The Death of the Gap Year: Ideas to Resurrect Your Travel Plans

With plenty of exciting travel opportunities at the University, Maisie Jane Garvin provides solace to those whose gap year plans were thwarted by the pandemic.

When the word coronavirus was first uttered in March 2020, few expected that we would still be facing restrictions over eighteen months later. One of the most suffocating restraints was, and still is, the ban on travel. Families living across continents have been unable to reunite, holidays have been cancelled and re-cancelled and, for many students, the pandemic has resulted in the death of their gap year.

My acknowledgement of this fact comes from a place of sadness since I was, myself, fortunate enough to take a year out to travel before arriving at university. I find myself full of empathy for those who have had to cancel their plans, or bend them tirelessly around the lockdown restrictions.

The disappointment is unavoidable. It is difficult enough to make the twenty-mile trip across the English Channel to France without forking out £85 for multiple PCR tests and facing the prospect of a hefty ten days in isolation. It is no wonder, therefore, that journeys further overseas are even more unattainable. Australia, one of the most popular gap year destinations, have had their borders closed for the best part of a year.

Despite this, starting at the University of Nottingham this September does not mean that those long-awaited travel plans have to be completely discarded. The optimism that comes with the second dose of the vaccine, and the slow but steady opening up of the travel industry, means that there is hope for students who wish to explore.

Every student at Nottingham has the chance to study abroad thanks to the University-wide exchange. This programme comes with the opportunity to spend a semester at some of the best universities in the world, with the options spanning across six continents. From the Americas to Australia to Asia, the Universitywide programme is a once in a lifetime opportunity that cannot be missed.

As one of the UK’s biggest modern languages schools, covering six European languages, there are opportunities for Nottingham language students to live and work in a different country, thanks to their degree programme. All modern languages students will complete a year abroad in their third year of study. This experience allows language students to immerse themselves within the culture of their degree language and spend time perfecting their fluency. Students have experienced their years abroad in cities ranging from Berlin to Rio de Janeiro. Luckily for the rest of us, whose skills lie outside the world of languages, the University of Nottingham offers the unique opportunity to travel and study at its international sister campuses in China and Malaysia. Whilst both countries are quite literally on the other side of the globe, there is still the security of studying in a familiar learning environment.

By deciding to spend even just one semester at the University of Nottingham’s Malaysia campus, students could facilitate their travel ambitions and explore further afield, whilst using the University as a base. Flights to locations such as Bali, Singapore and Cambodia are all a maximum of three hours away and cheaper than they would be if you were to fly from the UK.

There is also the opportunity to make up for a lost gap year through the University’s Summer School programme. This programme offers students the chance to study a course at one of Nottingham’s partner universities. With the list including South Korea, Denmark, Brazil and Australia, there is hardly a continent not up for choice. This programme takes place during the holidays, so there would be no worries of missing out on any term time experiences in Nottingham and, since the summer schools offer a variety of subjects, most students will be eligible to apply.

Welcome then to the University of Nottingham, where those gap year travel plans do not have to be swept under the carpet. With possibilities ranging from a semester abroad, to a summer studying on another continent, there are opportunities everywhere to experience a different culture, perfect a language or simply travel outside of the UK after Covid restrictions end.

By Maisie Jane Garvin Page Design by Chiara Crompton Photography courtesy of Maisie Jane Garvin