BootsnAll Travel Community

This is a tad lengthy, but I figure the more specific I am the better advice I'll be able to get.

I'm posting this in search for advice for two people (my girlfriend and I) to spend a gap year between university and grad school working abroad.

Here's all the information I think is relevant:

-At the time of going abroad (Late summer or fall 08) I'll be 22 and she'll be 23.
-I have dual US/EU citizenship via Ireland. She is only a US citizen.
-I'll be a recent graduate, but she graduated Spring 07 so she'll have been out of college for over a year. (I've found that this is a problem because some programs only want people who have been full-time students in the last year).
-I have a little Spanish (up to AP in high school, for what it's worth).
-We're willing to any kind of work, as long as training is provided. And making money is not the point of this, but we'd like to try to at least break even, or at least not fall too far into the debt.
-We'd like to go somewhere in Europe, but South America, Australia, New Zealand, or maybe somewhere else would be okay too.

From what I've looked up, it seems like we're going to want to go with a US-based program that places us in a foreign country, especially in Europe--since from what I've read it's very hard for a non-EU citizen to get a work visa.

In particular I've looked into the BUNAC program in New Zealand. They want about $500 to take care of the visa process, provide accomodation for the first few nights, and provide ongoing assistance with finding accomodation and a job. They also offer deals on flights and travel insurance.

So far I've read mixed reviews about whether or not it's worth it go with BUNAC, or whether we should just do it on our own.

Any thoughts on BUNAC, or any other suggestions on ways for us to spend a year abroad, would be greatly, greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

You don't need to pay anyone to find a decent TEFL job. Some employers will provide you with minimal initial training, but many will also expect you to just find your way on your own.

You can train yourself at: TEFL Boot Camp - not the same as a US$1500 course - but it is free.

Some areas of East Asia you can save about US$1000 a month pretty easily - if you went in that direction it might be worth paying for a good TEFL training program.

Good look at the jobs list at Dave's EFL Cafe - plenty of jobs! Go get 'em!

Hey. I am currently in New Zealand on a WHV. I have done it both ways...through BUNAC and now through immigration (giving me a total of two years here...yay! way to work the system). If you want to go on your own, just get travel insurance through Orbit Protect. It's pretty cheap and you won't waste the money on BUNAC. BUNAC is pretty worthless when it comes to helping you out (at least in my experience with them). Hope this helps!

Oh, nice. I totally forgot about posting this thread, but I'm glad to get a response from someone who's actually had experience with BUNAC.

If you don't mind me asking, I have a few questions about going through the process without BUNAC. How long did it take to get your WHV? BUNAC said to apply with them 2 months in advance, but if it takes longer without BUNAC that'd be good to know.

How did you go about finding accomodations without BUNAC? I'd like to find a pre-furnished apartment to rent, since buying furniture for a year isn't practical--if you have a website that could point me in that direction that'd be great.

And, lastly, did you just buy your plane tickets through an ordinary service like travelocity or orbitz when you went on your own? The other appeal of BUNAC is their 24-month validity ticket.

Thanks!