When you start considering taking a gap year, your brain can be bombarded with an abundance of Q's. What could I do? Where could I go? What about my studies afterward?...

Cue frazzlement! 😵‍💫🥵

Finding the A's to all your Q's can be a task and a half - sifting through articles and videos whilst reaching out to friends of friends of friends who you heard had the best gap year ever...

To save you the time and keep this whole experience ✨fun✨ (like it should be!) we've created your ultimate 👏🏼 guide 👏🏼 to gap years!! 

We're about to cover everything from the pros and cons of gap years, to your travel options: volunteering, working abroad, and backpacking to name a few, all the way down to what documents you'll need...

So without further ado, grab a coffee and a snack... you're about to get learnt up. 😉

Part One: Your introduction to gap years

What's a gap year, what can they look like and why should you consider taking one?

What is a gap year? 

A gap year is pretty self-explanatory. It's a year between big life stages, whether that's after high school but before uni, or post university but before working, or at any other time in your life you feel you need to just... take a break.

Normally they last for a year, but they can be shorter or longer -- whatever floats your dingy really 😉

What can a gap year look like? 

During your gap year, you could do paid work, complete an internship or focus on side hustles. 

What most people tend to do is, of course, travel. ✈️ Whether you want to stay domestic or go international, volunteer or get a working holiday visa or go on a backpacking trip for as long as your budget will take you, you have options up the wazoo. 

The pros of taking a gap year 👍

1. You'll learn life skills 🤹

It's no secret that a gap year provides the opportunity for you to develop valuable skills that can't be learned in the classroom.

• Copping culture shock in a whole new country/way of life? Cultural awareness
• Figuring out where you should sleep for the next few nights? Organisation
• Budgeting each day to make your dosh stretch as far as possible? Financial awareness
• Missed your train and now have to work out a Plan B? Adaptability

I could go on and on and onnnnn about the skills you'll subconsciously pick up whilst you're travelling and out of your comfort zone. As well as these life skills, you'll learn some pretty cool skills along the way. Maybe you'll become fluent in French whilst being an au pair in Paris. Maybe you'll learn to snowboard whilst being a chairlift operator in Canada... The world really is your oyster. 

2. It'll spice up your resume 💼

Employers are well aware that during your gap year, you'll pick up a tonne of life skills. 

A recent study by College Finance uncovered that 80% of hiring managers believed that taking a gap year is important for personal growth. More than a fifth of hiring managers even reported they were more likely to hire a candidate who had taken a gap year, and 19% said they would offer higher compensation to those candidates. Powerful stuff!

3. Your grades will thank you 👨‍🎓

Taking a break, finding your career path, and starting school refreshed, focused, and full of motivation can work wonders on performance. You'll also avoid academic burnout. I mean, you’ve been going to school for pretty much as long as you can remember. A break from the classroom can be a good op!

4. You'll explore and find your place 🌎

You've sat in classroom after classroom for the majority of your life, and now you're being told to choose what you wanna pursue..??!!?!? Ughh, pardon? I've hardly had time to figure out who I am!?

A gap year can help you try different things and will help you learn or confirm what you do (and don't) wanna do with the rest of your life. Not only that, you'll find out more about yourself -- what makes you euphoric, the kind of people you love, the places you thrive in...etc. Wholesome. 🥰

5. You'll have the time of your life 🎉

Last but certainly not least, you're gonna have a ✨banger✨ of a time! Walking through insane cities and seeing jaw-dropping sights. Doing things you never thought you'd do, like skydiving in Switzerland or trekking around Vietnam. You'll party, meet people, have flings. You'll have enough anecdotes to write a book. Serotonin will be off the roof -- I mean, that's why people froth travelling right?!

Aaaannd the cons 👎

Alas, you can't have a rainbow without a little rain. To keep things real, here are some disadvantages of gap years:

• You’ll be a year behind everyone who graduated with you at high school/uni/TAFE.
• Travelling gap years aren't cheap - you'll need to save your dosh for a while to be able to afford those plane tickets.
• There will be challenges -- you'll lose things, get injured, miss flights, get lost... (I hate to turn this into a pro buuuuut this is kinda what gives you the character-building to be a more mature you! Just sayin'.) But truth be told, travelling for long periods of time can be difficult and uncomfortable at times. Sometimes you'll just miss your bed back home. 
• You'll have to find your studying muscles again as they may have diminished after a year away from classrooms.

