How to answer “Tell us about yourself” (and 5 more common application questions)
Reading Time: 3 minutes The most common questions on travel scholarships and contests you should be ready to answer at the drop of a hat. So: tell us about yourself!
PTO 💸🌍
No, not your work vacation time—I'm talking about paid travel opportunities! The term I invented to encompass all of the funded programs, scholarships, remote PTO, student grants, contests, and more that pay you to travel.
We bring awareness to paid travel opportunities that help you travel for school, for work, for fun—for free.
POPULAR PTO RESOURCES
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What is a PTO?
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How I Won $40K in Study Abroad Scholarships
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Study Abroad Scholarships for High School Students
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PTO for African Nationals
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See Past PTO Winners!
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See Past Packs Light PTO Winners!
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How to WIN with your Video Submission
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How to WIN with your Video Submission
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How I Studied Abroad for Free in Korea... AFTER Graduation!
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5 Common Application Questions to Practice Answering
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Get PAID to Teach English Abroad in Europe!
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watch the "What are PTO?" EXPLAINER VIDEO!
Feeling totally lost? 😅
Start with these PTO FAQ! 👇🏽
Getting started...
PTO 101
Paid travel opportunities (PTO) make travel accessible by taking away financial, logistical, and mental barriers that restrict many people! Start learning more about them:
PTO (noun): any program or opportunity that has an element of travel and is partially or completely funded, paid, or free to do. (Read more and see examples here)
The PTO Dashboard is Packs Light's database of PTO. Through the dashboard (and our Weekly PTO Newsletter) we curate information, application tips, and links for all of these incredible travel opportunities.
Do you have to be a certain citizenship to apply to job? In some cases. Packs Light's audience is 90% U.S. citizens, so the opportunities we share cater to them.
But remember: everyone may not be eligible for every opportunity, but there are opportunities for everyone.
No! There are many PTO that don't even mention age or student status as a requirement. You can be a 14-year-old high school student or 40-year-old mom and find a PTO that works for you.
Very few of these opportunities are scams, actually. You're usually trading your time and your story, or the company is getting aa tax break from offering the opportunity.
Learn more in our Finding Opportunities online course!
No. These are usually short-term, one-off opportunities that have an element of travel.
If you want to travel full-time, check out our resources on becoming a paid travel influencer, or finding a remote job and living as a digital nomad! (coming soon)
Take our free PTO Crash Course—it takes 6 minutes and will be exactly what you need to get startred!
Seeking PTO
How to find PTO that fit your dreams, wants, and needs.
Not every PTO fits every person. And even our PTO Dashboard doesn't have every single one out there! So we're teaching you how to fish for your own opportunities!
Check out our PTO Phase of Life graphic to see which PTO you should keep an out for most.
Take our Which PTO Am I? Quiz and see! (coming soon)
Rest easy: 99% of these PTO are not scams. But watch this short video with tips and things to look out for, just in case.
Learn more in our Finding PTO online course! (coming soon)
Because of the immense requests we get daily, I can only do 1-on-1 consultations via booking ($180 for 30 mins). We have so many free and paid resources to get you started right on this page! Take advantage.
Our Should I Apply? Calculator will tell you your exact chances of success. Stop wasting your time and energy, and only apply to the things you'll win!
Found in our Application Tool-Kit.
Probably. Read this caption for more reasons why you should #ApplyAnyway.
Get more information in the Finding Opportunities course (coming soon).
What gets measured, get's managed. Use an interactive spreadsheet to keep tabs on all the opportunities you're keeping aan eye on.
Grab our pre-done Opportunity Tracking Spreadsheet today!
Winning PTO
Finding them is the easy part. Actually winning? That takes strategy.
Learning, finding and making big lists of PTO means nothing if you don't actually 1) Press submit and apply, and 2) Win! We can help you with that.
Yes! Check out the Packs Light PTO Winners Wall to see past PTO Winners.
Lesson 4 of our Winning PTO online course dives head-first into how to submit a “YES!”-worthy video application, with a bonus module hosted by viral video creator Dear Alyne, who has 15M+ followers!
Our Application Tool-Kit has in-depth Letter of Recommendation (LOR) examples and tips on who to ask and how to get them to write you the PERFECT reference letter!
I walk you through an example application on this post, teach you 5 common question to practice answering here, and my YouTube channel has a playlist with every video application I've ever submitted.
Need more tips on making your own? You need the Winning PTO course (coming soon), or a 1-on-1 session with me!
Here are some productivity tips to help you get to “submit”!
Book a 1-on-1 appointment with me!
(Unfortunately because of the many emails I get daily, we will likely miss it if you send a message through the contact form 🙁 )
PTO PRODUCTS
Helping you apply and win, ASAP. (scroll right ➝)
FOR MORE PTO TIPS, FOLLOW ME ON
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