In some countries, more often in Europe than in the United States, it’s common practice for teenagers to take the year in between high school and college to travel. This is often called a “gap year,” as it fills the gap between the two types of formal education for a real-life-learning experience. I didn’t know about gap years when I was a new high school graduate; I imagine that if I had, I might have taken advantage of that time to explore other cultures and wander the world without the responsibility of work, a spouse, a home, children.
While one might think wistfully that the chance has passed, I’ve been doing some reading and have found that gap years for grown-ups have taken on popularity. It doesn’t always last a year; even a three-month sabbatical from the everyday routines of work and caring for a home can be rejuvenating, inspiring and challenging. While it can be more difficult, logistically speaking, to travel for an extended period of time as an adult than it would have been in the late teenage years, it’s doable. If you’re considering this type of hiatus from your everyday life, here are a few tips to consider:
- Talk to your boss. You might be surprised! While you probably won’t get paid for your time spent traveling, you may find that your company is willing to hold your job for you for six months or a year while you’re off pursuing your dreams in land far away. If you’re self-employed, hiring help to handle your business while you’re away takes time and energy, but isn’t impossible. If you can telecommute, you may be able to do so no matter where you are, but if the point of your gap year is to leave the pressures of your career behind temporarily, this might not be the best option. Even if your boss says absolutely not, consider how difficult it would be to get back into the field, even for a different company, after your break. Chances are, leaving for a productive and educational hiatus won’t affect your career negatively at all.
- Consider all options when it comes to affording your time away. Can you get a work visa in another country and find a job doing something you love? Is it possible to cut back on all extra spending for two years in order to funnel away the money to support yourself for six months? You might be eligible for a stipend that would pay for living expenses if you affiliate yourself with a volunteer organization. Or, you might find that a grant or even a loan is available to you. Explore all possibilities before writing it off as impossible.
- Think about what you’ll do about your home. It may not be feasible nor desirable to leave your house vacant for the better part of a year. You might consider a house swap, where you live in someone else home for a period of time, and they live in yours. You could also rent out your home using a rental agency (because you probably wouldn’t be able to handle being a private landlord from overseas). If you currently rent your home, you could just not renew the lease, put your belongings in storage, and find a new place to live once you arrive home.
- Figure out how to take your family along, if applicable. Your spouse may need to do similar juggling when it comes to his or her boss or business. You may elect to homeschool your children while away; what better learning opportunity than to be immersed in another culture and language for a year? Or, you could look into the possibility of international schools, or even of the local schools, depending on the country and the visa requirements pertaining to becoming a full-time student.
These tips are only the tip of the iceberg if you are considering such an adventure, but they should get the wheels turning in your mind as you think about how you can make this dream of yours happen. Why should college kids have all of the fun? If you want to take a gap year, go ahead and do it!
Have you taken a hiatus from real life and spent extended time traveling as an adult? Tell us about it!
