Travel on a Gap Year mission trip from the rainforest of Costa Rica to the squatter camps, coastal towns and deserts of Africa. After three weeks of language school in the city of San Jose, you'll be fully immersed into indigenous life in Costa Rica's remote Talamanca region. This laid-back way of life and ministry will help you slow down and learn to simply let God use you to make an impact through everyday routines and relationships.
After 3-months in Costa Rica in the Fall, you'll return home for the holidays before launching into your 6-month journey throughout Africa in January. This 2nd leg begins with worldview training in South Africa, living with host families near the capital of Pretoria before stepping into totally new cultures in Namibia and Lesotho. Each community on this Gap Year mission trip is radically unique, forcing you to re-learn, step out, and embrace each new challenge along the way.
This Gap Year combines 2 distinct IMMERSION terms into one, year-long experience: 3-Month Costa Rica and 6-Month Africa.
.jpg)
What will it cost me?
The cost of the 2020-2021 Costa Rica to Africa GAP YEAR term is $15,000—and we’ve seen over and over again how God can provide or far exceed the amount people need to go. Feeling overwhelmed? Stop now and read a few success stories from IMMERSION team members who had no idea where the money would come from when they first started this journey. We promise we’ll be there to encourage and motivate you along the way, too.
Is there any training before I go? Each IMMERSION trip begins with a time of training, team building, and personal reflection in Fort Wayne, Indiana. EM’s IMMERSION staff will share stories from the field, challenge your faith in new ways, and help you learn how to build healthy cross-cultural relationships.
After several days of training, you’ll hop on a plane with your fellow adventurers and engage in a short on-the-field orientation to learn more about culture, safety, and the schedule for the weeks ahead.
All Gap Year trip legs (2 for each trip) end with a two-day debrief in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which provides a valuable reflection and re-entry time as you ask “What’s Next?” after IMMERSION.
How can I communicate back home?
We encourage you to pack your cell phone or other small, wifi-enabled device. Often, just turning off cellular data and connecting to a local hot-spot is the best way to stay in touch with friends and family. In some IMMERSION locations, you’ll be totally off the grid for weeks at a time. In other locations, you can get online daily. During your interview, please ask our staff about expectations for each country so you can be prepared!
Will EM provide a detailed packing list?
We’ll help you fit your entire life inside a backpack! It’s one of the most freeing, humbling experiences to realize you can live with so little. Check out a country-specific packing list in your MyMission account when you start the application process.
What is included in the cost of the trip? Are there extra costs?
On our side, we try to keep IMMERSION all-inclusive so you don’t have to worry about any hidden fees or big, un-expected costs! All your essentials (airfare, food, housing, staffing, training) are covered once you arrive in Fort Wayne, Indiana—but plan a little extra for immunizations, travel to/from Indiana, or a new passport if you need one. We also recommend a small stash of spending money in case you need shampoo, snacks or souvenirs along the way. But this amount is minimal and totally up to you.
Experience Mission also requires all team members to travel with a Personal Emergency Fund—a debit or credit card with $1,000-$1,500 available and $300 of reserve cash in case you were to have a medical issue or reason to travel home unexpectedly. This amount may seem high, but it’s purely a precaution. Most team members never spend a penny of their emergency fund while on the trip.
Is the $1000 deposit for Gap Year trips refundable?
Once you commit to a trip, we’re counting on you. We don’t offer refunds, but we’ll do our best to be flexible and work with you to transfer the funds to a different trip whenever possible. You can read more in our Payment & Refund Policy document.
I'm worried about fundraising. What have other team members done in the past?
Once you’re all-in, we’re committed to helping you go. Over and over again, we’ve seen people roll up their sleeves and get creative. We’ve also seen God show up miraculously when team members had no idea how they’d raise enough. We provide a few helpful things to support you in the process:
Can I get college credit for participating in the program?
We’re happy to write a letter to your Academic Advisor or sign-off on paperwork for your professor. Every college and university has different requirements for obtaining course credit, so it’s up to you to do the research and make sure the IMMERSION program fits your school’s expectations. But it’s definitely possible! We’ve seen team members get approved for: foreign language, internships, study abroad, independent studies, or elective credits.
How often will I be able to communicate with home?
We encourage you to pack your cell phone or other small, wifi-enabled device. Often, turning off cellular data and connecting to a local hot-spot is the best way to stay in touch with friends and family. In some IMMERSION locations, you’ll be totally off the grid for weeks at a time. In other locations, you can get online daily. During your interview, please ask our staff about expectations for each country so you can be prepared!
What if I have a personal emergency and need to talk with someone at home?
