07/04/2011

Gain Gap Year Voluntary Work Experience

Out of work? Take a gap year and then look to get back into employment? You should think about gaining gap year voluntary work experience to help get back into paid work.

BBC’s Panorama recently announced the soaring numbers of unemployed people in the over 50s bracket. At a time when the job market is far from overflowing with opportunities, former trade minister Lord Digby Jones called for those searching for jobs to look further afield.

He suggested that those who are out of work need to turn to volunteering so that they do not lose the drive to work, and also to develop experiences.

The opportunities available for volunteering on a gap year are countless. One can volunteer close to home, either in a charity shop, campaigning for charities or helping out at open days. Or, for those who have more time on their hands and are keen to see the world, there are also lots of career break or volunteering breaks available to all.

The first myth to dispel is that doing something worthwhile overseas is just for the youth of today. More and more people from all walks of life are looking overseas to broaden their minds and to contribute to causes that are close to their hearts. Be that helping to conserve the dwindling turtle population in Costa Rica, a saddening decline inflicted by overfishing, or be it teaching children in Nepal, the impact that these missions have on both the local community and the individual are important.

The great thing is- there is so much for you to enjoy, either as an individual, going as part of a couple or with a group of friends. Try your hand at something new and take a gap year with Oyster Worldwide - watch bears learning to roam in relative freedom in Romania after lives of misery and abuse. Bottle-feed a baby elephant living on the African plains with its family in safety, away from the zoos and circuses. Nurture an orphaned monkey back to health before releasing it back to the wild as part of a family of monkeys. Love and care for the orphaned lonely children in Romania, giving them the hugs that they so need. Or get involved in clearing up the flood damage from the catastrophic Australian floods.

It is easy to look at opportunities being limited. However, look deeper, and the opportunities are actually limitless.

Find out more about Oyster Worldwide's voluntary placements worldwide, e-mail Anne at anne@oysterworldwide.com or call 01892 770771.


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