A Gap Year can offer you an exciting, challenging and valuable opportunity, be it in the UK or Overseas.

Taking a Gap Year is a great opportunity to take a break form your studies (or career if you are in work) and to see some of the world! People do all sorts of things on a Gap Year (or Year Out) such as travelling, working, doing charity work or even doing something related to their career or education.

Why might you consider a Gap Year?

• It will be a much needed break after your exams.
• You can earn and save money for university.
• Universities and employers may look favourably at those who have spent some time out constructively.
• It is a great opportunity to make some useful contacts in an area you want to work.
• You will learn new skills, meet different people and probably gain work experience.
• You are likely to have a brilliant time!

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Five steps to planning your trip

1. Where are you going to go?

Think about the following questions:

• The Top 10 countries I would like to visit
• The Top 10 'things' I would like to see i.e. Ayers Rock, Taj Mahal etc.
• The Top 10 'things' I would love to do i.e. bungee, rafting etc.
• "Before I die I want to." i.e. what is your life's ambition?

Need some help and inspiration?

Get some brochures

Look in the student / youth travel agencies and pick up some literature. They all do specialist magazines and high street travel agencies are a good place to get free glossy brochures to flick through so you can get a feel for some of the places you may want to visit.

Guide books and the internet

There are many guidebooks in the library and they all have websites which are well worth a visit. Try Lonely Planet, the Rough Guide and Gapyear.com. The messageboards and chatrooms are a good place to find people who are going through the same thing to swap ideas.

2. When are you going to go?

You need to take into consideration that you need to be here when your a-Level or any other results come out in August - so don't plan to go travelling until after this date (particularly if you are looking at going to university)! For example, you may want to work for a few months to get some extra money together and then 'travel' for six months:

a. Check out when the airfares are high and low
Air fares start to rise up and fall in the run up to, and the run away from, Christmas. Waiting until January or February could save you a lot of money.

b. Assess your options for mixing work and travel
There are loads of variations that you can do between school/college and university. You could go away a month over Christmas, a month over Easter and three months over the Summer break, which adds up to over five months away! It's possible and so well worth thinking about as a variation to a full year of travelling.

c. Volunteering your time
If you have a particular skill, why not donate it? Skills in accountancy, IT, bricklaying, welding, medicine etc. would all be welcomed in development projects around the world, especially in developing nations. It may well influence the countries you are going to visit.

3: Sorting your itinerary out

Where? When am I going to go? When am I coming back? How much is it going to cost?

If you are a student or under 26 there are specialist student travel agencies out there such as STA Travel, Campus Travel and Trailfinders. These will be able to supply you with specialist cheap fares and can be found in most towns that have a university / large amount of students.

4. Working out your costs

The benefits of buying your ticket early are that you have a date to aim for and an incentive to go. Other costs you need to take into account are the costs before you go (backpack, clothes, insurance, passport, guidebooks) and costs while you are away (accommodation, food, transport [internal flights and trains] and general living costs, including a mobile phone and socialising).

5. Off you go!

Don't forget to keep in regular contact with home. Always let someone know where you are!

Adapted from www.gapyear.com

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Useful gap year web sites

www.gapyear.com
www.travellersworldwide.com
www.yearoutgroup.org
www.yearoutguide.co.uk

Travel organisations

Visa & International travel information

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