Africa & Asia Venture - Inspirational Gap Year Programs

19/11/2024

Take our Gap Year Quiz to find your perfect gap year program ☝️

It's a window of opportunity, so be sure to maximise your time. With Africa & Asia Venture (AV), you'll experience a meaningful and fully immersive volunteering project with adventure and fun.

15/11/2024

🌟 IMPACTFUL - Meaningful projects with a positive impact on local communities & your personal development.

🌟 IMMERSIVE - Don't be a tourist. We fully immerse you in the local culture.

🌟 INDEPENDENT - We are a specialist independent Gap Year company with our own programs. We never rely on 3rd parties.

Just three reasons why you should consider Africa & Asia Venture (AV) for your summer or gap year. Find the link in our bio if you want to learn more about our programs ☝️

15/11/2024

🌟 IMPACT - Meaningful projects with a positive impact on local communities & your personal development.

🌟 IMMERSION - Don't be a tourist. We fully immerse you in the local culture.

🌟 INDEPENDENT - We are a specialist independent Gap Year company with our own programs. We never rely on 3rd parties.

Just three reasons why you should consider Africa & Asia Venture (AV) for your summer or gap year. Find the link in our bio if you want to learn more about our programs ☝️

12/11/2024

Molly (AV India) tells us more about why her AV experience was so meaningful.

"I meet many sceptics who wondered what good I could do in 3 months of volunteering. I have told them all the same story of a little boy named Dawaden Lepcha.

When we first met Dawaden, he struggled to point out the few animal names he knew in English, but he was always very enthusiastic about goats. He couldn't even tell us his name. For 3 months he never left our side and was one of the first at our door in the morning and would often fall asleep in the night school (when we were learning Lepcha language) or in our little porch. He played in almost every football and cricket match we organised and even bought his goats to pasture outside our house.

He was in class 4 and one of the youngest of the class. Some of his classmates were 13 and Dawaden was only 10. His mother stopped us one day on our way to school and, despite not speaking a word of English, made it clear she was apologising for her son and how poorly he did at school. As we listened, it became clear that no one expected anything more of Dawaden than for him to raise goats. But we did.

We called on him in night school and in class, encouraging him when he got things right. We made everyone talk, and sing, and draw and ask questions. When it came time to cast our play we gave parts to everyone. Dawaden was our Sir John. He had two lines but was there every night for class and rehearsal, and even fashioned his own sword for the costume.

Zoe and I just couldn’t believe this was the same boy who couldn’t tell us his name three months earlier, now he was excited about nouns and verbs, volunteering to point countries on the world map and was the best in his class at synonyms. We gave him second place at the Lepcha festival and sure enough when we invited by his mother for dinner next week, his prize clock was mounted smack in the middle of his house and his mother was proudly showing it off to anyone who would listen. It is incredible for us to look back and realize that we helped him make such progress in English, and his confidence."

www.aventure.co.uk/gap-year-india

05/11/2024

We are always here to support our past volunteers. Charles Coldman, founder of charity .promise (and AV volunteer Kenya 2003), has been busy organising their annual carol service.

With a fabulous and star-studded line-up of performers, you'll be in for a joyful, festive evening.

Tickets are now on sale, so head over to their IG profile for more info 👇

Reposted from .promise Tickets on-sale now (link in bio)!

01/11/2024

⭐️ Experiencing India with a difference ⭐️
We work closely with the Lepcha community at the foothills of the Himalayas in Northern India to give you the opportunity to immerse yourself in a unique culture.

You will gain a special insight into their folklore, language, and history as you live and volunteer alongside your hosts.

The next group departs on 6 February 2025.

Want to learn more? Click the link in our bio ☝️

31/10/2024

Being part of the AV family is like getting a great big bear hug. If you want to know more about the AV experience, why not ask an AV volunteer?

Get in touch, and we'll put you on to a past volunteer who can give you the lowdown on what it's like to join team AV, everything from what to pack to life in a rural community. Link in the bio ☝️

29/10/2024

Planning a gap year can be completely overwhelming 🥴

With over 30 years experience in the gap year market, we are here to offer advice; discuss your needs; and answer your questions so we can help you have the best gap year possible!⭐️

Comment ADVICE below or DM us, and we'll book you in for our free one-to-one advice session. Let's start planning!

