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You don’t have to be Christian to take a gap year with Christian Aid. We work with people of all faiths and none.

Some placements involve working with evangelical, pentecostal and charismatic churches, but many others are looking for people to work with all of the youth groups in their area, including groups of other faiths.

The main concern is campaigning against poverty, regardless of religion.

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There are about 18 places available. If you care about overseas development issues and are passionate about communicating with young people, you’ve got a good chance.

But apply early, because we fill each place as soon as a suitable candidate comes along.

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If you’ve ever taught, led a youth group, organised a campaign or run a Christian Aid Pressurepoints project, you should have all the experience you need.

If you've got creative ideas and are confident communicating with young people, we'd love to hear from you.

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You'll be given initial training in your first few weeks, and get more training and support throughout the year. 

Depending on the work you do, you’ll improve your skills in:                                     

• working with young people and students
• public speaking
• campaigning
• writing for the web and for print materials
• events organisation.                                      

Find out more about the work by clicking through the year in your life page.

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No, you’ll get training on Christian Aid's campaigns, and you’ll learn through day-to-day work.

If you’re planning on spending a year campaigning with us, though, it’s important to know the basics. This website is the place to learn and do more. Start off with climate change and work your way on from there.

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We’ll find accommodation for you near your placement. This might be in a shared house, a student hostel or with a host family. We’ll pay for your accommodation and food.

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If you’re invited to an interview, you’ll be asked which of the available placements you’d most like.

We can’t guarantee you'll be placed there – it depends which applicant has the skills and experience each placement needs – but we will take your preference into account.

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You get lots of opportunities to choose the kind of work you’ll be doing, although it will also depend on the needs of the local office.

At the interview, and when you start work, you'll discuss the aspects of work you enjoy most with your supervisor and the gap team.

Some gap volunteers end up doing mostly youth work, some mostly student work; some do more work with church groups, others with general audiences – whatever you do, it will involve a mix of activities.

'The opportunities this year has opened up to me is staggering. In the last few months I have been involved in youth work, but also video production, concert promotion, journalism and a range of others. It sounds clichéd, but I have had a bit of an awakening about the potential for entering an ethical career path and making a difference.'
Scott, Belfast, 2004

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The gap year scheme is more about informal youth and student work than work with schools. We’ve got a network of Christian Aid teachers who lead assemblies and lessons with primary and secondary pupils. You might end up doing a bit of this work, and gap volunteers sometimes do things with after school groups.

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If you've read through these pages you should have a pretty good feel for the scheme. If you've still got questions, contact us and we'll see if we can help.

You can always apply and come along to the briefing day to find out more and then, if it doesn't seem right for you, you don't need to continue with the application.

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Click here to apply for the gap scheme