Gap year

The gap year: A journey that strengthens Jewish identity - opinion

The gap year is a great investment for the participants. Yet the real beneficiary is the Jewish people.

|ByMICAH HALPERN
Darkaynu women at the Kotel
Participants in the Nativ pre-college gap year program, which is affiliated with the Conservative movement, historically divided their time between study in Jerusalem and volunteering elsewhere in Israel.

Conservative movement relaunches Israel gap-year program, swapping kibbutzim for Tel Aviv

The four-decade-old Nativ program was put on hiatus in 2024 after it failed to recruit enough students to be sustainable.

|ByGRACE GILSON/JTA
Jerusalem Day at the Kotel

War in Israel leads to unexpected increase in enrollment at American yeshivas

Most yeshiva students who went home during the early stages of the war returned in December and January to help support Israel and continue their learning. 

|ByBENJAMIN EDIDIN
DARKAYNU WOMEN’S first visit to the Old City and the Kotel is a dream come true for many.

20 years of Darkaynu: The year-in-Israel program for Jews with special needs

Darkaynu’s overall goal is to teach them practical skills for living a Jewish life, encompassing Shabbat observance and kashrut. 

|ByALAN ROSENBAUM

Despite coronavirus measures, Masa students will be able to enter Israel

Fellows who arrive in Israel will be required to remain in quarantine for 14 days, during which they will receive orientations, Hebrew-language course and educational seminars.

MAY 28, 2020ByMARCY OSTER/JTA
Participants in a Masa Israel Journey program

Gap year programs begin adapting to ‘new normal’ of coronavirus

As the Israeli government begins to loosen social distancing regulations, gap year programs are now faced with the question: What next?

APRIL 23, 2020ByTZVI JOFFRE
Students learning at Yeshivat Migdal HaTorah