24/10/2024

🎶 Sharing your love of music on your gap year. It's a subject not covered on the curriculum at the schools we work with, so music lessons can be introduced to your pupils to enhance their learning experience.

You'll need to think on your feet and outside the box because there will be limited equipment available in school.

You will also have the opportunity to try a new instrument too! In India, your Lepcha hosts can teach you to play a Lepcha bamboo flute.

If your head is already swirling with ideas and you would like to share your skills with others on your gap year, DM us to learn more.

18/10/2024

A GAP YEAR = A WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY

Think carefully how to maximise your time.

With AV, you'll experience a meaningful and immersive volunteering project with adventure and fun.

But which AV project is right for you? Take our Gap Year Quiz ☝️

15/10/2024

Meet Grace & Khalfan, our Kenya team. These are the friendly faces welcoming you to Kenya and ensuring your gap year or summer experience runs smoothly.

We never use third-party providers to look after our AV volunteers. All of our in-country representatives are AV members of staff, which means they fully understand what AV is all about, treating you as an individual (not just a number) and helping you reach your gap year potential.

Did you know Africa & Asia Venture (AV) has been operating Gap Year programs since 1993? We celebrated the 30th anniversary of our first EVER AV program this year! 🥳 🎉

Want to know more? Head over to our website for the nitty gritty ☝️

08/10/2024

Our friends over at Travel Aware have written our latest blog and it's full of useful tips for organising travel insurance - a gap year essential!

Be sure not to depart without it https://www.aventure.co.uk/gap-year-essentials-travel-insurance/

03/10/2024

A gap year = a window of opportunity you're not likely to have again.

Think carefully about how to maximise your time.

Choose to volunteer with us, and you'll have the opportunity to share your skills with others while immersing yourself in a different culture, gaining valuable transferable skills for the future.

Oh, and did we mention there'll be bucket loads of fun and adventures, too!

But which destination is right for you? Take our Gap Year Quiz now ☝️

25/09/2024

23/09/2024

We've just heard from past volunteer Gina Rose-Saunders, with news of her recent visit to St Anthony's Nursery School. Here are a few pics from her two week trip where she introduced her two young children to the community, and shared equipment donations with the school.

Gina volunteered with us in Malawi back in 2001, and since then has been supporting the nursery school. Gina has continued to fundraise for the school and it's pupils to make sure they have the facilities they need for a happy and healthy start to school life. Gina's charity is just one of the charities we support through the AV Foundation (the charitable arm of Africa & Asia Venture (AV)).

If you would like to show your support for St Anthony's Nursery School 👉 www.thenurserymalawi.co.uk/

19/09/2024

If you think that your dream university won't support your plans to take a gap year, think again!

https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/apply/first-year-applicants/considering-gap-year
https://ocs.yale.edu/channels/gap-year-short-term-opportunities/
https://advising.stanford.edu/current-students/advising-student-handbook/taking-leave
https://admission.brown.edu/ask/deferring-enrollment
https://mitadmissions.org/help/faq/gap-year/

18/09/2024

With so many Gap Year options, planning a gap year can be completely overwhelming 🥴

With 30 years of experience in the gap year market, we are here to offer advice; discuss your needs; and answer your questions so we can help you have the best gap year possible!⭐️

Book your free one-to-one session www.aventure.co.uk/gap-year-advice. Let's start planning!

17/09/2024

Since 1993, we've welcomed over 6,000 volunteers to the AV family, who have contributed over 1,200 man years of service in our host communities across Africa and Asia.

We are extremely grateful to those young people who put their trust in us, a company who treat all volunteers as individuals. We take the time to get to know each and every AV before departure, supporting them 24/7 on project and even staying in touch beyond their time on AV, 'Once an AV, Always an AV!'

Here's to many more years working with young people who want to step out of their comfort zone, make a difference, and see the world differently.