9 months. 6 countries. Real intimacy with Jesus, real community with a squad, real discipleship, real adventure, the first step into who God made you to be.
Most people your age are about to spend a year figuring out a major. You could spend it figuring out your life, on mission with Jesus.
World Race Gap Year is a 9-month adventure built for recent high school graduates who can feel that there's more. More than the next semester, the next job, the next thing everyone says you're supposed to do. It's an invitation into intimacy with Jesus, deep discipleship, authentic community, and the kind of adventure that rewrites what you thought your life could be.
You'll travel to six countries and serve alongside seasoned missionaries who are sharing the hope of Jesus and meeting real needs every single day. You'll lead VBS, sit with vulnerable children, build, pray with strangers who become family, and learn what your faith is actually made of, not as a missions trip you took, but as a life lived on mission.
You won't do it alone. You'll do it with a squad, a community that chose the same terrifying, beautiful yes you did. You'll be discipled and learn to disciple others. You'll laugh and wrestle and worship together in places most people will never see, and come home knowing who you are and Whose you are.
Your journey begins at our campus in Gainesville, GA, where you're trained, discipled, and equipped before you launch. When your time on the field comes to a close, you'll debrief with your squad before heading home with purpose.
Gap Year is not a year off, and it's not a missions trip. It's the launching pad for a life lived on mission, seeking first the Kingdom of God for the rest of your days.
Every Gap Year follows the same three-part journey, discipled at home, sent on mission to the world, and walked back home to live it out wherever you go next.
Before you go anywhere, you get discipled. You'll set up camp at our headquarters in Gainesville, GA and build healthy Christian community with your squad while growing in intimacy with Jesus, learning to lead yourself and others, and preparing for cross-cultural ministry.
You'll serve alongside long-term missionaries already spreading the Gospel and meeting tangible needs. You'll immerse in another culture, use the gifts God gave you, disciple and be discipled, and become the hands and feet of Jesus to a world that's desperate for His love.
Before you fly home, you'll debrief right there on the field with the community you built, taking time to process everything Jesus did in and through you. You'll discover that being on mission isn't only for overseas, and you'll turn intimacy, community, and discipleship into a lifestyle, a launching pad for whatever's next: college, career, family, or full-time ministry. The adventure doesn't end when you land. It's just the beginning.
A once-in-a-lifetime, cross-cultural adventure. See the world, learn to live on mission, and discover who God made you to be.
Develop your ability to lead yourself and others. Take ownership of your choices and set an example for those around you.
Encounter Jesus in deep, transformative ways. Cultivate intimacy with the Father and a solid biblical foundation, discipled by leaders who've gone before you.
Be the hands and feet of Jesus. Experience the power of Christ-centered community and form friendships that last a lifetime.
Discover your God-given calling while meeting real needs. Share the Gospel, make disciples, and serve the church the way Jesus did, by sending and being sent.
Not just a missions trip, a lifestyle. Alumni are equipped to thrive in college, careers, communities, and ministries, living on mission wherever God calls them next.
Each route is its own calling, different countries, different ministry, the same invitation into intimacy with Jesus, community with your squad, deep discipleship, and a year of adventure lived on mission. Apply once, rank your favorites, and step into the year God is writing for you.
Sit with the overlooked. Become a steady, safe presence for a child who has been quietly praying for someone to show up. This is ministry that focuses on loving kids, strengthening families, and serving communities holistically.
Paul said it plain: he planted, Apollos watered, and God made it grow. Three jobs, and only one of them belongs to us.
The Bible says God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Not one or the other. Both. He cares about the gash on a kid's foot and the wound nobody can see, and He sends His people to tend to both.
Jesus said something that should stop us cold: "I was a stranger, and you welcomed me." He took it personally. The way we treat the person far from home, the one nobody else made room for, He counts as how we treat Him.
Two treks. One road walked by a thousand years of pilgrims before you. Put one foot in front of the other across the Camino and beyond, until you can finally hear what God's been saying all along.
The route you most want to live. Recruit your friends to this one.
Where you're placed if your first choice doesn't reach its launch minimum.
Still six countries of life-changing ministry. There are no bad routes.
Each route needs a minimum number of participants to launch. If your first choice doesn't fill, you'll be placed on your next-ranked route, which is exactly why ranking matters, and why recruiting your friends matters even more.
Apply in about 15 minutes, review the five routes and rank your favorites, then schedule your interview with an admissions advisor.
Once accepted, your $200 deposit locks your spot. You're paired with an admissions advisor who's fundraised for their own trip and will coach you through a proven, relationship-based process.
Meet your fundraising deadlines and finish your pre-training requirements, paperwork, vaccinations, reading, and spiritual prep, so you arrive ready to launch.
Set up camp at our headquarters for intensive preparation with your squad: worship, training, team building, and ministry prep. This is where strangers become family.
