<p>My D will be graduating from Yale next year with a degree in English with a concentration in creative writing. Instead of heading into a career work position or graduate school she wishes to have a gap year studying Spanish outside the US and traveling. She this she can work temp for several months before going to save up funds and work along the way teaching English. I say go for it, when else will she have the time and since the job market is lousy this would be great. Of course I am concerned about a young woman traveling alone and about finances. Your suggestions will be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>If this subject is already on another thread, please direct me to it. Also, I have not been active on CC in several years, however it was great getting advice during the college search process.</p>
<p>Whether she will have trouble traveling alone depends on where she’s going. There are some areas I wouldn’t like my 20s daughter going alone, and there are other places where it’s fine. She should research her destinations and plan accordingly. </p>
<p>BTW, it’s normal for a mom to think about her child’s safety- I don’t care if she’s 12 or 20. And females do have different concerns than sons. My daughter was accosted in the restroom in Peru when she was traveling alone by bus. This could happen in the US, too, but here our kids are usually able to tell normally safe areas from those not so safe. In a foreign country, it’s much harder if you don’t know the area.</p>
<pre><code>Also, being young, they tend to get more careless once they’ve been in a country for awhile- especially if the country is “friendly” in general. It’s easy to let your guard down. I would actually advise a young woman who plans to travel alone (here or abroad) to take a class in self-defense. It can give her the confidence to act if she is in a dangerous situation.
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<p>BTW, Congratulations to your daughter. I think her idea of taking time off is wonderful. She’s earned it.</p>
<p>Another point-- Four years in New Haven has probably added to her street smarts. My Dd is a Yalie, too. I think it helped her to be a little more aware. Although, honestly, it was the year of Taekwondo she took in high school that enabled her to fend off her attacker.</p>
<p>Thank you for both of the responses. Well, I am only seeking advise because D asked me to help her. She does make her on decisions and has essentially done so since age 14 by choosing her own high school, college, major, internships and study abroad options. </p>
<p>I think the self defense class is a great idea. She had a short course in high school but nothing intense. She has found a program she likes in Uruguay but the housing situation seems iffy. I have directed her to several programs in Costa Rica with home stay options. I also noted some programs in Spain, but them seem pricey and she may be looking for a different type of experience since she has already spent a summer in Denmark, working at the Royal Library (living and traveling with other students) and a semester in Scotland at St. Andrews. </p>
<p>Yes, I am very happy that she is not taking the traditional route of graduate school or a career oriented job, she does need a break for a year or two. I want to give her the best advise I can find, CC parents are very thoughtful, trust me D will make the final decision and I will give her space and emotional support.</p>
<p>I spent the year after I graduated from college living in a van and traveling around the country photographing fire stations. Living expenses were paid by a grant I’d gotten. (I did have a partner - another young woman.) I learned to drive the summer before we took this year long road trip. One of the best experiences of my life. I don’t know how our parents let us go, though the last thing my Dad said was “Don’t drive too slow.” I had a deferral to grad school in my pocket, as opposed to having to look for a job at the end of our adventure, but really you are only young once. This is a great time to travel. She’ll never regret achieving fluency in a language if she doesn’t already have it.</p>
<p>Thanks Mathmom, D is not fluent yet. I think it is a good idea too. D did say something about maybe applying to grad school and deferring. However, I think she’ll be very busy with classes, writing and planning the gap adventure and wait a year or two before tackling grad school applications. D plans to earn an MFA in writing.</p>
<p>One way to extend traveling abroad is through helpx.net which is sort of a Craigs List version of WOOFing - volunteer opportunities all around the world in exchange for room and board - some on organic farms like WOOF, but also working in hostels, picking figs in Greece, herding goats in Italy, babysitting in the Pyrenees, etc. The cost to access the full database is minimal (something like $20-30 for two years.)</p>
<p>On thing to keep in mind are visas - for instance in Europe it’s 3 months max, within a 6 month period, for travelers without a special visa. There are also special visas, such as through BUNAC, for students and those within 6 months of graduation which allow one to work for 4-6 months in certain countries. There are also English language immersion camps - with a salary and room and board - as opposed to some of these foreign programs which require a substantial fee to be permitted to participate. Camp California in Croatia, American Village in France are two my son has worked at. Usually they’re limited to a three months work period because of visa issues.</p>
<p>My DD graduated this past May with a degree in English; she is considering grad school for which she needs foreign language fluency. She took 1 year of college German and found a resource which has her now living in Germany as a Governess She agreed to a summer there and has been invited to stay for the year, if she wants.</p>
<p>She is learning good solid conversational German and is taking language class; she started off daily, but the others (non English speakers all) were not as advanced as she is so she has moved to privates 3x a week.</p>
<p>She is in a small town so not getting a lot of interaction with people her age, but is working on making some changes.</p>
<p>SipritManager thanks for the helpx.net tip…I passed the info on to D. </p>
<p>Somemom the Governess option is something D has thought about via the prompting of one of her advisers. One of the MFA programs D is considering also require fluency in a second language. It is definitely someone thing to consider as D designs her gap adventure.</p>
<p>Don’t underestimate your daughter’s maturity/capability to move in the world.
Traveling alone, you meet many more people than with a group, although it is helpful to have incountry contacts in case of emergency. ( I also found out afterwards that an alum from her high school works in the consulate in Chennai!- it is really a small world)</p>
<p>My daughter participated in Projects Abroad for two months in Tamil Nadu after high school. She then traveled for a month through southern India, finishing up with another month in the UK. I admit that her original plans did not include traveling alone, but she was more than fine.</p>
<p>She hasn’t taken a self defense course, and probably thinks she doesn’t need it- but I am going to recommend one to her, because her traveling days have just started.</p>
<p>Thank you for your encouraging words. I just watched Samantha Brown’s (Travel Channel) 2007 visit to Uruguay video, so I am feeling a lot better. Next, I will read the Lonely Planet Guide published in 2008. Of course I am sharing all the info I am reviewing with my daughter.</p>
<p>I agree that a post grad travel year is a great idea, but don’t forget that she has to make plans for the following year while she is doing her thing!</p>
<p>One of my good friends traveled around the world by herself when she was in her late twenties … boy, was I jealous (but I would never have had the guts to do it myself). She came home unscathed!</p>
<p>She should do it. Work a ton of hours a few months, then travel in cheap places. She could find a volunteer or travel group to travel with. Either way, things can happen anywhere… may as well have fun with it. She needs street smarts, not necessarily self-defense. She should learn about where she’s traveling to, and be wise… not getting too comfortable.</p>
She agreed to a summer there and has been invited to stay for the year, if she wants.</p>