Up with People On Tour Gap Year Experience

I think one of the most unique aspects were the surprise concerts that we were able to give in order to raise money. Performing like a rockstar in front of thousands everywhere around the world is something you dont do every day. Once we were in Taipei for example we had the luvk to arrive on the 101st birthday of the nation, which is a big date (the tower is not called Taipei101 for no reason). We were able to perform in front of 5000 people in a huge stadium and even got to meet the president of the country. Nothing you do every day!

This program and the experience I got here helped me grow tremendously, both personally and professionally. Cultural exchange, leadership, community service, performing arts and traveling not only gave me an experience of lifetime but helped me broaden my horizon of understanding on global issues, leadership and development. Moreover, I got to meet 110 friends from 21 different countries and lived with 15 host families around the world. Needless to say, the world has become a very small, beautiful and bright place for me.

I see the Up With People Program as an opportunity that could encourage young people to make the best of themselves and prepare them to carry out their dreams. Thus, Up With People is a rewarding and life changing experience for your young people as well as host families and others who come to the shows, creating a unique opportunity to experience other cultures and establish a lifelong relationships.
I did Up With People because I see the program as an opportunity that could prepare me and enable me realize my dream and potential to give back to other as people have given to me.
Being a host family in Up With People enables you experience a new family, expose you to new cultures and creates a lifelong memories and potential relationships between you and the student(s).
I strongly encourage other young people to travel with Up With People because the program promotes mutual cultural understanding, brings different nationalities together to share ideas and compare values. Also creating global unity through relationships.
The message in Up With People Shows is relevant because it has a real life application of what the organization is about. I therefore encourage the general public to be a part of the shows.

I decided to take a gap semester during college to travel with UWP. I had already had many opportunities to travel and study in other countries, but UWP was unlike anything I'd ever experienced. I traveled through 6 countries during my semester, living with host families and doing community service projects. I ate food and went places I wouldn't have experienced otherwise. I got to perform in a professional musical production on a world tour, promoting hope and peace and unity to thousands of people. I interacted with people who did and did not speak my native language, and I was pushed out of my comfort zone quite a few times. But my cast mates became my family on the road, and we all supported each other through the good times and the more challenging ones. I now have friends and families around the world that I will be able to visit for the rest of my life. I would recommend UWP to anyone interested in traveling, learning about new cultures, performing, music, and/or community serviced. The program has something for everyone!

Up with people have change my life in so many ways and I considered this as one of the best choices I've ever made, this program made me realize that the world is not only in my country or continent, this world is full of people and places I could never imagine existing. I got the opportunity to travel to different places all around the world, in each part of the world I visited I got the opportunity to leave a mark and an inspiration on someone's life that can potentially make the world a better place. Also now I can say that I have more than 120 houses all over the world because of all the connections I made with this program. In my resume I can write that I've done more than 400 hours of volunteer work around the world and that I've done International marketing in 5 different cities in Mexico as well as managing a world tour show in 4 different countries in Europe because of the internship program. And of course last but not least I got the chance to perform for thousands and thousands of people in stunning places and mainly making an impact

I studied abroad twice in college as well as doing Up with People (UWP). What makes UWP stand out is how MUCH is fit into every day. With opportunities to continuously be moving ( a different city and host family each week, 3-5 countries total in the tour in different regions of the world) - my learning and exposure to people and food and cultures was so varied and exciting. I volunteered with over 40 NGOs, and saw firsthand what works for communities and what doesn't. Staying with host families in each city gave me many ideas on what I want my home to be like, and helped me to really experience the place I was, and meet people who were genuinely interested in learning about me and sharing their culture with me. And the friends I met, my fellow cast members, have become my closest network, my lifelong friends to lean on. This program changed my whole outlook on life for the better.

When I first heard about UWP I fell in love with the idea of the program. As I kept going in my application process, the admission counselors were always very nice and tried to help me in every way they could so that I could travel by the semester I applied for. Being on the road with that many people, working towards the same goal (social and show wise) was inspiring. The staff is always willing to support you as a participant and hear all the ideas and thoughts that you may have.
I loved my Up with People experience because it made me grow as a person and has made me more aware of what's going on around me.

I don't have one story in particular, I just want to write about the Up with Poeple program in general. The general organization is very well handled, especially on travel days. There were very few things that I disliked about my semester. Everything we do is simply great. We get to travel, make new friends, perform a wonderful show, help people through community services, stay with host families. It's a perfect combination. While in the program, we are not always aware of the chance we have to be a participant, as many people don't get in when they apply. Up with people is a unique organization and I think everyone should have the opportunity to participate in such a program once in a lifetime.