Awesome program! I narrowed down my gap year (between college & graduate school) to either the Peace Corps or UWP. I chose UWP since it was for 1 year rather than 2 (now you can choose 6 months or 1 year with UWP). It was one of the best choices I've ever made.

The reason I joined was primarily for the host family & community service experiences. I knew I wanted to be a family therapist, so thought those experiences would be helpful (& a good resume booster!): it was! I loved living with so many different families & experiencing cultures first hand from around the world. And, by visiting & helping at nursing homes, prisons, schools, ... I got to see just how much I really enjoyed working with people. I ended up taking a little more gap time before graduate school. The job I got (working with teen moms) was purely because I traveled with UWP: my boss loved a "worldly" person and someone with all the experience I had with diverse groups of people.

There are several internships and skills to learn while on the road: sound mixing, lighting, education, dance, singing, logistics, promotions, ... I was not much of a show person, but enjoyed our performance. I could sing, so was put on the microphone group (the sound the audience primarily hears), but never tried out for a solo. Over time, I decided to do more behind-the-scenes work, so learned sound mixing (using a monitor mixer).

The non-profit was founded by a group called MRA (a Christian group). It switched to being UWP just a few years later and became non-sectarian. It's an incredibly open-minded organization and strives for diversity of it's cast members & staff: politically, ethnically, culturally, religious values, sexual orientation, etc.

Today, about 28 years later, I'm still in touch with about 125 cast members/staff. It's like the gift that keeps on giving.

This program shaped my worldview and dedication to serving others in my local community and around the world. It helped increase my networking and business skills which led to jobs, and many other opportunities. The experience also still provides me with a network of people all over the world. One of my favorite experiences was staying with host families in many different cities, states, and countries. It was great to be apart of a family to learn their customs, traditions, and enjoy their food. I traveled to Europe, China, Canada, Mexico, and all over the USA. The other great part was traveling with other young adults from many different countries. We learned a lot about each other and the friendships still remain. The program still offers students a great global experience.

My UWP Experience was really great i have discovered a lot of things from traveling i feel before traveling my knowledge of the world and cultures was very little. what i like the most was that we were hosted by local families which a lot to absorb the culture of different people depending where we were. coming from Johannesburg South Africa i was really happy to see the world through UWP and also to be part of the network since I am working in the tourism space.

For me the combination of all aspects of this program was what got my attention and then I made the decision to DO IT!

It's simple and great!

TRAVEL - Every week we travelled to a different city in the world.
PERFORM - We were part of a professionally produced concert!*
HELP communities - We did volunteer work to help the communities we visited.

INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPANTS - It's young people (about 100) from around 20 different countries.
HOST FAMILIES - We stood with local host families. This way we got to know the culture better.

I have not seen any other program in the world that combines all this aspects. I am super passionate about this program, Up with People!

* The show is mainly 3 things - international songs and dances from around the world, pop medleys and original songs. It has a live band, video, costumes, great sound and lights.

I was the drummer of the show but you don't need to be a musician, singer or a dancer necessarily.

Up with People changed my life. I was 17, a senior in high school in the US, and unsure of where the world would take me. In my search for a gap semester program that featured travel, music, and community service I discovered Up with People. I knew that college would always be an option for me, but an opportunity like UWP would not. I was able to travel around the world and impact communities along the way via traditional community service projects, youth interaction, and international music. I would recommend this program to anyone looking to make the world a little smaller through their unique lens. Since travelling in Up with People in 2010, I have gone on to receive my undergraduate degree, completed two Disney College Program internships in Orlando, Florida, and have made contacts (and friends) from around the world. Up with People has taught me so much about myself and about the world, but most of all UWP made me who I am. So take your chance and apply, you may work with children in a small town in Taiwan, perform in a senior citizen home in Sweden, or stay with an unforgettable host family in Mexico. I did each of these things, and grew incredibly from these opportunities.

As an 18-year-old girl from a small town in Wyoming, I knew that I wanted to see the world. I also knew that I wanted to perform. But it had to all mean something. To me, that didn't mean college right away. It meant taking the "road less traveled." Thankfully, I had a music teacher in town who traveled with Up with People, and her daughter was also an alumna. They both talked about the experience with such passion and positivity. The more research I did, the more convinced I was that this program had everything I was looking for. After making it through a simple yet meaningful interview process, I was accepted within a few weeks!

