Today, more and more young people choose traveling over college. Sometimes, they simply take their right of the gap year and use it for seeing the world. In other cases, young people are more eager to educate themselves while experiencing real life rather than learning about it in the classroom setting. Overall, there are many ways to educate yourself, and traveling is surely one of them. It can grant young people an extremely valuable learning experience. Let’s see the many ways young people can learn while traveling and the reasons why it can be considered more effective than going to college.
Personal growth and self-discovery (challenge)
Traveling puts you as far from your comfort zone as you can possibly imagine. It will often come as a challenge. However, that’s ultimately a good thing. You learn to be more resilient, independent, and flexible by challenging yourself. You invest in personal growth and embark on the self-discovery journey.
College offers many things, from specialized knowledge to structured learning and resources. Yet, it doesn’t focus on your personal development. In fact, it may even stumble your development for a while by refocusing your attention on academic pursuits. However, all young people need to learn who they are and what they want before seeking a career perspective and narrow knowledge.
Travel will force you to navigate unfamiliar territories and complex situations, where you will have to grow stronger and more confident. Such lessons will help you take a deep look within and discover who you are, your values, and your priorities in life.
Global perspective
You can learn most of the college topics firsthand while simply traveling the world. You can observe different cultures, their traditions, history, laws, social and economic structures, and environmental conditions, all while traveling. In fact, such an approach will give you better insights into the true state of things. Connecting with your learning subjects on a personal level will broaden your understanding of the world and given issues. It will also help you expand your worldview in various aspects of life, such as career choices, decision-making, and engaging with global challenges. By seeing the world, learning more about it, and meeting diverse new people, you learn about all the possibilities open to you in professional, creative, and personal pursuits. And what concerns the rest of the knowledge? You can always see more on writingpapersucks.com.
Communication skills and friendships
Travelers face numerous opportunities to meet and connect with new people. The more you change your locations and explore new environments, the more people you encounter. Not only such exposure to constant socialization should improve your communication skills. But it will also lead to more valuable and meaningful connections.
So, first, these young people need to step up their social game and communicate with lots of strangers on a daily basis. That’s how you get around new places, learn about hidden gems, and make friends along the way. After a while, travelers build a better understanding of human nature and themselves, which helps them build relationships on a deeper level with absolutely anyone.
Secondly, while college also offers opportunities for new connections, they are often limited to people from a specific field, interests, and background. There is nothing wrong with it, especially when you need networking for potential professional opportunities. However, you need to meet diverse people to build special connections and personal friendships. Travel opens a way to unique experiences, cultural exchange, and collective memories.
Practical skills
Being an independent young traveler comes with certain requirements. You must grow up fast and build all the necessary skills and personal qualities to survive in an ever-changing environment. Young people will have to start with budgeting, planning, navigation, and communication skills. These are essential for safe and rewarding experiences in new locations.
Later, these skills will result in more nuanced and complex skills, including flexibility, adaptability, problem-solving, and more. You will even learn about traveling and earning money. Overall, travelers have to encounter and integrate with different cultures and environments, which fosters the development of these traits. Yet, all these special skills are also highly valued in the modern world and professional market. Our society and technological progress is changing rapidly, and those capable of keeping up and adapting make better competition.
Alternative education
Education doesn’t solely belong to curriculums and classrooms. College can’t teach you everything about the world. Traveling offers people alternative educational experiences, which can’t be attained in any other way. Thus, you can learn from the people you meet. You can work on yourself while responding to new challenges and changes in the environment. Plus, you can always seek to educate yourself while on the road.
Young people can find educational opportunities wherever they go. These include visiting historical sites, museums, and other natural or human-made places of significance. Young people can also seek historical guides or read books on places they visit. They can also engage in volunteer work or participate in cultural activities that provide unique insights into places’ history, traditions, norms, etc. Overall, plenty of educational opportunities go beyond traditional academic settings.
Wrapping up
At the end of the day, the choice between traveling and going to college depends on individual goals, aspirations, and personal circumstances. It’s possible to combine both experiences by pursuing higher education after traveling, taking a gap year, traveling in between semesters, or studying abroad. Both educational experiences will provide different benefits and lessons, valuable in real life.