Take a year We chat to two of our 2022 graduates about their year overseas.
Lulu Morgan (OGC 2022) As Term 3 drew to a close last year and a plethora of exams loomed to finish up Year 12, I remember telling my parents that the only thing keeping me focused was the fact that I had a gap year sorted for 2023. A year in the UK - in Scotland more specifically. A year of unique learning opportunities. A year outside of my norm. What more could an exhausted Year 12 student hope for? And what a year it has been. Travelling, quite literally, to the other side of the world. Leaving a hot Surf Coast summer - with those long beachy days - to find myself landing in a cold, wet and dark (for most of the day anyway) Scottish winter was challenge enough. However, teaming up with a bunch of other gap students from different parts of the world, and being immersed in the day to day – night to night in the
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operations of a Scottish prep school soon had us all on our toes. I must admit I’ve developed a new appreciation for the patience and understanding that teachers have to maintain. My gap student responsibilities have been many and varied. My role has seen me working in the classroom, helping out with evening boarding duties, writing and directing my own plays, and even going on excursions and overnight camps to different parts of the UK. This year has been an immense learning experience in so many ways. It has been wonderful to work with so many great children of all ages, but the nursery is a particular soft spot of mine. The hours have certainly been long. I’ve never slept so soundly, and all too soon, my alarm goes off yet again and it’s out of bed for morning duties!
Clearly, one of the huge bonuses of this GAP experience in the UK has been the flexibility to visit so many different parts of the UK and Europe. Term holidays, the odd long weekend and the mid-year summer break have been a hazy blur. There have been ancient and modern cities, youth hostels, art galleries, must-see tourist sites, many Harry Styles concerts, train and bus stations, cafes, cheap pizza. Sixteen countries in total have been thoroughly explored. They say the lens through which one views the world changes with each passing season. As a result of my time in the UK, the wonderful staff and students at my school and all those people I’ve met on my travels, my view is forever more broadened. There clearly is much to explore, beyond the ivy-covered walls, Pakington Street and Munchies.