I traveled as a student with Up with People for a year. Because of this amazing opportunity, I was able to see places through the eyes of locals thanks to the host family component, sing for audiences that ranged from 100-3000, give back to communities through unique service, and create special bonds with people that can only be made through experience. The cast is made up of about 100 students from 15+ different countries, so even if Nepal isn't on the tour schedule, your roommate from Nepal might be able to make you a homemade dish for dinner.

There were some difficult times that were cultivated by fatigue, home sickness, and the grind of traveling to a new place each week. However, it was the prevailing through these times that made me a stronger and better human being. Accountability is a huge part of Up with People, and representing yourself as well as the name of the program is very important. This is a great life skill to acquire and improve on while traveling. It was the nights when we had to take down the stage until 12 at night and be at a drop off location at 7 that made us come together and be better for each other and for ourselves. This kind of growth can only happen with some heathy abrasion, and Up with People provides the ideal environment for that.

Even though I'm a performer and it was my main draw to the program, the education component is what made me buy in physically and mentally. Learning through experience is what pumps life through the program. Everything can be a learning opportunity, and for some, it can be as simple as learning to do laundry for the first time ever without Mom or Dad's help. While the program is based around bookless learning, there is a great study abroad opportunity with some transferable credits for parents who are on the fence about their kids not being in school. It's a win-win all around, education wise.

The performing is unique in regards to not everyone in the cast being required to have performing experience upon entrance to the program. At first, I was a little apprehensive about that. However, I learned that it doesn't take awesome vocal chords and exceptional dance moves for the joy of performing to be present or for a message to be delivered through song. It made every performance meaningful knowing that we were reaching people with our message of hope and positivity.

I'm writing this review in a host family's house currently, about four and a half years after my student experience. Tomorrow, I start my job as the Vocal Instructor on the road for Up with People. I'm honored and humble to be entering this position, and I know I wouldn't be up for the challenge if it weren't for my Up with People experience and the confidence I gained as a student. Tomorrow the job starts and I get to be a part of creating this experience for students who are about to become global citizens. I knew it would be difficult to keep this review succinct, but Up with People deserves the thorough explanation of how great it is.

I have lived the best 6 months of my life. I have met so many people that are now more than friends, they are part of my family.
In Up With People, you learn to get out of your comfort zone, you meet so many different people, you travel, you try new things, you grow, change, get more confident.
. You realize that being open-minded is very important nowadays, and you learn how to become like that.
Of course you will have hard times, missing your family, being constantly in your challenged ou panic zone, but the results are worth it.
To me, there are no right words that could describe this adventure because it is so amazing and you have to live it to understand it.
I am so glad that I got the opportunity to be part of CastB16 and I would recommand the program to every single person in this world who is willing to make a change, impact, grow, travel, experience,...
I had the best time of my life and I don't think any other program is as good as UWP.

Forever in my heart!

When I first heard of Up With People, I was skeptical. I had never seen a show and I was a little unsure of the whole thing. Looking back now im so glad i choose to do it and so glad I get to travel another semester.

Up With People offeres you so many things. For me personally, I have never learned so much in only six months. Just off the top of my head i can say that I learned to be a better leader, boosted my self confedence, made over 100 life long friends, brodened my cultural understanding, inspired myself and others to do better, made inpacts with comunities and people, increased my musical knowlage, and much much more. To some it up, this program will change your life.

There where a couple aspects of UWP (Up with People) that stood out to me the most. One of these aspects was the people. If or when you travel, you will meet tons of amazing people from all around the world from cast members and staff to host families and coumuity members, you will find names and faces that you will remember for the rest of your life. Another big aspect for me was the show. Traveling and preforming in front of people every week, for me, really boosted my self confedence and it gave me the chance to not only preform but to work backstage, learninng how to set up and take down our stage along with learning the "innerworkings" of how our stage works. The final aspect that I really injoyed was the Commuity service. In every place i traveled to, i got the opportunity to meet and work with people who needed our help. To put it bluntly, every week I worked, learning new skills and changed peoples lifes. I got to experiance all kinds of amazing projects, from painting a mural of a "tree of hope" to help give hope to families who have loved ones in the hospital, to acually planting trees to help recover some wilderness land.

These where just some of the aspects I enjoyed most for me in UWP. If you choose or have alreay choosen to do the program, then I promise it will change your life in so many ways. If you are still unsure about UWP, than I will leave you with one last thing.
This program is not for everyone, but if you enjoy helping others, Preforming, Traveling, and/or meeting new people (all or any one of those things), then you should really look into and/or apply because this program for me and maybe for you is defenetly Worth It.