A right of passage of sorts by many throughout the world, the gap year seems to be slowly making ground on American soil. A gap year working abroad can be an excellent boost to your resume, dabble in something new, or just offset those pricey airfares. It's also, believe it or not, a fantastic opportunity to see the world and make a little extra cash by getting a gap year job as well.

Not limited to those fresh out of college, spending a gap year working abroad can be an excellent boost to your resume, dabble in something new, or just offset those pricey airfares. So what kind of jobs can you do while on a gap year? Behold thirteen of our favs:. The best part about wine, besides drinking it of course, is that there are countries all around the world that are known for their wine.

Plus, the wine industry has a regular need for seasonal, temporary employers and will typically hire on extra workers during their harvest season. For some career winemakers, they actually split their time between the southern and northern hemisphere, hopping between each's respective harvests -- a perfect set up for a gapper who wants to do a round the world trip and make some extra cash.

To get started on your job search, Wine Industry Jobs connects winemakers in with job openings in Australia and New Zealand and Job Monkey lists winemaking job opportunities worldwide. WWOOF is another solid way to find wine making jobs -- although you likely just be working in exchange for room and board and hey, maybe that's all you need! Okay, okay, you probably have heard about this one. But hear us out a minute -- Like winemaking, teaching English as a foreign language ESL is an incredibly large industry in both non-native and native English speaking countries across the globe.

However, this job does require a bit more geographic permanency. To get a job teaching English abroad, a background in education is useful, but not always required. Experience is always a plus. If you don't have your TEFL certification yet companies like International TEFL Academy and ITTT TEFL -- among many others -- offer certification courses in numerous countries worldwide and online. Depending on the company from which you earned your certificate, they may even offer job and visa assistance, which is generally a good reason to get TEFL certified in the country you want to teach abroad in.

Once you have your certification, the world is your oyster. For some countries, such as South Korea, you may want to consider using a recruiter to help place you in a school. Do keep in mind that there are numerous regions, like Western Europe and Latin America, that prefer to hire teachers in person. While this may seem a lot more daunting, it's your best bet for getting a good job. Teaching English is also a flexible enough field that you could do some freelance tutoring in a country as a side job to supplement your income.

Many people spend the better part of their gap year in and out of hostels. If you have an urge to immerse yourself in other travelers and gap year comrades, maybe you should think about seeking employment in one of the infinite number of hostels in the world. Other hostels will post opportunities directly on their websites and sometimes have regular "work exchanges" in place. Quite often though, it's recommended to pursue these opportunities in person after arriving in a city.

Yes, this could be tricky depending on luck and location, and not necessarily the most lucrative gig. However, working in a hostel usually means at the very least free or discounted lodging within that hostel for the duration of your work period. Another related option is to find a job see rest of article in a city of your choice and use a part-time hostel job to supplement your income and have affordable lodging for the duration of your stay.

It may be a better solution than trying to navigate a foreign real estate market in search of a short-term lease. WWOOF, or World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, has become a go-to organization for wandering souls looking for a self-sustaining and sustainable adventure. The setup typically entails working for a farmer on their organic farm in exchange for room and board.

Obviously growing seasons differ among countries, but you do typically have a lot of freedom in terms of how long you want to stay in one location. This is an especially desirable option for people looking to gain experience in areas like agriculture, horticulture, or a nutrition for their post-gap year career. For more details, look on the official WWOOF site. And no, we don't necessarily mean busking.

Every year, but especially in the summer months, there are music festivals across the world that draw in international performers, concertgoers, and well, they need a huge staff to support them. These events are huge undertakings that take a large and diverse collaboration of skill sets. Event organizers like Summer Festival Guide actively seek out photographers, writers, and the like to attend their events free of charge in exchange for the publicity. Large events need volunteer staff.

The Guardian offers some good tips on volunteering at large music festivals to get you started.

As a volunteer, you won't get a paycheck but you'll likely get free admission and sometimes even free meals or lodging. Though these sorts of set-ups likely won't bring in much cash maybe you should try your luck at busking?

Not only that, but getting your name out there as a credible journalist, film-maker, or photographer could very well open up some other pretty exciting doors for you in that field! Even if you don't bring in any cash immediately though, exploring your options further or starting off with by working for free might help you find a more stable job working at music festivals or as a digital nomad. Speaking of being behind the scenes in the music industry, serious music fanatics can always follow their passion across the world working as a roadie, helping with equipment moving and setting up for concerts.

