Blog Article: Reflecting on my Gap Year Learning in India
Izzy- Geetanjali School , India (2019/20)
How did you find returning to Coll and reuniting with your cohort after 3 years?
Being back on Coll after so many years was so surreal. I don’t think it really sunk in until we arrived, that we were actually going back. It was so amazing after so many years to be able to have the opportunity to share our experiences together and see the Project Trust team and Coll again. I am lucky enough to still see a lot of my friends who I went to India with, but being able to go back to where it all started brought up so many emotions that I didn’t realise I had and made me so grateful for this whole experience. Coll has so many happy memories for me, and I feel like being able to go back gave me the best closure to my Project Trust experience I could have wished for.
How has your experience with Project Trust shaped what you have gone on to do?
Before I left for India, I was not sure what I wanted to do, but from working with the children at my school and finding joy in helping them with their progression I decided to apply to university. I am currently studying Social Work at the University of Edinburgh, which I truly do not believe I would have had the drive or confidence to do before my time away with Project Trust. I developed so many skills necessary for my degree and gained invaluable experiences that have helped me get to where I am today.
What was your favourite part about the 19/20 Debriefing?
My favourite part of Debriefing was definitely being able to reminisce about India all these years later, with the people who also experienced it and with new people who were so interested to hear. Being able to mix with other country groups not only gave me new Project Trust friends but also allowed me an insight into other people’s experiences. (We also got to swim in the ocean whilst the seals were there which was so fun. They kept popping their heads up and making us laugh).