In all things, we’re there to support you. If you have a personal emergency, our staff will allow you to use the official EM phone with an international calling or data plan. In most locations, communication is fast and easy, but in some locations it can be slow or very expensive to make a call back to the U.S. During your interview, ask our staff more about communication limitations or how we get in touch when there is an emergency.
What can I expect from the application process?
We hope joining an IMMERSION team feels like an exciting, relational process. In our eyes, it’s a two way street—us getting to know you but also you learning more about Experience Mission. You don’t have to be 100% committed to fill out an interest form, submit your application or even schedule a video interview. During your face-to-face video call with our staff, we hope you’ll feel free to be yourself, ask lots of questions, and figure out if this is the right fit for you. Once you’re accepted onto a team, it’s up to you to say YES and begin fundraising using the free fundraising profile, making this adventurous idea become a reality.
How do I know if I fit the requirements for this team?
We’re not looking for perfect people, but simply individuals who want to challenge themselves as they serve others. IMMERSION as a program for young adults (ages 18-30) pursuing Jesus with a desire to grow in their faith. We look for people who can embrace a rugged lifestyle, respect cultural differences, build healthy relationships with teammates and locals, thrive away from home, and are in good physical, mental, and emotional health. Please note: Holy Land IMMERSION team members must be 21-30 years old and have previous international travel experience.
How many people will be on my team?
We’re expecting you to make some lifelong friends on IMMERSION! Each team is made up of 5-15 people who will know the good, bad and ugly about you. You’ll sweat and serve and share so much life together across countless miles. We can’t wait for you to meet each other.
Will this program help me grow spiritually?
We hope you’ll look back on your IMMERSION term as a time of meaningful exploration and growth! In fact, we hope you’re never the same. We hope your faith becomes more personal, deep and bold as you seek to live your mission on the trip but also once you get home. From personal experience, we know there is something incredibly powerful about leaving behind the familiar and serving others with our everyday lives.
What’s the impact of IMMERSION? How do I know I’m part of something meaningful?
Throughout the term, you'll have the opportunity to connect with a variety of local partners who already have a vision to reach their community. EM typically works alongside churches, missionaries, schools or non-profits in the community with the goal of cheering them on in their long-term work. We desire to encourage our local partners in the work they are already doing instead of taking over or coming in with our own agenda.
What will my daily schedule look like?
Each day brings something new and gives you the chance to share Christ’s love through everyday life moments! Most ministries are relationally focused, but there may also be opportunities for hands-on work projects such as painting schools, digging outhouses, or helping with agricultural projects. Our hope is that you’ll find opportunities to serve whether you’re leading VBS with your teammates, tutoring at a local school, attending church, participating in a Bible study, working in your host family's field, doing laundry in the river, going to the market, playing soccer, carrying water from the spring, or preparing meals with your host mom.
How will EM choose my host families?
Our local partners help us identify trusted host families in each community. Host families are eager to have team members in their homes, but they are usually just as nervous as you are! Remember that this is a cross-cultural experience for them, too. Typically, we divide team members into pairs for homestays and families are within a short distance of one another, giving you the chance to see teammates around the community and serve together in a variety of ways.
Will I be able to share the Gospel?
EM strives to share the message of Jesus in a way that is highly relational and respects each person's story and journey. Delivering this message of hope drives everything that we do, but we think it's especially important to partner with local people who can continue the process of growth and discipleship. Often, we’ve found the best moments to share your faith don’t happen in a scheduled program, but in the midst of a real person-to-person conversation. These are the kinds of meaningful moments we try to facilitate on the trip. If you’re interested, read more about How We Share the Gospel.
Is EM part of a specific religion or church denomination?
Experience Mission is a Christian organization, although we aren't connected to any one church or denomination. Our staff members all have a personal faith in Jesus and come from a variety of church traditions and denominations. Our Statement of Faith in the About Us section of our website seeks to unite us, not divide us, in ministry.
Do I need a passport or visa?
International travel 101: You definitely need a passport! If a visa is needed for your trip, the EM staff will guide you through the process of applying for one after you join the team. Regarding visa costs, you can count on us to cover any visa fees as part of the trip! But if you don't have a passport yet, you’ll want to start applying for one now. The good news is, it won’t expire for 10 years so you can plan lots of trips after IMMERSION!
When will I get a trip itinerary?
We’ll send you an itinerary, including all flight information, approximately one month before the start of your trip. But you’ll also receive a lot of details during pre-trip conference calls or by interacting with teammates and our staff on your team’s Facebook group! These will start 3-4 months before the beginning to your trip.
What if there is an emergency that affects the entire team? What will we do?