Part Two: Your gap year options

From working abroad programs to backpacking, here are all your gap year options.

So, you've weighed up the pros and cons and have decided you wanna take a gap year, Hamish and Andy style.

Exciting stuff! Here's everything you will want to consider: 

Studies after my gap year 👨‍🎓 

If you're finishing high school, it could still be a good idea to apply to uni's and get accepted -then you can just defer for a year. You're obvs allowed to apply to uni later on (especially if you're not sure what you wanna study yet!)

To learn more depending on your desired uni or course, talk to your careers advisors or even reach out to universities. 

What are the travel gap year options? 🌴

There are a tonne of red hot paths you could take. Here are a few of the main ones:

1. Working abroad 💸

I've had friends work in hospitality on Hamilton Island for a year. Others have been au pairs in Spain or Italy. Some have worked at ski resorts in Canada. A lot loved being bartenders in England... Whatever you choose to do, working abroad is a good op and there are plenty of gap year jobs out there!

✨ The pros of working abroad are:

• You'll become a local in your chosen area
• You'll meet a tonne of mates -- your co-workers and customers alike
• You're making money!! If your savings aren't bangin' don't fret! You can just earn dosh whilst overseas. 
• You'll get time off (and have money) to travel around other places.

✨ Things to research into your dream location and consider:

• What their minimum wage is. Here in Aus, we actually have pretty high wages compared to places like England or America. 
• What the cost of living is. Accomodation, food, transport... etc. If you wanna move to the hustlin' bustlin' city of London for example, you'll want savings ready before you start your working abroad extravaganza as the cost of living is hiiiigh.
• What jobs you can do (and what qualifications you'll need). Bartenders, nannies and receptionists, for example, are needed everywhere, for example!

If you're worried that you'll rock up to your destination and won't be able to land a gig, suss out gap year programs and providers. They're like the middle man, aiding you with documentation, jobs and everything in between.

✨ Some examples are: 

Camp America: They provide the opportunity to work as a camp counselor in the USA.

Letz Live: Paid gap year opportunities in the UK, USA, NZ, Thailand and Russia.

JCR Au Pairs and Nannies: They'll pair you up with a family from the destination of your choice (UK, USA, Canada, Europe, Australia). You'll get to live and work overseas with your host family in exchange for accommodation, food and free time.

The UK Pub Co: They've been arranging live-in, UK based pub jobs for world travellers since 1997 and are the true originators of the live-in pub job working holiday program.

2. Volunteering 🌱

There are an abundance of volunteering ops around the world. Some people prioritise giving back to the community, while others focus on gaining skills from volunteering. Both are equally unreal motivations to volunteer!

✨ The advantages of volunteering are: 

• You can contribute to changing the world little by little
• Gain new skills and work experience while volunteering abroad
• Experience new cultures and perspectives while creating lasting bonds
• Helping others provides fulfillment
• Get a better idea of your personal and professional path

✨The main volunteering abroad programs are in the realms of:

• 🐬Conservation  -- Wildlife, marine or environmental.
• 🥰Community Development -- Volunteer with children, teaching, construction or sports.

3. Backpacking 🎒

Then we have backpacking of course! If you've saved enough money to sustain you for a trip, backpacking around the globe is a blast and a half.

✨The biggest things you should consider are:

• ⚠️Safety of the destination -- Some destinations may be safer in groups. Others may require certain vaccinations. All it takes is a cheeky google search.  
• 💸Price of the destination -- Self-explanatory, I know. But it's no secret that you could travel around South East Asia for say, three months with the same amount of dosh that'd last you about a month in the UK. 
• 📅How long you want to go for -- This may depend on your $$$ situation. Maybe you only feel comfortable being away from home for three months. Then again, buying a one-way flight is pretty exhilarating. 😉
• 🎒What you're gonna pack -- When you're jumping from city to city, you're gonna wanna pack light or else RIP to your back. Dw, we'll talk more about packing in Part Three!

