook and better personal management skills!
In fact about one million Brits every year fantasise about taking a gap year once in their lives but most feel they can't afford it even though, on average, gap years cost about £4,000 [$8,000] which could be saved from a part time job over a couple of years or full-time over 6 months.
Alternatively, volunteering or working abroad can hugely reduce costs requiring less investment and offering future CV benefit as well as more personal satisfaction, perhaps, than spending 12 months drunk on a Thai beach.
Some wannabe-gappers even raise money by taking part in a challenging event and getting local sponsors. Again, this looks great on a CV.
A good tip in this line is to get local press involved, they love a local fairy story!
Another interesting option is to sniff around charities in your area, such as [in the UK] the Round Table, Rotary or Lions Club.
However, those who have been there and done that say the best approach is to create various money-making activities, a few hundred here, a few hundred there and six months later you're in Belize [even though BA has sent your bags to Beijing].
Finally, an important decision awaits: what to do during the year? Have a laugh, see the other world or improve future career prospects? Or all three? Recently more Gap Year runaways have chosen to avoid the tired old Australia/New Zealand backpacker routes which will tick the laugh box but not the other two, preferring to get involved in volunteer projects in remote areas, work for pay - often as a language teacher, or travel on a real adventure such as a British Schools Exploring Society [BSES] trip to the Arctic and Antarctic, combining adventure with conservation work.
Preparing
for Gap Year travel:
-
Plan ahead,
you may never have so much time again so don't waste it by going
to the wrong place at the right time or vice-versa. You might even think about discussing potential Gap jobs with a career advisor so you can choose one that will best help your future prospects. i.e. think, 'how will this look on my resumé?' But you don't have to work all the time! Feel free to be a beach bum for a while too!
- Consider applying for a new job or university/college place before you leave so there's something interesting to come back to, not a bunch of paperwork. And leave a small ££ stash in the bank back home to keep you in chips after returning from abroad and before the next step is sorted.
- arrange for your mail to be looked after while you're on the road. i.e. redirect it to family or friends or even yourself abroad.
- organise online banking, these days it's efficient and easy to control money from afar. Ensure that all bills heading in your direction are taken care of via family, direct debit, standing order or you from an internet café in Chichicastenango.
- Calculate your ££ requirements and be generous with your estimates.
- Have a health check with your GP
before departure.
- Get insurance, you wouldn't believe
the costs of injury in some places abroad - mountain helicopter
rescue, for example, could leave you with a £100,000+ bill.
Tell the truth on the form!
- Take separate photocopies of family
details, travel insurance, traveller's cheques, tickets, passport,
visas. Store hard copies in your baggage and an e-copy online
e.g. www.mytravelcompanion.
- Pack the minimum, of course. If
you can afford it, new technology can help. For example there's
now an excellent microfibre towel that packs tiny, dries fast
but covers a lot. Also multi-use trousers that unzip into shorts
and dry super fast. Check good online travel clothing shops.
- mobile phonies, get an international sim card to keep costs down. Calling anywhere - local or international - from a UK-based phone when you're in Kyoto or Khatmandu is going to blow your budget. Skype if possible.
- Don't forget a simple first aid kit and loo roll if you're a low rent backpacker.
- Be prepared for hostile police/customs/border
guards/ embassy staff. They have great power to stuff you
up, so be quiet, reasonable and polite even if they are complete
tossers and you are a beacon of self-righteous youthism.
- Take care on rented scooters and bikes, gravel rash and broken bones can really cramp your
style.
- Respect other cultures. Locals
can have enormous pride in apparently dumb things. Restrain yourself
from ill-mannered or derogatory comments and wear appropriate clothing
in religious surroundings.
Information
for those who want Gap Year work:
Paid Work Abroad | Volunteer
Projects Abroad | UK
Temporary Jobs
Language Study Abroad | Teaching English TESOL [TEFL] | Not
For Profit Gap Organisations
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