Your team leader, local community partners, and international staff are equipped to support you if there is an issue (i.e. natural disaster, political unrest, increased crime, etc.) while living abroad. If your team were to need to leave the country, each of you would be responsible to use your “Personal Emergency Fund”—a debit or credit card with $1,000-$1,500 available and $300 of reserve cash in case you were to have a medical issue or reason to travel home unexpectedly—to rearrange travel plans, but our staff would be available to guide you. EM encourages team members to purchase Travelers Insurance and offers provider recommendations once you join the team. We also take extra precautions by enrolling our teams in STEP (Safe Traveler Enrollment Program) through the U.S. Department of State. This means we will receive any urgent travel updates for U.S. citizens in the region where you are living and serving.
Should I purchase Travelers Insurance?
Experience Mission requires all team members to travel with “Personal Emergency Fund”—a debit or credit card with $1,000-$1,500 available and $300 of reserve cash in case you were to have a medical issue or reason to travel home unexpectedly. This amount may seem high, but it’s purely a precaution. Most team members never spend a penny of their emergency fund while on the trip. Although Travelers Insurance isn’t required, we highly recommend it because it may help you recoup some costs if you did have an issue. We make a recommendation for one provider in your Mission Center who offers rates as low as 40 cents per day, so the cost is minimal.
If my parents need to get ahold of me, how can they reach me?
Our office has a 24-hour line that is available to parents if they have an emergency at home and can’t communicate with you directly. 30 days before your trip, we’ll send your parents more information about how and when to use this line! We hope it gives them some peace of mind to know our staff is here to help if an emergency arises.
We are passionate about seeing people make missions a lifestyle, not just a one-week or six-month experience. IMMERSION gives young adults the chance to go, but also the challenge to come back and make a difference in their home context. We’re proud of the growing group of IMMERSION past team members who are choosing to live boldly. As you consider joining an IMMERSION team, ask yourself, “Who will I become?"
"When I first stepped off the plane, I had a vague idea of what I thought IMMERSION would be. Truly, I had no clue about the wonderful, crazy, at times exhausting adventure that was in store. IMMERSION meant stepping out of my everyday and into theirs. It meant letting go of what I regarded as normal and letting myself be taught a new way of doing things. IMMERSION was awkwardly dancing with my host grandmother; it was running wildly through the streets with a new friend; it was singing the same songs and saying the same phrase over and over to make the slightest bit of progress in tearing down a language barrier. IMMERSION was seeing Jesus in the midst of darkness, finding hope in the midst of brokenness, growing deeper in relationships with myself, with God, and with others. IMMERSION was everything I didn't know, and then suddenly, it was normal life.
It's hard to put into words everything that IMMERSION meant when I went and what it still means after two years. I could talk about my host families for hours: their contagious laughter, their unending kindness, their inexplicable love toward me. I could talk about the crazy food we tried, the incredible physical and emotional endurance of my teammates, the gorgeous scenery. But what really affects me still, is how differently my heart sees myself and the world. Though I hate to admit it, I went on IMMERSION still thinking I was somehow coming from a place of superiority, going to help the poor and lowly. Instead I learned that I am poor and I am lowly. I have nothing to give, and everything to still learn. I did not end up changing Africa, but it sure changed me.
“IMMERSION honestly changed the direction of my life. I may have thought I knew what I needed but God knew what He was doing putting me on a trip to Africa. I was able to find out the truth about myself and my identity in Christ and in turn walk alongside others to give them hope.
After IMMERSION, I wanted to make sure to come back to America with a Kingdom worldview. A missional mindset. I wanted to glorify God in my work. I now work with international students where I am able to talk about my experiences through IMMERSION and relate to them on a new level. I understand the challenges they face while missing home and learning a new culture. I love being able to teach and work with international students because they are so eager and I am able to bring a new light into their experience."
Worried about the raising the money to go? Don’t let it stop you from taking a journey that can radically impact your faith and purpose in the world.
Over and over, we’ve seen team members roll up their sleeves and get creative with fundraising. We’ve also seen God show up miraculously when team members had no idea how they’d meet their goal. And we know you can do it, too!
EM provide's helpful tools to support you in the process, including:
As a parent of someone considering the IMMERSION program we know you may have questions, so we’ve tried to answer a few of them here. Although team members are over 18 and will be treated as adults, your support and input are so valuable as they make plans. So, thank you for cheering them on!
Many of these details (and more) will be discussed with team members during the application process and pre-trip conference calls or are already listed as accessible resources for all applicants. If you feel like you have a lot of unanswered questions, we encourage you to talk with team members and review the available information together to help you feel more in the loop.
Is EM part of a specific religion or church denomination?
Experience Mission is a Christian organization, although we aren't connected with any one church or denomination. Our staff members all have a personal faith in Jesus and come from a variety of church traditions and denominations. Our Statement of Faith seeks to unite us, not divide us, in ministry.
But I've never heard of Experience Mission.
