Submit Your Travel Project and Win a Zis Travel Grant!

Deadline: 15 February 2014
Open to: youth between 16 and 20 years old, still in school or serving an apprenticeship, not enrolled at university
Grants: 600 euros

Description

The Zis foundation in Salem, Germany, offers young people between 16 and 20 a unique opportunity: they can obtain a grant of 600 EUR for a study trip to a foreign country. The special conditions of a zis travel grant enable the participants to research a self-chosen topic away from the paths of mass tourism. They get a realistic impression of the daily life abroad and gain deep insights into a different society. They return with a better understanding of a formerly strange culture. At the same time, all zis participants learn about themselves and their own roots.

The zis grant is more than money. Intensive preparation and documentation before and after travelling ensures success, safety and commitment. Every participant has a personal adviser who helps organize the trip via e-mail. Most of these volunteers are former participants and have expertise in the topics or destinations they take care of. A jury evaluates the project reports so that qualified feedback is guaranteed.

Conditions:

• Travelling alone: Travelling unaccompanied gives you the chance to especially open yourself for the journey and the people you meet. Furthermore, it makes you more flexible and, last but not least ,it also confronts you with your own personality. You will learn a lot about yourself and you will understand the difference between loneliness and being alone.

• Travelling without flying: Approaching your destination slowly allows you to prepare yourself for the different culture and also for the different occupation you will have during the month researching your project.

• Travelling for at least four weeks: Looking below the surface requires time. Research can only be successful if you spend enough time with your hosts and if you can get completely immersed in your topic.

• Spending not more than the grant: Money is scarce on a zis-journey as the grant is supposed to cover everything, including the journey itself. This is part of the zis-concept: it challenges the travellers to improvise, make compromises and act responsibly. Often it is also the reason for approaching residents and making new contacts.

Eligibility

The choice of destination and topic is generally free. You need to be between 16 and 20 years. You need to be still in school or serving an apprenticeship and must not have started university yet. Young people who are not German citizens and who are not residents of Germany are welcome to travel to Germany and apply for a zis Travel Grant. About 50 zis grants are available every year. Applicants with a good plan, an appropriate level of self-awareness, and an attitude towards commitment stand a fair chance of obtaining one of our grants that will give them a once-in-a-lifetime adventure.

Grants

A grant of 600 euros is given for a very unique study trip to a foreign country.

Application

An own email account and regular internet access are essential for preparing the journey as communication with zis works via email. Only official documents, which includes your application, must be sent by mail.

Your application must contain the following information:

• The completed zis application;
  

• A picture of yourself, signed on the back;

• A reference from a teacher;

• A detailed description of your research topic, which explains why you chose it and possibly your background knowledge on the theme;

• Realistic information on your language abilities and, only if necessary for your research, information on artisan or artistic competences;

• Data on the course and timeline of the journey: arrival, departure, stopovers, means of transport (remember: flying is not allowed), information on contacts;

• A first assessment of your travel expenses (which must be within the 600 euros);

• Ideas for earning additional money in case the 600 euros won’t suffice;

• Ideas for information search – before and during the journey.

Deadline for the application is generally the 15th of February. Not the postmark but the date of entry count. About one month later applicants get to know if they were short-listed. If so, the first part of the project can start.

For more information, visit the official web-site.