English speaking USA and Canada are among the top destinations forngap year travelers seeking adventure and meaningful experiences. This vast continent offers a diverse range of gap year projects, including environmental volunteer work, paid care jobs, and work and travel opportunities. Many students opt to participate in short-term courses that allow them to explore multiple cities and regions across the US and Canada, making the most of their gap year through travel and cultural exchange. Alternatively, you might choose a more permanent role that includes a wage, enabling you to fund your travels before your working holiday visa expires.
Both the United States and Canada are renowned as lands of opportunity, welcoming international travelers and making it easy to settle in without much culture shock. The close ties to the UK, combined with the widespread use of English language programmes and work abroad opportunities, mean that gap year students can find a variety of volunteering, internships, and work programs across North America.
Whether you want to stay and work in one city or travel around to experience the diverse landscapes and vibrant communities, North America offers unforgettable gap year experiences. Explore the possibilities of volunteering abroad, working in Canada or the United States, or learning new skills, your adventure begins here.
Come on down to the beautiful Alberta in Canada and experience the openness of Canadian Marlboro country and be part of a local farming family! The program is not only about farming; it is a cultural exchange program where candidates get a real inside of Canadian culture, traditions and mentality!
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Fronteering
Duration: 10 days
Join a National Geographic Tour of a Lifetime at our beautiful dive camp in the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve in order to improve your dive skills, learn about the marine environment, survey and hunt and dissect invasive lionfish, and contribute to valuable marine research. More Details..
Train with professional ski instructors and gain your own qualifications that will allow you to teach in the same season. Following your course, become a snow sports instructor in Canada or Austria and earn money whilst enjoying the season on these fantastic slopes! More Details.. Oyster Worldwide
Take this unique volunteerig opportunity and help this amazing wildlife centre who specializes in the care and rehabilitation of orphaned and injured animals! Come now and offer you skills and energies in this great cause! More Details.. Fronteering
Become a qualified ski instructor in the world-class resort of Whistler! Spend your days on the mountain, earning money and teaching kids to ski. We include a Level One Ski Instructor course and are recruiting right now!
More Details.. Oyster Worldwide
Are you 18-26? Do you hold a UK driving license?
Earn $$$$ as an Au Pair in America with accommodation, food & flights included!! Travel in your spare time and gain valuable work experience whilst living and working in the USA. More Details.. Gap 360
Sports are huge at camp; Soccer/Football, Tennis, Gymnastics, Basketball, Golf, Archery, Baseball, Dance, and Swimming are just a few of the activities you could be teaching at camp.
Whatever your skills and interests are, you can teach and get involved in those at camp! Apply now! More Details..
PMGY offer some of the most amazing childcare volunteer projects in gorgeous, exotic locations abroad from 1-week to 6-months. More Details.. Plan My Gap Year
PMGY offer some of the most amazing teaching volunteer projects in gorgeous, exotic locations abroad from 1-week to 6-months. More Details.. Plan My Gap Year
PMGY offer some of the most amazing medical volunteer projects in gorgeous, exotic locations abroad from 2-weeks to 6-months. More Details.. Plan My Gap Year
Duration:
Work in rural Australia with horse or farm work, do hospitality in the cosmopolitan cities of Sydney or Auckland, earn money teaching in Thailand or Vietnam, or work on a Canadian ski resort. Travel, gain experience, get to know the locals & enhance your CV! More Details.. Oyster Worldwide
Duration: 3 - 12 weeks
Discover the largest barrier reef in the western hemisphere by volunteering with Blue Ventures at our remote, palm-dotted dive camp. Help us collect critical marine inventory data together with our science and dive professionals in a UNESCO World Heritage listed Marine Reserve and National Park. More Details..
Duration: Up to 10 weeks
You will be spending your summer months working at a fantastic summer camp in the USA! Wild Packs specialise in finding summer camp jobs (based all over America) for hundreds of young people every year. We look to support enthusiastic individuals who are eager for a challenge! More Details..
Be a part of an amazing team working towards the conservation of wildlife on Kangaroo Island! Based in South Australia’s most iconic wilderness filled with an abundance of wildlife on the Australian Galapagos, this experience is the perfect opportunity for you to immerse yourself in nature! More Details.. Fronteering
Take up this great volunteer project that is located on the east side of the Rocky Mountains in Alberta! They specializes in research, wildlife rehabilitation and the breeding of endangered Canadian wildlife and apart from this, they care for dogs and cats to finance the entire project! More Details.. Fronteering
For a minimum of 8 weeks you will volunteer and live in Bunbury where you will help with the Conservation, Education, Tourism and Research of the local bottlenose dolphins! Meet volunteers and tourists from all over the world on a daily basis and create long lasting friendships! More Details.. Fronteering
To learn a new language, we feel that the best way is to completely immerse yourself within the culture of the country who's language you are learning. With ESL you will go straight into a unique opportunity to learn new languages while on a long-term learning, cultural adventure. More Details..
