Do you dream of travelling and working abroad? Are you ready to trade your cosy little room for a mattress on the floor with ten strangers in the same space? Advertising brochures paint a picture of the Garden of Eden, but the reality of international exchange and employment programmes often turns out to be an honest reality check – where the bet is your nerves, money and health.
We decided to conduct our own investigation and check the information about different international programmes: what are the real living conditions, where promises of mountains of gold turn out to be just talk, and where people are genuinely taken care of. We looked into reviews and spoke to participants of major international programmes.
WORK AND TRAVEL: THE PERFECT PART-TIME JOB AND A TRIP OF A LIFETIME, OR COCKROACHES AND FLOOR MATTRESSES?
Work and Travel is one of the most hyped student programmes out there. You head to the US, work over the summer, travel around, and improve your English. The websites are full of happy students posing in front of the Statue of Liberty. But the reality, according to thousands of participant reviews, often turns out to be shocking.
The biggest issue Work and Travel students run into when they arrive is accommodation. The official brochures promise “comfortable housing”, but in reality, people end up in wrecked trailers, cheap roadside motels, or even restaurant basements. An Associated Press investigation collected dozens of first-hand accounts.
