Ivy League: "Take a Year Off"
by Suzanne Hadley Gosselin on 04/25/2008 at 2:55 PM
With college admission getting more competitive, you'd expect that colleges would be demanding more of high school graduates. But some prestigious universities seem to be doing the opposite -- they're encouraging students to take the year off. MSN reports:
It's called a "gap year." And while it's been a common and popular rite of passage in Australia and the U.K. for decades, the concept is now starting to gain significant steam here in America.
One reason for its rise in popularity, is that the gap year provides a much-needed mental break for kids who have ridden "the academic conveyor belt from preschool all the way to university."
Taking a gap year can actually make kids more focused and ready for the rigors of academic life. In fact, Harvard, arguably the most competitive university in the country, believes so much in the gap year that they encourage every student they admit to consider a year off before matriculation. And Princeton has just announced a new program called the "bridge year" that will allow newly admitted students to spend a year performing public service abroad before beginning their freshman year.
Better-prepared students mean better completion rates for colleges. According to the College Board, close to 30 percent of college freshmen don't return for sophomore year. And three out of five students fail to earn a degree within five years.
Those who take a year off may spend the time writing, traveling, serving or working. Have any of you tried the gap year? How did it go?
1. Margaret said the following at 3:17 PM on Apr 25:
I absolutely agree with this! I work in college admissions and see a huge difference between students who took some time off, students who went to community college before university, and students who went right thru without pausing for breath. Give the kids some time to relax and find out why they want to go to college and you'll have a student body that is better able to focus, more mature, and not so set on continuing childhood as long as possible because they've never experienced anything else.
I've done my own version of the "bridge year"-- 3 years after completing my BA I'm going a completely different direction with my Master's. It's the effect of a couple years working full time and realizing what is really important to me as far as long-term goals... and finding God's direction for my life.
2. Sam said the following at 3:49 PM on Apr 25:
Well, yes. I didn't mean to, though. Haha.
I started college when I was 16 and at 17 I was already working a minimum of 30 hours and taking 18 credit hours. At 20 I dropped out of school mid-semester for a variety of reasons: I was over stressed, I was burned out, and I learned something about my degree path that I could not morally support. So, I was done. So done. I was just going to get a job and get married and be happy with that.
However, a year later, I am planning to leave my secure and well paying job to go back to school to do something that I love. I never thought I would be going back to school, but I am so excited and jazzed about it that I cannot wait.
Even though I took my break halfway through college, it was still extremely beneficial to my sanity. Hehe.
3. Suzanne said the following at 4:27 PM on Apr 25:
I went to college right after high school, but took a break in the middle. I skipped my second semester junior year and did mission work overseas. I think this was a great decision because I was able to come back to school refreshed and ready to focus on finishing my program.
Though if I had it to do over again, I'd go as a sophomore. It was easy to go to college after high school because all my friends did it too- but taking a gap year after that might help you solidify... and avoid the sophomore slump.
4. Miss Canada said the following at 4:30 PM on Apr 25:
I took a "gap year" because I had too many options for university and I didn't really know what I wanted to study. After YWAMing for a year and working another year in Europe, I returned to Canada to start nursing school. I felt so much better prepared than my 18 year old classmates or older classmates who'd never travelled outside of the province. In fact, I probably would have dropped out like one 18 year old classmate or returned to my home town like another classmate had it not been for the lessons I learned while living abroad. The two years between high school and starting my BSN where my "growing up years." Being a nurse means sharing some of the most intimate and most difficult times of a stranger's life and the maturity and wisdom I gained in my gap years makes me a better nurse to every patient no matter what generation or culture they are from.
5. BDB said the following at 4:45 PM on Apr 25:
It was reading C.S. Lewis that I first considered the idea that someone who travels is not limited by the prejudices of his home village. In the same way, someone who reads old books is exposed to ideas that help reveal the prejudices that are peculiar to our current generation. I find it very interesting to read books written before WWII - before the U.S. was a Superpower. Back then, the great powers of Britain, France, Gemany and Russia were far more important thant the U.S.
While I didn't get the opportunity to take a year off, in January I was host to a couple of Swedes who were doing exactly that. They were engineering students at Lund Institute of Technology. It's fascinating to get the perspective of the U.S. from people from a small, neutral European country - one that's been Christian for 1000 years. They found my church interesting. And for the last few months they traveled all over Southeast Asia - from Fiji to New Zealand to Australia, then on to Thailand, Cambodia and now Laos. I've learned how to navigate a Swedish facebook page.
