When we prepared for college, amidst rumors of a Freshman 15 and horror stories of an awful first roommate, we knew one thing to be true: Studying abroad during your college years is an absolute must.

And while we all would enjoy taking a semester to galavant across Europe while “studying,” sometimes, it doesn’t work out. A double major, a life crisis, whatever – four years later, and we realize we made the one mistake everyone told us not to make, and we missed out on studying abroad in college. Sigh. Now what? Unless we score awesome jobs that take us around the world, we could be doomed to the states until we retire.

But hold on a second, aspiring backpackers. There’s a company based in Allston that wants to help you travel the world.

Boston startup First Abroad is self-described as a “gap year travel expert.” The team’s service acts as a launching pad for those not enrolled in college to go abroad. By providing a seasoned support system as well as an organized plan, First Abroad helps people find places to volunteer or work in 50 possible countries, as well as study or just travel, from two weeks to two years, depending on what your plans are. Regardless of what you do, the local company has the ability to get you there.

Jim Zambrano, First Abroad’s CEO (pictured left), says that while the company is for those not in college, their target demo is those who have a “taste of higher ed,” whether that means they graduated or are taking a break. “Then we come in and help them take that leap overseas,” Zambrano said. Most who enroll are between the ages of 18 and 32, and First Abroad has about 200 programs for all types of travelers.

For example, Zambrano lists off that, if you’re in need of work, they can send you to Australia, where you could work for $25 an hour at a legal, associated program. If you’re just looking for travel, you’ll be on a bus tour of Europe in no time. Want to volunteer? There are programs all over Asia and Africa that will set you up with a volunteer organization. The combination of both work and travel programs, Zambrano believes, helps people in different financial situations get abroad. Don’t have a ton of money saved up to travel? Zambrano recommends a paid work program.

“The traditional gap year model is saving up an obscene amount of money, just to call parents halfway through and say ‘Oh God, I’ve spent every penny,'” Zambrano said. The paid work program is really popular, because your initial spend is a smaller hurdle to get over.”

That initial spend, in addition to flights, is the program packages that hopeful travelers can sign up for, and will usually include the first week’s accommodations and a program fee. First Abroad’s support system will also help you find a job, an apartment and set up a bank account overseas while you get adjusted.

We’re very much into structured independence. We’re there for you, if you want to use our support system.

“We’re very much into structured independence,” Zambrano said.”We’re there for you, if you want to use our support system. But if you want to just use the accommodations and do your own thing, that’s fine. We’re just a safety net behind you while you’re traveling.”

First Abroad is working to make its name in the travel industry as that safety net – a safe and reliable way to get across seas. But of course, when it comes to upfront payments and foreign countries, travelers can be skeptical about who they can trust. According to Zambrano, they’ve taken all the right steps to be known as a legitimate business, and First Abroad’s sister company, Gap360, has a reliable reputation for traveling abroad in the UK. First Abroad was born after Americans inquired about a similar way to travel from the US.

Zambrano said that in order to garner trust, the First Abroad business model is very transparent. “We approached this knowing people would have this kind of [trust] issue,” he said. “You know where your money is going.”

First Abroad is also part of the Better Business Bureau and the Association of Travel Agencies. The First Abroad agents, who have all traveled abroad themselves, are happy to chat online or in person about any concerns or questions potential travelers might have.

 Zambrano and the rest of the team want to make it as easy and affordable as possible to go abroad, because as Zambrano himself said, “everyone should do it.”

“It definitely challenges you a bit, makes you more independent and you build your confidence,” he added. “We have a really democratic approach to gap travel – we think everyone should do it.”