Sites such as Music Jobs and Roadie Jobs , have posts for current openings and are a good place to start your roadie job search. Serious music fanatics can always follow their passion across the world working as a roadie, helping with equipment moving and setting up for concerts.

Tour lengths, demands, and destinations vary significantly from one artist to another, so make sure to keep these elements in mind when seeking out specific jobs.

Especially if you're able to commit for longer like, say, a whole year? Again, online forums and search engines like Go Overseas, and DevNetJobs are a good place to start for a general search and information. Broad-spectrum sites like these provide openings across the world for various organizations.

Many jobs may be of a more permanent nature than what you may be looking for, but others have shorter-term projects, such as promotion and outreach.

Do keep in mind, however that you're still being mindful to work for a responsible and reputable volunteer abroad organization and that, since it's a volunteer organization, you may not get more than a basic living allowance or stipend in exchange for your work.

Also, you may be required to have extra qualifications to come on as a staff member, as opposed to a volunteer. Why not set sail on your gap year and head off into sea of possibilities on board a cruise ship? Cruise-lining companies are often looking for seasonal help aboard their vessels, for positions ranging from waitstaff or housekeeping "stewards" to performers and babysitters at least on larger ships.

Plus, for basic entry level cruise ship positions, like being a steward, ships don't necessarily require previous experience. Also, considering the move towards more experiential travel and less "getaway experience" type travel, smaller cruise ships like Lindblad-National Geographic have cropped up as players in the ship scene.

Of course, Carnival and Princess Cruises are still the big boys or should we say boats? Both directly seek out candidates on their websites. You'll at the very least catch some jaw-dropping sunsets and have the most unique work experience of your life!

15 Tips for Saving Money for Your Gap Year | Go Overseas

When choosing a cruise ship job, however, keep in mind the type of atmosphere and locations each markets. Cruises come in all shapes and forms, from relaxing getaways in the Caribbean, sightseeing tours of Canada and Alaska, river cruises through Europe, or an adventure cruise from South America to Antarctica.

For more general information, All Cruise Jobs is a great all-encompassing resource. Either way you go, it's bound to be adventure. Although you won't necessarily get to hop off board while your ship as at port, we bet you'll at the very least catch some jaw-dropping sunsets and have the most unique work experience of your life!

If you've had experience with children or babysitting, then perhaps a gap year filled caring for children as an au pair is a good fit for you. Many times, families in non-native English speaking countries are looking for a nanny or au pair to not only look after their kids, but also help teach English.

The upside for you is that these au pair positions may also include a stipend or require the family to pay for you to study the local language while you're on your gap year -- meaning, an au pair gig in Spain may mean you gain more than just some spending money and a free place to live! Foreign languages not your thing? That's OK, we hear au pairing in Australia is pretty darn awesome , and there's definitely opportunities for you to become an au pair in England.

To start looking for these job openings, we first suggest leveraging your local connections. Networking, whether back in your home country or once you've moved to a new country , can be a powerful way to get a lead. However, if you don't have connections abroad, don't fret. Websites like Go Overseas' own au pairing abroad page, International Au Pair Association and Au Pair World help match up au pairs with families internationally. While camps are definitely a classic part of summer breaks, summer camps and after-school programs also exist throughout the world and are a great short term way to work with children abroad.

In general, summer or after-school camps offer varying lengths of commitment and request a range of expertise. Depending on where you go or who you choose to work with, you may be working with anyone from small kids to teenagers, playing sports, mentoring, teaching English, making crafts, or teaching music.

Summer camps and after-school programs also exist throughout the world and are a great short term way to work with children abroad. Companies like CCUSA allow you to pick a specific country and length of time for your camp job. This specific company does charge a program fee, but transportation, room and board, pocket money, and in-country support are included. We're also a fan of Global Camps Africa which sets up camp counselors with at risk youth in South Africa.

Alternatively, the ESL teaching world is full of opportunities to teach English at a summer camp , and often the best way to get a shorter teaching gig abroad. At times, travelers get to the point where they begin to feel more like a local than a tourist abroad. You've been living in your host country for a while now. You know the local spots, the language, and have a great group of friends.

