Make a Difference with Volunteering and Adventure Travel in Uganda - Gap Year

When I decided to take a Gap Year with AV, I did not expect it to have such a large impact on me. It is truly an unforgettable experience. AV gives you freedom and independence which are two important skills that you will discover and use to enrich your experience. It makes everything you do so much more rewarding because you are not depending on anyone but yourself to make a difference. The Ugandans you meet will change you. They will show you love and wisdom. Your fellow AVs will become friends that you always stay in touch with and other travellers you meet along the way will show you adventure. There isn't a day that I go without thinking about my time in Uganda last spring. The things you discover about yourself in Uganda will stay with you forever and it is the ideal location for these discoveries to take place.

I struggle through out my school life and once my A levels were over I didn't want to think of University and I wanted to see the world a little bit and have a break from exams and all. I came across AV through my cousin who had also gone through on of the gap year program's. I had the BEST time, meet some amazing people and have made friends for life. It's so rewarding seeing happiness with the children you work with and seeing a different culture to the one your used too. AV are so organised and keep you up to date through the your time aways, they also have so amazing helpers that will look out for you over your time away. I recommend AV to anyone, and they offer many opportunists. Go for it, and take a chance!

My experience is Uganda was absolutely incredible and being the opportunity to go to such an amazing country and feel like you had support behind you the whole time both in Uganda and back at home was very reassuring.
AV were great in placing us in such schools with great teachers where we really felt like we could learn and help others learn along the way.

My time in Africa was totally unforgettable. The country and its people are beautiful, colourful and welcoming. The experience of teaching itself was really rewarding and insightful. I feel so lucky to have got to know the children, the teachers and their families.

As this was many of our first adventures abroad, it was great having AV there as a safety net, knowing there was always someone on the end of the phone should you need any help.

Shortly after coming home, I went travelling around India and south-east Asia and although I had a fantastic time, I felt I was just skimming the surface and not able to really get to know a place, its culture and its characters as I did in Uganda.
For this reason, if/when I go away again, I'll go and work somewhere and I'm so grateful for the experience and and confidence AV has given me to do so.

On a wholly different note, for all university and job interviews I have had since, my time in Uganda is repeatedly the biggest point of interest on my CV..

If you have the chance to go then you absolutely will not regret it. Im currently saving to go back!

I look back at my time with AV in Uganda as the happiest time of my life. I made friends who I am still see and speak to regularly. The experience has left in print on my heart, If someone gave me the chance to do it tomorrow I would bite there hand off.
Uganda was such a fascinating country to go to, yes there were tough times but that only made the experience better. Many of my friends travelled round Australia and South America, they have come back with stories of fun and frivolity but none of them had half the experience that we did in Uganda. If you are lucky enough to go, I promise you will have the most amazing time.

I was posted out to Buckley Girls school in CMS by Jinja - a few hours out of Kampala. I adored the travelling, the teaching taught me alot, even though my intention was never to become a teacher. I had the most incredible time. It helped me gain confidence, experience and allowed me to see and live in a country that I longed to get to know but in a safe and useful environment. I met a great network of people and would do it again if I could!

With AV I was introduced to a new culture in a setting that facilitated personal growth and helping others. I was challenged in my living situation without running water or constant electricity but I was given the support necessary to know I was safe. Staying in one place for tree months allows you to get to know the people, place, and culture and really immerse yourself rather than taking superficial visits. I played with nursery school children and the older kids as well, teaching them my games and learning theirs. We learned some recipes from the other teachers and settled into daily life. Because we live on our own we are able to grow as people too, becoming resilient and independent and capable as you only can when you have a safety net but aren't smothered. Introducing a new culture to the students there and offering your time, care, and English knowledge was clearly also very helpful to them and I was comforted knowing that I was directly influencing some people. With AV I had fun, learned about myself, and helped others.

I had the most amazing, awe-inspiring experience in Uganda. AV were so supportive, they were like a huge safety net ready to catch us if anything went wrong. I wouldn't change it for the world. It has certainly helped me set myself up for university.