UK government to fund 500 gap-year scholarships
What an idea—the government paying you to go abroad.
That’s exactly what the UK government has started doing for some new graduates who are struggling to find work.
In collaboration with Raleigh International, they’re offering scholarships for 500 people to get a leg up on their communication and leadership skills. The graduates will travel on 10-week expeditions to Borneo, India, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua, working on community and environmental volunteer projects. In total, the government is giving Raleigh International £500,000 (these trips usually cost £3,000 per person).
That said, it’s not entirely free for the graduates. The intent is to support people who would not otherwise be able to fund something like this, but they still have to raise £1,000, buy their own flights, and cover vaccinations.
Some people are questioning the program because it’s coming from taxpayers’ money in a bad economy. Others are offended that they had to struggle to earn the money themselves in the past—like the rest of us—and they were better off for the experience.
But isn’t it tempting to wish that the U.S. offered the same type of scholarship?
As added proof that volunteering/working/traveling abroad is fodder for the resume, check out Raleigh’s research results, which shows that “90% of recruiters will rely on candidates’ non-academic achievements when deciding which applicants to put forward for highly-sought after graduate jobs.”
August 12th, 2009 at 7:16 am
I appreciate what you offer here about recruiters looking at a person’s “nonacademic achievements,” as evidence for whether they will receive a valued placement. If all employers, organizations, and governing systems were to concentrate on selecting leaders that could demonstrate (through their documented life experiences) that they have the “emotional fortitude” and “know how” for getting along well (in the complex relational and cultural arenas of the world), we’d have much more functional companies, organizations, and political systems.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:01 am
Interesting article. Leave it to the UK to think of something like a scholarship program to send students abroad. It’s interesting that 90% of recruiters are relying on candidates “non-academic” achievements. This is definitely a change from the old way of looking at a candidate. Usually, recruiters and employers look at at person’s GPA and work experience. Perhaps we are shifting into a new era of how employees are hired and what recruiters and employers are looking for in a candidate. Time will tell.