How to organise your gap year

Chose where you want to go, how long for or what you want to do.
Many organizations offer volunteer placements where you can do conservation work, research or teaching placements. Try to pick something that you will benefit from. Transferable skills are essential when you are looking for work. If you are certain you want to work in the conservation of savanna wildlife, then go to Africa. If you want more general skills try a teaching placement as these will gain you skills which are useful in any workplace e.g. organization, communication, working well with new people etc. Check out www.teaching-abroad.co.uk and www.help2educate.com.

Work out your budget and stick to it.
There’s no point going anywhere if you can’t afford to eat when you get there! If you arrange a placement, they will probably arrange your food and accommodation for you which will make it easier to budget. Don’t forget travel insurance. If you already have contents insurance you can usually get a discount on other policies with the same broker. Endsleigh are used to catering for students and have a range of travel insurance policies to choose from.

Research the country you want to go to.
Check the foreign office to make sure it’s safe. Terrorism is a common problem at the moment but don’t let it ruin your experience of a lifetime. If FCO advices against travel to a specific country then it’s probably best to go somewhere else. Also, be sure to look into the culture and food of that country. Most eastern countries have strict traditions so check first before you go. Make sure you see your doctor about vaccinations too.

Book it
Book your placement or accommodation and your flights. Check out www.wefly.co.uk for bargain flights. Budget airlines rarely fly to the ‘off the beaten track’ destinations that are popular with gap years. Also, be prepared for a stop over. If you’re traveling east you could spent a few hours in Doha, Bahrain or Abu Dhabi! 

Pack!
Pack clothes suitable for the climate and culture. Don’t forget sun screen and extra film for your camera. If you have a digital camera it might be worth investing in extra batteries and a spare memory card. It can be heart breaking to delete precious photos because you have run out of space. Amazon offer 1GB memory cards 

Leave!
And don’t forget your passport. Have a fantastic experience, take lots of photos and make lots of new friends. Why not share your photo when you get back? Yahoo offer online photo albums so everyone can see what a fantastic time you had.