Gap Year Safety: Wear Vagaband by a gap year parent As the parent of four kidults, I’ll admit that I worry. As lifestyle travelers for most of their formative years my kids are better prepared than some when they take off to travel solo, but they’re still solo. They’re still inexperienced. They’re still without a safety net. They’re still out there, without me. Statistically, I know the odds are in their favor. In every scrape thus far they’ve figured it out and lived to laugh about the adventure. We’ve taught them to over prepare and manage the risks as they…
Voices Project: Teresa Hermann on the benefit of Gap Year and emotional support for parents with Teresa Hermann Sometimes, letting go can be hard! Teresa Hermann talks about the ways in which a Gap Year benefited her son Kevin, who graduated in 2009. With the benefit of almost ten years of perspective on the long term benefits she’s observed in his life, Teresa provides encouragement for parents who might be nervous about sending their children out to travel instead of go straight to college. Even kids who do all the right things, succeed in high school, and are accepted to…
3 Ways to Take a Gap Year and Spend Next to Nothing on Lodging by Michelle Chang When my husband and I first started out traveling long term, we had almost no income. We had just finished our Peace Corps volunteer service and were building up a freelance business from scratch. We had to figure out how to stay afloat while exploring the world. By getting creative with accommodations, we unlocked a new way to travel. And it worked! We didn’t pay for rent or hotels for a year. And no, we didn’t sleep on the streets! We traveled to…
How to Write a Deferral Letter for a Gap Year by Julia Rogers, of EnRoute Consulting – originally published on the EnRoute website For prospective Gap Year students, the spring is an exciting time. You’ve heard from your colleges and have made choice about where to go. And once that’s decided, you need to ask them to hold your spot for a year in the form of a deferral letter. A deferral letter is a formal request to your future college that asks them to hold your admission for a year so you can take time for a gap year….
Ten Reasons to Work with a Gap Year Consultant by Marion Taylor Now that gap fairs have wrapped up after touching down in 43 cities across the United States; now that college decisions have been sent and deferments requested; it is TIME to map out your gap year ahead! If you have googled gap year on the internet or collected piles of literature at one of the gap fairs in your city, then you may very well feel overwhelmed with how to begin sorting through options and discerning the differences between the variety of gap programs available.If this is the…
Everyone Can Travel: Taking a Gap Year for Persons With Disabilities by Hannah Miller and Juanita Lillie We reached out to Juanita Lillie from Abroad With Disabilities, a Michigan non-profit that empowers persons with disabilities to go abroad, to co-author this post with us. Enjoy her take on travel with a disability! JUANITA LILLIE ON THE BENEFITS OF A GAP YEAR: “I am a woman of color with a disability. Many of my readers likely have disabilities or impairments as well as identities related to gender, sexual orientation, race, or the label of first generation student. I went abroad twice,…
Voices Project: Michelle Zhang on the Secret of Life & Happiness with Michelle Zhang When my parents were still skeptical about the idea of a gap year, they would ask me, “What do you want to gain from it?” I told them I wanted to learn from real life what a classroom couldn’t teach me. They asked, “What are you going to learn?” I couldn’t answer. You don’t know what the world will teach you until you go see for yourself. It’s different for everyone. The universe has a way of revealing to us the lessons and wisdom we personally…
The Voices Project: Parents on the Benefits of a Gap Year with gap year parents The Gap Year Association is excited to unveil the first in a series of written pieces and videos that we’re calling “The Voices Project.” The goal of this project is to amplify the voices of people impacted by Gap Years. The impact of a Gap Year reaches far beyond the student. In this piece, parents share their thoughts on the Gap Year experience of their students. If you’re a parent who’s been wondering whether the investment in a Gap Year would be “worth it” for…
Funding a Gap Year: Tips and Resources by Hannah Miller As the 2018 gap year season gets rolling, we’re faced with the most common issue Gappers have: how to pay for it all. Gap years can add up, especially when factoring in programs, flights, travel insurance, and lodging. But even so, we firmly believe that it’s possible for most students to take a gap year. Gap year organizations have given away $4,000,000 in scholarships and grants, with thousands more available for the coming season. With a little extra effort and research, anyone could receive thousands towards their adventure. Put in…
Guidelines for Choosing the Right Gap Year Program by Marion Taylor Gap season is upon us! For high school seniors (and parents) who are considering deferring post-secondary education for a semester or year, I have compiled a comprehensive list of questions to serve as a navigational guide for selecting and differentiating between gap programs. In addition to my own vetting criteria and helpful links to recommended articles on specific issues, I solicited input from program leaders in the gap year industry. If you plan to attend an upcoming gap year fair in your area, consider using this as a tool…