Fellow Stories
True gap year stories from Fellows abroad!
Check out the latest blogs from Global Citizen Year Fellows in Brazil, Ecuador, and India!
Category
Class Year
Country
Hello!
Natalia Fischl-Lanzoni
2017-08-24
My name is Natalia Fischl-Lanzoni, and I am 2 days away from embarking on my Global Citizen Year, which I will be spending in Ecuador! It's crazy to think that in just a few days, I will be leaving my home for 9 months and living in a place I've never been before, with people...
Read More‘Till I See You Again
McKenna Daily
2017-08-24
Hello all! As I embark on the biggest, most beautifully unpredictable journey of my life, I’m thinking too about what it means to leave the place I’ve always known. In light of those mixed feelings, I’m excited to share with you the first song of many, ‘Till I See You Again. Over these next eight...
Read MorePre-departure thoughts and feelings
Shauni Lustig
2017-08-24
These last few days have been full of slow days and quality time spent with quality people. By slow days I mean that we didn’t do much in those days but man, did they go by fast. My mind is constantly racing thinking about how much this experience is about to impact my life. This...
Read MoreWhy this gap year and what to expect
Gijs Smid
2017-08-24
It was a long back-and-forth process before I finally made the decision to go on this gap year. I can still picture all the pros and cons lists and all the people I’ve asked for advice (thank you if you were one of them! 🙂 ). So here I’ll share a bit of what made...
Read MoreA Digital Time-Capsule of My Life Pre-Travel
Sadie Troup
2017-08-23
Okay so I tried to write an intro about three times and I couldn't think of a good hook so this is what I've got; I am very nervous and very excited, and I think that those two have peacefully cancelled themselves out. I feel pretty good about everything right now. I could describe it...
Read More8/23/17: How I Got Here
Phuong Nguyen
2017-08-23
Yup. That’s me. You’re probably wondering how I got there. So for the purposes of this initial blog, let’s start in the beginning. The beginning of senior year that is. It was October, I had just received my rejection from Quest Bridge as a Finalist (which was, at least then, life ending). So the plan...
Read MoreBring it on
Danny DeBare
2017-08-21
Goodbyes are hard. Goodbye to my friends who have grown up with me for the past eighteen years. Goodbye to my family; the semi-regular family dinners and overly-competitive boardgames we all fight to win. Goodbye to my comfortable lifestyle and a routine I’ve grown to know all too well. As my days at home dwindle,...
Read MoreLost in Translation
Joseph Hansen
2017-08-19
We turned the corner and the dusty colonial archways gave way to a large wooden door left ajar. The rest of the group was catching up, my leader being the last one of us to call out “hoyo” (hole) letting us know we had all made it without falling into one of the abundant holes...
Read MoreVolunteer Programs are Inherently Selfish and Maybe That’s Okay?
Jamie Constantine
2017-08-18
I applied to Global Citizen Year because I am, as I believe all humans are, selfish. I knew I wanted to study abroad and Global Citizen Year checked off all of my boxes: Include host family stays Set in a Spanish speaking country Be affordable Offer a long stay in country Be volunteer based...
Read MoreThe “irresponsible” choice to take a gap year
Marli Anglim
2017-08-15
Being irresponsible has never been my thing. I have always made calculated and fully researched decisions, aiming to make the right choice. That is, until I found Global Citizen Year. I discovered GCY only a few days before the deadline to commit to college. At this point, I had completely decided to commit to a...
Read MoreNo Turning Back
Elizabeth Ollila
2017-08-14
If you had told me a year ago that I would be leaving to live in Ecuador in less than two weeks instead of going college I would have probably laughed. Not because I was shocked or disappointed, but because I never thought that I would actually have the guts to take a year to...
Read MoreDonations Welcome
Toluwani Roberts
2017-08-05
Thank you for all who have donated to Global Citizen Year’s Scholarship Fund. Your participation has brought me closer to my goal. 100% of the proceeds goes towards next year’s class of Fellows. Support our future leaders by clicking the link here: https://donate.globalcitizenyear.org/fundraise?fcid=991882 Thank you!
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