With this level of familiarity, why not pass your local knowledge along as a tour guide or leader? Leverage your connections, ask around, or apply directly to a job opening. Also, understand that while tour companies will likely provide some training, they do want their guides to already be familiar and knowledgeable about the local spots.

Fluency in additional languages may also be required -- depending on where you're leading tours and where your groups are coming from.

Paid Jobs Abroad: Find paid work and travel with Gap

To get started on your search, look up which tour companies operate in your city or country and check their "work for us" or "employment" page. Bus2alps and New Europe Tours , for example, are larger tour companies that offer tours in multiple cities.

For broader searches, job forums like Indeed are a good place to start pinpointing certain providers. For more resources, we also recommend that you take a look at ITMIT and reading up on National Geographic's tips on how to be a tour guide.

Worldwide, people just like you are mixing drinks and frothing lattes for strangers, and, for the most part, this skill set translates nicely even across international borders. Again, to find a bartender or barista job abroad, tap into your networks, apply in person once you're in a country, and scour job forums like Job Street , Alliance Abroad , and Gap In the end though, you'll have the most success applying from within the country.

Particularly in areas that have high backpacking traffic, going into these hotspots is a great way to talk directly to the manager and show your willingness right off the bat. The best part is you can complete your assignments from anywhere in the world -- so long as it has halfway decent wifi. Naturally, this does require that you have a certain marketable skill set, and will likely take you a bit of time to set up before you start getting paid work, so we recommend you work on this before you leave for your gap year.

Also keep in mind that even if you're working remotely from a jaw-droppingly beautiful beach, you'll still have to actually set aside time to work. A few lucky souls may even find employment as travel writers , the epitomized "holy grail" of all travel jobs.

Programmes - Year Out Group - Gap Year | Cultural Exchange | Voluntary Work Abroad

Of course, it takes a lot of working for nothing and blogging before you can legitimately call this a career. Although we only listed thirteen ideas, the choices for a fantastic gap year job are limitless. There are even whole forums and dedicated to Gap Year Jobs, like Gap Work , Go Overseas Gap Year Jobs , and GapYear.

To really make the most of it, find something that really speaks to you and venture off on your quest with the confidence knowing that you can finance yourself while still seeing the world! Even before graduating from college, Laura knew she wanted to explore more of the world and work in a different country. Her persistent urge to experience new cultures has her currently stationed teaching English in Hong Kong.

When not doing the whole English-teaching thing, Laura loves exploring new places, hiking, playing the piano, and enjoying some nice bread and cheese. View the discussion thread. Travel insurance from WorldNomads is available to people from over countries. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Taiwan Tanzania Thailand Tibet Togo Turkey Uganda Ukraine United States of America Uruguay Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Zambia Zimbabwe.

Behold thirteen of our favs: English Teacher Okay, okay, you probably have heard about this one. Hostel Staff Many people spend the better part of their gap year in and out of hostels.

Gap Year Volunteer Programs | International Volunteer HQ

Roadie Speaking of being behind the scenes in the music industry, serious music fanatics can always follow their passion across the world working as a roadie, helping with equipment moving and setting up for concerts.

Volunteer Organization Staff No, volunteering on a gap year is not the same thing as having a gap year job. Cruise Ship Staff Ahoy! Au Pair If you've had experience with children or babysitting, then perhaps a gap year filled caring for children as an au pair is a good fit for you. Summer Camp Counselor While camps are definitely a classic part of summer breaks, summer camps and after-school programs also exist throughout the world and are a great short term way to work with children abroad.

Tour Leader At times, travelers get to the point where they begin to feel more like a local than a tourist abroad. Money, Money, Money Although we only listed thirteen ideas, the choices for a fantastic gap year job are limitless. Hostel Staff , Global Panorama , Elizabeth Caletka, Digital Nomadz , and Tour Guide Verona. Browse by Category All Articles Study Abroad Volunteer Abroad Teach Abroad Intern Abroad High School Abroad Gap Year Abroad Language Schools TEFL Courses Parents Company News.

How to Make the Most of Your Study Abroad Experience. A Day in the Life of a Volunteer Abroad. Lessons Learned from 5 Years of Writing for Go Overseas. Travel Insurance Travel insurance from WorldNomads is available to people from over countries.

Subscribe to the Newsletter. Company About Us Jobs Press Blog Contact Us. Providers Login Start Here Advertise Hire Teachers.

Community Login How It Works Review Guidelines Scholarships.