Yeah, we know! As a relatively young organization (founded in 2003) our name is still new to many. Although we’re continually developing partnerships with Christian conferences, universities, and denominations, much of our marketing efforts are focused on word of mouth and getting opportunities in front of people online. We trust the right volunteers and partners will find us and share our desire to be people of hope in a broken world. You can read Our Story for more details about how and why we got started!
How do I know EM is a credible organization?
Experience Mission will have over 4,000 short-term (1-2 week) volunteers serve with us this year and over 120 IMMERSION team members! We’re proud of our growing network of church leaders and young adults all over the world. Throughout the interview process, we are happy to provide applicants with references if they’d like to talk directly with team members who have been a part of IMMERSION in the past. Our alumni network is thriving and many are eager to share their experience!
Are donations toward this trip tax-deductible?
Since EM is a 501c3 non-profit, any donations made through the EM website or any checks mailed to the EM office are tax deductible. All donors receive receipts for tax purposes outlining their contributions.
What fundraising resources or scholarships are available to applicants?
Once team members commit to the trip, we’re there to support them. Over and over again, we’ve seen people roll up their sleeves and get creative. We’ve also seen God show up miraculously when team members had no idea how they’d raise enough. We provide a few helpful things to support team members in the process:
What is EM's refund policy?
Once team members commit to a trip, we’re counting on them. Due to the long-term logistics that are set in motion when team members join a team, we aren’t able to offer refunds, but we do our best to be flexible and work with team members to transfer their funds to a different trip whenever possible. Team members can also read more about our Payment & Refund Policy by signing in to their MyMission account.
What happens if EM cancels a trip?
If a trip is canceled by Experience Mission because of the minimum team size not being met, safety concerns in the community, natural disaster, or another issue, we will provide the team member with other options during the same timeframe and transfer any available funds to the new trip. If a team member cannot find a location that interests them during the same timeframe, they will be offered a credit to be used toward a future IMMERSION trip within 24-months of the original start date.
How long has EM been working in these communities and do they work with trusted partners?
Depending on the specific location, EM has been working in a community anywhere from 1-15 years. We work with local people who are often pastors, non-profit managers, missionaries, school teachers, or indigenous leaders. These local leaders work closely with our full-time staff and the IMMERSION team leader to identify host families, select ministry sites, place volunteers in classrooms, navigate cross-cultural barriers, and determine safety guidelines. We couldn't and wouldn't do ministry without our local partners!
How reliable is communication and how often should we expect to be able to connect with team members?
As a general rule, we typically tell team members to expect to have access to the internet every other week. However, it could be more or less often depending on the exact location. Team members should ask about this during the application and interview process in order to set good expectations for their specific trip. In some IMMERSION locations, team members will be completely off the grid for weeks at a time. In other locations, they may be able to get online daily.
Will I receive updates from EM throughout the trip?
In regards to travel, we encourage you to go by the mantra that "no news is good news." Our staff will be in communication with the team and inform you if there is an emergency, but otherwise, you will not receive updates about delays, flight changes, arrival times, etc. We ask all team members to keep friends and family in the loop, but please know that in some locations their updates to you may not be immediate or frequent. We encourage all family and friends to "Like" EM on Facebook and keep an eye out for posts on the IMMERSION Blog as a way of receiving periodic updates throughout the trip!
What happens if there is an emergency at home and I can't communicate with a team member directly?
Our office has a 24-hour line that is available to parents if there is an emergency at home and the family can’t communicate with a team member directly. In this case, our staff would help relay a message and support the team member in whatever way possible. 30 days before the trip, the official emergency contact will receive more information about how and when to use this line! We hope it gives you some peace of mind to know our staff is available to you as a resource if there is an emergency.
Can I visit my son or daughter while they're on IMMERSION?
Over the years, we've seen how visits from family members in the middle of IMMERSION can create distractions (or extra homesickness) for both team members and teammates. Additionally, it can be a logistical challenge for families to arrange transportation or housing in remote communities, creating a burden for our partners or host families. For this reason, we ask parents and other family members to refrain from planning to visit team members during the trip unless Experience Mission staff has given special permission ahead of time.
2
We'll personally guide you through the process of joining a team
3
Embark of a life-changing journey
Take our 10-question quiz to find out if you’re ready for an experience like IMMERSION!
We'll personally guide you through the process of joining a team
Embark of a life-changing journey
Take our 10-question quiz to find out if you’re ready for an experience like IMMERSION!
You must have a group size of at least 6 members to join this trip. Please view the Small Team trips or call our Servicing Department for more options at 888-475-6414.
For most trips, you must have a group size of at least 6 members. Please view the Small Teams tab on each Community page or call our Servicing Department for more options at 888-475-6414.
.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