Your squad deploys to your route. New countries, new ministries, new community, every week deeper into the life God created you to live. Then home to activate it all (Return: 5/31/2028).
Each route requires a minimum number of participants to launch. If your first-choice route doesn't meet its minimum, you'll be placed on your next-ranked route. Bring your friends to your top route, it's the best way to make sure it goes.
Money is the #1 reason people hesitate. It doesn't need to be. We've walked thousands through this exact process, and when God calls, He provides.
Your trip cost covers a lot, but not everything. Plan and budget for these on top of your fundraising goal.
Getting yourself to Gainesville, GA is on you.
We fly you into a U.S. airport; getting from there to your front door is up to you.
Travel-clinic visits, required and recommended vaccines, and prescriptions.
Personal spending on the field isn't built into the trip cost.
Coffee, souvenirs, SIM cards, and other comforts on the field.
Your pack, shoes, clothing, and route-specific gear. See the packing guide.
"Gap Year held some of the most challenging months of my life but also some of the most life-giving. Before I went I thought I knew Jesus, after living as a missionary for 7 months, I realized there was so much more to learn. It gave me a safe community to ask the hard questions, and the race didn't have to end when I got home; I get to keep living for the Kingdom for the rest of my life."
"I loved my time on the Race. Gap Year opened my eyes and heart to more of who Jesus is. There were endless opportunities to see Him move through me and in me. I became more confident in who He's called me to be and left with a deeper hunger for Jesus, and a strong foundation for my faith for the rest of my life."
"I learned what it looked like to have consistent character through refinement by the Holy Spirit and the community around me. I was pushed to greater dependence on the Father by living out ministry as a lifestyle, not just a mission trip, a place of genuine intimacy that will be a catalyst for the rest of my life."
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By participating, you commit to these expectations, and your leadership team will walk alongside you to live them out.
Because of your relationship with Jesus, you commit to spreading the Kingdom of God with your words and actions. "The kingdom of heaven has come near… Freely you have received; freely give." (Matthew 10:7–8)
You commit to putting expectations, entitlement, comfort, friends, and family second to following Jesus. (Luke 14:26)
You're committed to becoming more like Jesus by running your race with a "yes" in your spirit, moving forward from past sin and wounds by renewing your thoughts and choices. (Hebrews 12:1–2)
You'll hope for the best in every situation, even when it's hard, and live without complaining or arguing. (Philippians 2:14–15)
You'll take responsibility for your behavior, time management, financial stewardship, hygiene, and honoring those around you, and abstain from all alcohol, drugs, and tobacco for the duration of your race. (1 Corinthians 10:23)
You'll serve and submit to your squad and leadership as the body of Christ, forming relationships that are emotionally safe and vulnerable, and disciple others in truth and love. (John 13:35, Ephesians 4:15–16)
Unless you were in a committed dating relationship before acceptance, you'll refrain from pursuing romantic relationships during the race, to keep your eyes set on things above. (Colossians 3:2)
It's important to bring God to the center of your life while making big decisions. An intentional year can actually propel you into making the most of college, or whatever you decide to do. We've seen students do great things, in college and after, because they took a season to seek God's heart while serving His people.
We're built around four things woven together: intimacy with Jesus, authentic community, deep discipleship, and real adventure on mission. It's not a missions trip you take, it's a lifestyle you learn. You'll go to more countries than the average gap year program and learn the same way Jesus taught His disciples: by sending them out.
Every day looks a little different. Some days are full, construction, leading VBS, praying for the sick. Some are slower, shopping at the market, cooking for your team, praying through the community. It depends on our partners' needs, but every day is focused on God's Kingdom work.
We're looking for racers with good attitudes and a willingness to grow, people passionate about seeing God's Kingdom come to life. Ministry and travel experience help, but they're not required.
Gap Year is for ages 17–20, based on your launch window (you must turn 17 by the launch date). If you're over 20, check out the World Race Expedition for ages 21–30.
Yes. We pair you with an admissions advisor who's fundraised for their own trip, and you only raise a portion before you leave, the rest while you're on the field. The amount averages to less than $62 a day, and you'll be fundraising it through a proven, relationship-based process. When God calls, He provides.
Routes fill unevenly and we can only launch a limited number per route. Your spot is secured by the date you pay your $200 deposit. Routes are marked "Join Waitlist" near capacity and "Full" when we stop accepting applications.
Not necessarily. The order may shift based on logistics, partner availability, and seasonal factors. You'll serve alongside local ministry partners in each country.
We get it. We've walked thousands of families through this, from safety and logistics to the spiritual growth you'll watch unfold. Our Parent Ministry team is here for every question you have.
Here's what we know: we'll be here to guide you through every step. You will never walk this alone, your squad, your leaders, and the Spirit of Jesus go with you. A year of intimacy, community, discipleship, and adventure starts with a 15-minute application and a $200 deposit.
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