Your guide to gap-year greatness

A productive gap year or stint of travelling can be a voyage of discovery, whether volunteering, learning a new language or skill. You might even help your job prospects

Anyone for coral reef research in East Timor? How about a game ranger experience in South Africa, or a “summer” ski season in New Zealand? These are just some of the gap year programmes on offer for UK school leavers who choose to either postpone university application or defer enrolment. 

Little wonder that some 230,000 young people (aged 18-25) in the UK take a gap year, according to the latest statistics released by gapadvice.org. About 10% will arrange their trip via a member organisation of Year Out Group (YOG), and the average time away from home is 10.5 weeks.

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“A gap year offers students the chance to try something in a completely new environment,” says Stefan Wathan, CEO of YOG. “They might be following a passion, something vocational or just having a go at something challenging. Participants value the break from education or work, being outside their comfort zone, experiencing new cultures and perspectives on life, and learning new skills and more about themselves.

“For many, a productive gap year – which is likely to involve work, volunteering in the UK, fundraising, planning and committing to a goal and usually some travel – shapes their future direction in life.”

But what to do? Will you volunteer, work, learn a skill, or a language – or do a combination of all four? “Everyone can benefit from a gap experience,” continues Wathan, “but we stress the importance of thinking it through and planning ahead – much in the same way as students do when considering their choice of degree.

“We have seen a trend towards shorter, structured gap experiences, alongside the more traditional three-, six-, or 12-month programmes. Some might prefer to do two or three shorter programmes, between a fortnight and a month, due to budget restraints.”

Emma Matthews, 19, is just back from an action-packed gap year, which included four months in the US, helping out at a horse ranch and at summer camps for young people. She also worked on a farm in Spain for four weeks, but first spent three months living in a rural community in Tanzania and volunteering on a water, sanitation and hygiene project with YOG member Raleigh International Citizen Service. “When I joined the programme I didn’t have the confidence to go off travelling on my own, as I’d never previously travelled by myself,” she says. “Since my placement I definitely feel like I’m more confident.”

A packed and self- or part-funded gap year will also impress prospective employers, suggests James Reed, chairman of Reed. “Those who’ve worked on the front line of customer service make a much smoother transition from studying to the workplace,” he says. “Employers sometimes worry that graduates are too rarefied, so by showing you’re not afraid to get your hands dirty you can offset these fears and make yourself more employable.”

The Guardian August 2017