Some other unique ideas for gap years 🤩

• Workaway 🌸: Keen to help build sustainable hotels in Chile? Fancy relaxing at a beachside tent resort in Hvar? Wanna help out a family with their restaurant in New Zealand? You can do all of this and more through Workaway. You’ll have your accom and food provided in exchange for a few hours work a day anywhere in the world, so it’s great if you’re strapped for cash!
• Archaeological dig 🏺: Be Indiana Jones and discover global cultures long past, then this is the place to be. You don’t need any experience or qualifications to get started either! You can see all the info here.
• WWOOFing 🐶: WWOOFing is a bit like Workaway, except on farms! Get your accommodation and food taken care of in exchange for your work in the fields. This can be done all around the world, or in ya backyard in Aus!
• Hostel staff 🏢: If you know you want to spend an extended period of time in a country, working in a hostel will mean you get free accom and some meals in exchange for a few cruisey shifts a week. 
• Jackaroo/jillaroo 🧑‍🌾: Horse lover? Farmhand wannabe? City slicker looking to get some fresh country air? Become a jackaroo or jillaroo on a cattle station in the Australian Outback and help with the day-to-day running of the farm. 
• Road trip 🚗: I mean, our backyard is pretty ginormous. If van life is calling your name, you could be on the road for as long as you want -- maybe a month up the east coast or even six months all around.

Part Three: Preparing for your trip

I know what I'm going to do! Now what do I need to sort out?!

What should I get sorted beforehand?

1. Travel Insurance 🏥: Don’t risk traveling without travel insurance just to save $$$. Better be safe than sorry. 

2. Passport 🧳: You'll obvs need a passport. Check that you'll have 6 months validity left when you return to Aus as those borders won't open for ya. Rip.

3. Visas 🌍: Suss out this list of what visa each country requires!

4. COVID essential documents🦠: Each country has different rules around the coronavirus so do your research. 

In most cases, if you're fully vaccinated you'll need: 

• your International COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate or foreign vaccination certificate
• your negative COVID-19 test results, if needed by your airline or destination

If you're not fully vaccinated but have an exemption:

• your proof of exemption 
• your negative COVID-19 test results, if needed by your airline or destination

5. Checkups galore 🏥: This one seems tedious buuut getting a medical check-up before you enter a country that may not speak English may be a good op -- You can also check any necessary vaccinations that you might need. Getting your skin checked and popping into the dentist is a viiiibe too. 😉

6. Research your destination/s 🌎. Obvs, you'll wanna get to know the places you're visiting! Suss out festivals and events happening. Check the weather. Read about the culture -- If the country is more traditional, maybe you will need to pack clothing accordingly. You could even memorise a few phrases: "Bonjour, où sont les toilettes?"

What will I need to pack? 

This video covers basically everything!! From your travel adapter to your first aid kit, here's how to pack for your trip!

Of course, this is more for backpacking. If you're moving somewhere for the year and won't be lugging everything on your back 24/7, you can defs bring more! 

How do I budget?

How much does a gap year cost? Well isn't this the mothership of all q's. 

Before the trip: This depends on what you're doing, whether you're paying for your volunteering program or doing any Contiki tours...

What everyone will have to pay for is flights, insurance and any gear you'll need (backpacks, hiking shoes... etc).

During the trip: On this website, you'll find the daily backpacking costs of different countries which includes food and accom. Some examples are: 

• Cambodia: $20 or Less
• Morocco: $30
• Turkey: $30
• Costa Rica: $30
• Hungary: $35
• Poland: $35
• South Africa: $35
• Greece: $45
• Fiji: $45
• Portugal: $45
• UK: $55
• Ireland: $60
• Italy: $60
• Netherlands: $60
• Canada: $60
• New Zealand: $60
• France: $65
• Iceland: $65

All you'll need to do is research your destinations of choice and create a daily budget from there. Then you can work out how much money you'll roughly need! 

Be true with yourself as well. Are you happy to rough it -- to stay in hostels and cook a lot of your meals? Or do you see yourself staying in Airbnb's and eating out? Work your budget from there. 

Well, congratulations! You finished this HUNK of a guide.