Posted 08 Feb 2010

Volunteering abroad while travelling or taking a gap year could help people wake up to their true capabilities, it has been suggested.

According to gap year specialist i-to-i, school leavers or university graduates could use volunteering abroad to explore their talents and push themselves a little further in unfamiliar surroundings.

Furthermore, the time scale and variety of projects on offer is immense, with i-to-i’s portfolio ranging from community development projects in Kenya and conserving the rainforest in Ecuador to teaching English in Vietnam and looking after lion cubs in South Africa.

"Would-be students have an opportunity to step out of their comfort zones and build on the communication, leadership and teamwork skills which are so valued by admissions tutors," the company stated.

This may be of particular benefit to them at the current time, as cuts to university spending in the UK were announced by the Higher Education Funding Council for England last week.

Professor Steve Smith, president of Universities UK, pointed out that this means many hopeful applicants will miss out on places in 2010.

Category: General Travel