Gap 360 offers a variety of affordable gap year travel opportunities in over 25 countries which may include adventure (diving, trekking),internships, volunteering, and independent travel. Gap 360's programs will be most suitable to U.S. students who are seeking an "independent" travel experience, and who want to connect with travelers from the U.K., Australia, New Zealand etc. For example, Gap 360 may appeal to U.S. students who are planning to take time out for some fun after college, but before graduate school, or between grad school and starting a career. Read more below and search our database under the "Exploring and Traveling" program category for details on a handful of Gap 360's opportunities!

Why Gap 360?

Check out Expanish in Buenos Aires Argentina, a language school offering 3-month semesters abroad and overseas designed for college students, GAP year students, and high school seniors. The text below was submitted by Expanish in Buenos Aires, so read on if learning Spanish and traveling to a fantastic country is part of your Gap year plan. If you are contemplating a trip abroad to South America, Buenos Aires is an amazing city with tons to discover and is full of great people from all over the world.

Recommended Gap Year Reads
by Julia Levine Rogers of EnRoute Gap Year Consulting

For hundreds of years, tales have been spun about the adventures of travelers in distant lands. Memoirs of these travels serve to inform – and inspire- its readers. The following list compiles travelogues written in the 20th century by authors as famous as Che Guevara to former American Dad writer Steve Hely. They range from serious to hilarious, but they all describe challenging yourself in a foreign location. Even if that location is our own Appalachian Trail! These books just may help you decide where to set your own gap year memoir…

Travel Writing:

How to Find an Ethical Volunteer Project

By Julia Levine Rogers

Volunteering – both internationally and domestically – is one of the most popular gap year activities. Many gap year students choose to volunteer for at least part of their gap year.

It’s admirable that so many students want to give back. Volunteering is an amazing opportunity to immerse yourself in a different culture, learn a language and broaden your horizons. But not all volunteer programs are created equal. It’s important that you do the homework to find a socially responsible organization in order to maximize the positive impact you’ll have on the community you serve.

I recently discovered a gap year planning resource that I recommend bookmarking if you are an educational counselor, parent, or student planning a gap year or anyone with an interest in learning more about gap years.

Gap Year Nutritional Facts by Ethan Knight, Executive Director at Carpe Diem Education in Portland Oregon is a compilation of videos, information, and presentations for Educational Counselors and those who are looking for more information about Gap Years.

International Volunteer HQ – The Trusted Volunteer Organization for Gap Year Travellers.

International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ) provides volunteering placements in over 18 countries around the world. Based on the concept that volunteer travel should be affordable, IVHQ has established itself as one of the world’s leading volunteer organizations. In the past 4 years they have sent over 14,000 volunteers abroad on their programs and with program fees starting from only US$180 it is no surprise that thousands of students are choosing IVHQ as their organization to volunteer abroad with on their gap year.

25 Days of Gap Year Inspiration on Twitter

In the spirit of the holidays, Julia Rogers, head of the gap year advising firm EnRoute Consulting, is running a twitter event listing a new gap year idea every day until Christmas. For most college seniors, the college applications are in and students can finally start daydreaming about whether to take a gap year and how they could spend their time. Rogers hopes to get potential gap year students' wheels turning and highlight interesting projects, programs and activities. Each day will offer a new idea with links and mentions to provide more reading and information.

Follow @enroutegapyear to join in the fun!

The Global Gap Year program at UNC Chapel Hill is in its second year. First year students can apply for a fellowship in the amount of $7,500 to be used to help fund a year of service abroad.

This year, UNC will be selecting seven incoming first-year students for a Global Gap Year Fellowship. The fellowship provides $7,500 to each student for use toward a gap year that combines global travel with volunteer service. Current UNC students and the Campus Y help Gap Year Fellows prepare for their year abroad and integrate that experience into their education when they return to campus..follow link to UNC's web site for details on how to apply to the
Global Gap Year Program.

Cambodia Tropical Wildlife Conservation and Adventure project is a Gap Year Program run by UK based Frontier, established in 1989 as a non-profit conservation and development non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem integrity and building sustainable livelihoods for marginalized communities in the world's poorest countries.

Read details below and click this link to visit Frontier for a full list of exceptional Gap Year adventures.

Julia Levine of EnRoute Consulting discusses affordable, varied and very exciting Gap Year Options. If you need assistance planning a gap year, or just have general questions on affordable options, contact Julia directly at EnRoute Consulting

An Affordable Gap Year, Part 2

In my last installment, I discussed affordable gap year options. In this article, I’ll go over a few tips to help those who are paying for their own gap year.