Know of Any Gap Year Abroad Scholarships?

Parents Forum
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<p>Prescript: Parents, I hope you don't mind a student intruding in your forum. I came here because y'all seem to give more seasoned and well-reasoned advice.</p>

<p>Anyway, recently I stumbled across NSLI-Y and the prospect of spending a gap year studying abroad. The NSLI-Y program is rather competitive and I don't want it to be the basket in which I put all my gap year eggs. So I'm looking for backups. Do you know of any scholarship programs that mostly/completely fund students abroad? I also found the Kennedy-Lugar YES program and the Youth For Understanding scholarships, but it seems they aren't intended for gaps. Do you know of any others?</p>

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<p>You don’t state what year you are in HS; this can’t be considered a back-up but it is another option if you’re not a current sr:</p>

<p>[Bridge</a> Year Program](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/bridgeyear/]Bridge”>Novogratz Bridge Year Program | Office of International Programs)</p>

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<p>Oops, I’m a junior!</p>

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<p>There are some good Gap Year scholarships out there that you can check out at [url=&lt;a href=“http://www.americangap.org/financial-aid.php]americangap[/url”&gt;http://www.americangap.org/financial-aid.php]americangap[/url</a>], but in some cases you also have to be enrolled to get credit, whereas others are more general travel scholarships. The NSLI-Y and Princeton’s Bridgeyear programs are also good ones, but quite competitive. That being said, there’s a long list of Gap Year organizations out there and if you find one you like, simply pick up the phone and ask what they have in the way of their own internal financial aid. Global Citizen Year, Thinking Beyond Borders, Where There Be Dragons, Carpe Diem Education, City Year, Leapnow, Youth International, … there’s a long list of great organizations and they all have their own methods and availability for fundraising. </p>

<p>Financially you can also just focus on less expensive Gap Years too. City Year is an Americorps program and pays you a poverty-level wage with an educational award at the end of your year. WWOOF costs usually $35 and they’ll pay you for room and board. Ultimately though, the best advice I have is to think about what you want to do and then look for ways to do it rather than trying to plug into whatever program will take you. </p>

<p>I hope this helps!</p>