Duration: 14 weeks (the whole summer season)
Working in housekeeping or the food department in a Canadian hotel is the perfect opportunity to work through summer, exploring a new country and earning money during your stay. With plenty of free time to venture into the surrounding countryside, this role offers a unique opportunity. More Details.. Oyster Worldwide
Rehabilitate, rescue and care for indigenous wildlife throughout Canada and the USA. From Rockies in Canada to Florida swamps, Arizona deserts and the tropics of Hawaii! Our wildlife projects aim to rescue and rehabilitate animals such as bears, raccoons & bald eagles and ultimately release them. More Details.. Fronteering
PMGY offer some of the most amazing Under 18 volunteer projects in gorgeous, exotic locations abroad from 1-week to 6-months. More Details.. Plan My Gap Year
Duration:
Working in a summer camp in the US is one of the most rewarding, challenging, exciting and fun adventures you can go on. Spend your summer in the American sunshine, making friends from all over the world, working with kids in an area you love and are passionate about. More Details..
Want to do something completely different with your summer?
How about spending it working on an amazing camp in the USA?
We have thousands of positions available to work an amazing summer camps in America! Roles include; Sports, Performing Arts, Watersports, Media, Outdoor Adventure. Apply now More Details..
Duration:
Make a real difference with Oyster’s global network of charities and organizations! Take part in an adventure to volunteer with exotic wildlife and support environmental conservation in breath-taking locations. Choose your own adventure length, from one thrilling week to an exhilarating 12 months. More Details.. Oyster Worldwide
PMGY offer some of the most amazing wildlife conservation volunteer projects in gorgeous, exotic locations abroad from 1-week to 6-months. More Details.. Plan My Gap Year
Plan My Gap Year is an award-winning volunteer travel organisation, working across 17 countries in Africa, Asia & South America. PMGY provide a safe, structured and social experience with opportunities available from 1-36 weeks. More Details.. Plan My Gap Year
Duration: 2 weeks to 6 months
Our gap year programs in North America can be tailored to your needs and dreams. Combine group tours with a working holiday and book everything you need in one place - from flights to travel insurance and all of your activities. You choose where you want to go and what you want to do. More Details.. KILROY
Popular North American Destinations:
USA, Canada
Quick America Facts:
Population - 500 million
Languages - English, and French in Canada
Visa Information:
You will need a working holiday visa. Check with the Foreign Office for more information!
The USA and Canada cover such a vast area (Canada is the second largest country in the world by area, and USA the third), which means there really is something for everyone. The USA has some of the major cities of the world like New York and San Francisco where you'll find famous landmarks and diverse cultures. Canada is considered the must visit country for wilderness lovers because you'll find amazing ski resorts high up in the mountains, the most rugged and spectacular landscapes and some of the most famous natural wonders of the world like Niagara Falls.
A popular choice by thousands of British travellers each year is to teach a range of activities to children at one of the many Summer Camps throughout North America. This is a fantastic option if you want to spend time working in a foreign country and building your experience, perhaps before or during university, and it allows you to earn money to fund further travel after the job finishes meaning you can make the most of your time overseas and see as much of the country as possible.
For those who want some action and adventure on their North American gap year, why not try a mountain biking course or train as a ski instructor and work a season at one of the top resorts in Canada. Work on a ranch in the USA, or help out as a community volunteer in a school, or wildlife centre. The choices are endless.
The ten provinces and three territories of Canada form a country larger than the United States. Canada is a land of contrasts; the vast, flat wheat producing prairies, sit alongside the towering, jagged peaks of the Canadian Rockie Mountains. In such a landscape, gap years come in all shapes and sizes. Make sure you check the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for travel advice, and visa information. And research the climate for the part of Canada you are heading to as the temperature extremes of hot and cold are far greater than we are used to in the UK.
Improve your skiing and snowboarding technique and qualify to teach the basics to tourists at some of Canada's premier winter resorts, including Whistler and Lake Louise. Some of the courses offered by our advertisers below also guarantee a paid job at the end of your gap year course. Alternatively enjoy a month long mountain biking course designed to improve your skills and allow you to experience some single track we can only dream of here in the UK.
Get help with finding employment in Canada with support, advice and tips from some of the best gap year companies. There is a wide range of work available if you are persistent and are flexible about the type of work you are willing to do. There are season opportunities in the winter sports resorts, and when the snow melts you will find plenty of work in bars and cafes, harvest work, and jobs on farms.
Whilst cities like Vancouver and Toronto with their incredible standards of living are popular places to visit and live, one of the main attractions for many people visiting Canada is the wilderness. An almost incomprehesible amount of land is still completely untamed and is a big pull for people looking for a true outdoor adventure. Perhaps you could fill your Canadian gap year with a few weeks under canvas on a guided tour of the great outdoors.
