15 Fresh and Fun Gap Year Ideas For Postgrads

Popular postgraduate routes

Whether you have a clear idea of what you want to do career-wise after graduating college, or you've realized what you majored in isn’t for you, a gap year is a good way to take a step back and reassess what your more permanent next moves should be. Usually (albeit not always) a gap year is interpreted as going abroad, but this doesn't have to be the case. A gap year can also mean taking an internship or fellowship, volunteering somewhere closer to home, or simply doing something you've been wanting to do but haven't had the time for. Some people volunteer with a local nonprofit, some others do overseas internships and some simply travel and let their plans be shaped by the places they visit.

From the volunteer/work standpoint, one of the most popular gap year opportunities to go abroad is to teach English. This is a relatively easy and common route because virtually anyone who is fluent in the language is qualified to teach it to those who are just getting started, so the geographical possibilities are seemingly endless. 

Although teaching English might be the best option for some people to start racking up professional experience while not technically committing to a job, teaching isn’t for everyone. This is why some other popular options that combine travel with professional experience range from hospitality jobs to agricultural experiences, such as working in exchange for free lodging. 

Whatever you decide to do during your gap year, you will learn or grow in some way, and this exploration and dedication will not go unnoticed by future employers. It might even make you stand out in your job search later. 

15 fun and productive gap year ideas

1. Volunteer at a farm or other outdoor venue.

2. Teach abroad.

Going overseas to teach English to non-English speaking communities is a great way to travel, build your resume and save money. However, this option might not be as appealing to you if your eventual career path falls too far from the teaching genre or if you're opposed in some way or another to the prospect of teaching a class on your own. It is definitely a more structured route than other volunteer trips or simply traveling abroad for fun.

3. Volunteer with an organization you believe in.

Several organizations have paired up with nonprofits to sponsor volunteer and humanitarian trips for people who are looking to do some community service overseas. These opportunities range from helping rebuild communities affected by natural disasters to donating your time to communities impacted by violence or poverty. 

Community service always makes you stand out as a candidate for any job, and the experience of visiting places and communities vastly different from yours can provide a level of self-growth that would be hard to achieve through other experiences. Moreover, the certainty that you're lending your time and skills to communities in need is great reassurance that your time is being well spent.

4. Go on a faith-based mission trip.

Volunteering overseas is a very popular gap-year route, but perhaps a more common one, historically, is going on a mission trip. If you are religious, and especially if you are a member of a church, chances are you know of people who have been on mission trips or have been a part of one yourself. Faith-based trips are as old as time and have an added value to regular philanthropic travel; it is nice to not only help a community in need but do so as a part of something you deeply believe in, with people you know or at least with whom you share core values. 

5. Go on a wild road trip.

It’s become more trendy than ever to renovate a van, hop in, and drive across the country living like a nomad. The U.S. is a vast, largely-accessible land that we sometimes neglect by looking overseas for adventure and discovery. However, this country has many sights to see and some of the best, most beautiful driving routes in the world. Certain websites have revamped American road-trip culture and provided a market and guide for those who want to travel on a much tighter budget than any overseas trip could allow. If you need help figuring out where to go, how long to take, or what routes to take, these sites provide all the data you need. Find maps, unique routes and testimonies that are bound to excite you about a part of our culture that is sometimes overshadowed and forgotten.

6. Boost your artistic skills.

If you have any artistic inclinations but have a degree in a non-artistic major, a gap year will perhaps be one of the last chances you get in a while to solely focus on art. Whether it is performance, music, painting or something else, letting yourself fully be immersed in your craft for a year can be incredibly rewarding, as well as the perfect confidence boost you need to join the workforce afterward. Like working on a farm, many of these opportunities can be found on Workaway. For example, you could join Antagon's theatre commune for acting and performing in Frankfurt, Germany.

7. Study a language.

There is no question that the best way to learn a language is to fully commit to speaking it, listening to it and studying it. The best way to do this is to put yourself in an environment where your main points of communication are in this language. One of the most common reasons to study abroad or take a gap year is to learn a new language, often from scratch. From going to Paris to learn French or improving your high school Spanish by visiting Latin America or Spain, there are numerous language school opportunities around the globe that are the perfect way to take some time off from your life, learn a new skill and travel.

8. Build your portfolio.

If you are pursuing a career in media, film, theater, or other artistic fields, odds are the places that hire or sign new talent require lengthy portfolios from applicants. Often times, for various reasons, four years of an undergraduate degree aren’t quite enough to build the kind of portfolio that will land your dream job. In this case, or in order to get better results and overall deepen the quantity of your original work, devoting an entire year to truly working on your portfolio and creating original work is a fantastic option with long-lasting results. To sustain a year of working on your own thing, you will need to budget accordingly. If you have savings, make sure they can sustain you for the length of time you want to devote to adding to your portfolio. 

However, chances are you’ll need to get a job in the service industry or the retail industry (read: 'day job') to ensure you have income and financial security to support yourself and your art. In lots of cases, these jobs can also provide you with other benefits, like networking with other creatives and boosting your resume.

9. Become a certified yoga teacher.

The rise in popularity of yoga in western culture has skyrocketed in the last decade. If you are one of the many people that have become passionate about yoga and rely on it for exercise, wellness and other benefits, you have probably considered becoming a certified teacher. If that’s the case, and if you also happen to be looking for a reason to travel overseas, choosing to do this certification abroad is ideal. 

Although every country has the resources to produce certified yoga teachers, you can make the most of the experience and maximize the authenticity by getting certified in yoga’s birthplace: India. There are several sites and organizations that partner aspiring yoga teachers with academies and facilities in India qualified to train yoga teachers.

10. Join a political campaign.

11. Become EMT-certified  (or something similar).

It is perfectly normal to have more than one passion. Inevitably, most of us have to compromise and narrow down our career focus in order to succeed professionally. For this reason, a gap year is the perfect opportunity to delve into some of your other passions before fully diving into your chosen profession. 

12. Be an au pair.

13. Get a hospitality job.

14. Go backpacking.

This is perhaps the most well-known postgraduate activity, and for a reason. Backpacking is an incredibly affordable way to travel, as well as one of the best ways to immerse yourself in the culture you’re visiting. When choosing the destinations you want to explore during your trip, the best place to start is where you’re passionate about visiting and go from there. Europe is a very backpacking-friendly continent due to its cheap airfare, short distances between countries and familiarity with all kinds of tourism.

15. Year-long fellowships or internships,

How to prepare for your gap year

What comes next?

It is impossible to know what kind of person you’ll be once your gap year is up. Maybe your five-year plan can continue undisturbed, and you reach its next stage with nothing but valuable lessons learned, new friends and a refreshed mind. The possibilities, however, are endless, and by the time your gap year ends, you might have changed your mind about your career or might want to extend your gap year indefinitely. However, if your choice is to enter the workforce in your field by the time that year is up, the one thing you can count on is that you will have many more skills and a greater understanding of the world. 

Let your experiences inform what you do next. If you choose to move toward more conventional employment at the end of your gap year, make sure you use the skills and lessons you learned during your experience as assets. Highlight any relevant aspects of your year off on your resume, and use your new energy to enter the workforce enthusiastically.

A year can feel like a long time, and new experiences can mean realizations you wouldn’t otherwise have made. In any case, the best way to approach a gap year is to be fully prepared for the things that happen during it to change everything or almost nothing. The key, like for anything else in life, is to have an open mind and a willingness to learn and grow.

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