Constructive gap years favoured by employers and parents

Aug. 13, 2010 - PRLog -- With a predicted 170,000 students not getting a university place this year and employers attaching so much importance to skills gained from extra-curricular activities, a gap year is an ideal opportunity to develop key soft skills such as leadership, problem solving, communication and adaptability, all of which give young people the edge to stand out against their peers when applying to higher education or their first job. So how do employers and parents view the benefits of a gap year?

The youth and education charity Raleigh, which runs leadership and volunteering expeditions around the world, is endorsed by several employers, including Richard Reed, co-founder of Innocent drinks, who recorded a video about employer’s attitudes towards gap years. “If you’ve done Raleigh, you’ve actually acquired and honed a lot of the skills that you need in the workplace, in terms of leadership, management, project delivery… it’s a pretty phenomenal thing.”  

Charlotte Parker, a 2009 graduate, successfully obtained a job with British Red Cross after completing a three-month expedition with Raleigh thanks to the Raleigh graduate bursary scheme. Her boss, Emma Edge, recounts, “Charlotte came across extremely well at interview demonstrating a huge amount of enthusiasm and positivity. Combined with having all the relevant administration skills needed for the role, Charlotte was also aware of the work that the British Red Cross does and shares a genuine interest in working for a charity. During her interview we asked Charlotte to give an example of a time she had to work in a team. She talked about her expedition with Raleigh and the ways in which she had performed as a day leader working with people from all different backgrounds. This ability alongside her international experience were attributes we favoured greatly.”

Parents also notice a difference in the attitudes, confidence and enhanced skills sets of their children. David Poole, whose daughter Alice joined a Raleigh expedition to Borneo after she didn’t get the A level results she needed for her first choice university, says about Alice, “Her confidence, self-esteem, determination and worldliness all benefited. It prepared her well for University where she met new challenges “head on”.  I believe she has been more successful, in every aspect of her first year at Exeter, for reasons that are directly attributable to her Raleigh experience.”

With a focus on personal development Raleigh enables young people to work on genuinely needed and sustainable environmental and community projects whilst at the same time concentrating on enhancing life skills and confidence. Raleigh is endorsed by several employers including Accenture, UBS Horizons, Cap Gemini and Innocent Drinks and currently has bursary awards available for graduates who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to join an expedition.

As David reflects, “Alice’s knowledge, consideration and tolerance of other people has changed. She is more considered and not so quick to judge others. These are life skills which I believe Raleigh helped her discover and extend during her gap year.”    

Ends

For more information, please contact Rachel Collinson on 0207 183 1293 or rachel.collinson@raleigh.org.uk

Notes to Editors:

Raleigh

Raleigh is a youth and education charity established in 1984 and runs adventure and challenge expeditions for 17-24 year olds from a wide range of backgrounds, nationalities and life stages with the aim of increasing the leadership skills of young people and their awareness of their role as active global citizens.

Since 1984, more than 30,000 people have taken part in Raleigh’s expeditions, approximately 700 venturers each year. Expeditions are made-up of a diverse mix of participants, including:

•   Young people or ‘venturers’ aged between 17 and 24 from the UK or abroad, who are often taking a break from education or work as part of a gap year, sabbatical or training programme.
•   A number of disadvantaged young people from the UK and abroad, who take part in overseas projects through Raleigh’s youth agency partnerships.
•   Host country volunteers, comprised of young people from the country in which the expedition is hosted

Where do Raleigh’s expeditions take place?
Raleigh runs approximately 12 expeditions a year – to Borneo (Malaysian), Costa Rica & Nicaragua and India.

How long does an individual expedition last with Raleigh?
Raleigh’s full expeditions last 10 weeks. For those short on time but not enthusiasm, there is also the option for venturers to take part in a five week expedition during the summer. The latter is an ideal option for school leavers going straight to university who want to do something constructive with their summer.

What is involved in an expedition with Raleigh?
During a full 10-week expedition venturers will work on three projects: community, environmental and adventure. On the five week expedition venturers will have the option of choosing either a community or environmental project, as well as taking part in a week’s team-based adventure challenge.

Employer endorsement
Raleigh is endorsed by several employers including Co-founder of Innocent Drinks, Richard Reed. Please view this link to view the short video in which Richard gives his viewpoint on the charity: http://www.raleighinternational.org/videos

Raleigh is currently offering a Graduate Bursary Award for Volunteering Overseas. The Bursary is an initiative aimed at recent graduates and final year students who are looking to develop key employability skills, explore new cultures and make a real difference to the world they live in.  The Award assists those graduates who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to undertake a 10 week overseas expedition with Raleigh where you’ll work on much needed community and environmental projects, plus undertake a challenging adventure phase.

We have a number of excellent graduate case studies available for interview should this be of interest. Please contact us for more information.

Case Studies

In addition to the case studies quoted in the press release above, we have a selection of school leavers and parents of those school leavers available for interview, all of which took gap years for different reasons. If you need additional case studies, please contact us as we have many more to offer. Senior staff members from Raleigh are also available for interview and their contact details can be viewed below.

Rachel Collinson (Head of Sales and Marketing at Raleigh)
Mobile: 07590 963 270
Office: 0207 183 1293
Email: Rachel.collinson@raleigh.org.uk

Notes to Picture Editors:
We have a huge selection of images taken on our expeditions available for your use.

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Raleigh is a youth & education charity established in 1984 and runs adventure challenge expeditions for 17-24 year olds from a range of backgrounds with the aim of increasing leadership skills and their awareness of their role as active global citizens.