If someone has the opportunity to travel while young it's a good thing. About half my family travels internationally. I finally got around to it. If you put some structure in place, it's a good way for God to stretch you, too.
6. Andrew Randazzo said the following at 5:07 PM on Apr 25:
My parents wanted me to do a whole year, and I would have if it wasn't for God strongly leading otherwise. I did do one semester, though, and it was great. You get to earn money, build more maturity, and as was said--take a break from academics. I actually took a couple basic classes that would transfer wherever I was going to go, and it made my first official freshman year easier and also kept me in the studying momentum without the intensity.
My brother is going to Brazil on a long-term missions trip during part of his gap year at the end of the summer. I'm all about having a gap year.
7. Michele said the following at 5:33 PM on Apr 25:
I did more than a year - I did three.
In that time, I worked, I did a little bit of traveling, and I saved money.
I was a little out of place when I started college, but not terribly so. A good church community and an older collegiate community (it was a commuter school for the most part) meant that I found a niche pretty easily.
I highly recommend a "gap year," or more. Take the time to figure out if you really need to go to college; not everyone does. There are a lot of options in the world, and not all of them mean you have to sit in classrooms for four years learning mostly things you'll never use.
8. Rachael said the following at 7:31 PM on Apr 25:
Margaret-
Interesting that you notice a difference in students...I community colleged it my 1st 2 years. It was good for me economically.
I wasn't incredibly connected into the university life, though I was quite connected into an international ministry and some of the people I met through that.
I suppose that if I had dormitoried my way through a 4 year Christian college and stayed here instead of going to Japan for about 3 years I might be married by now, for example... :)
Not necessarily. And there's no going back. And God is ultimately in control.
It's all good. :) God is good.
9. Emma said the following at 8:11 PM on Apr 25:
I took a year off before going to uni, and I'd always planned to. Started off working, then spent four months in the US (I'm from Australia), before returning to work & buying my first car with cash before uni started. It was perfect for me, and I wish it was even more the "norm" here, so there wasn't so much pressure at the end of high school.
10. Kathryn said the following at 8:16 PM on Apr 25:
When I finished high school my grades were too low to get into anywhere and I didn't know what to do anyway. I worked for two years and moved out of home. By the time I figured out what I wanted to do, the entrance level for my chosen degree had dropped and I was able to get in.
Taking that time off was great and I definitely felt it in 1st year, when I chat to people about why they wanted to do teaching and half of them replied that they didn't really know what they wanted to do and thoughts maybe teaching would be good. I couldn't understand why they've willingly waste money on it. Go out there, get experience, and then decide what would be best for you.
Getting some world experience under your belt is priceless and I recommend taking time off!
11. A Julia said the following at 8:24 PM on Apr 25:
I think it depends on the student and his or her goals. As a student, I was definitely a "go-straight-through" kind of girl--school was the right decision for me (friends and circumstances in my freshman year brought me back to/closer to God).
However, I teach English at a community college now, and I wish I could encourage many of my students to take some time off because it's clear they aren't ready--they don't have goals, aren't focused, and don't care about their work. Even more than that, it's clear that they don't want to be there. Not all, but it is quite common.
In my opinion, just as "all high school graduates immediately should go to college" is not a perfect fit for all, neither is "everyone should take a year off."
12. Mallie said the following at 8:30 PM on Apr 25:
Wow, this is really encouraging. About a year ago, I felt God had put the idea of waiting for college in my heart, and I've prayed about it ever since. While I've notified the school and received deferrels for my scholarships, I've still been a bit afraid (due to peers who think that its a dumb idea). But having read all these positive words, I feel more sure than ever that God had called me to do this. Thanks.
13. Melissa said the following at 8:37 PM on Apr 25:
I took a year off between high school and college. The most important thing is to make sure all the time is filled somehow. I did a program with Summit Ministries (www.summit.org) an awesome Christian organization which focuses on worldview training. The program was called Summit Semester, but it was only one semester long, not an entire year. I loved the program, but when I came home I didn't have anything to do! I picked up a part-time job, and eventually found a seasonal one for the summer, but I had a rough few months because I wasn't involved in anything besides my job.
14. Ashley said the following at 8:50 PM on Apr 25:
Although I didn't take a break between either high school and undergrad or undergrad and law school, I most certainly recommend one between undergrad and grad school. I'm terribly burned out and imagine a year of working would have put me ahead financially and emotionally. Not only that, a year would have given me more time to consider my reasons for coming to law school. I'm not sure I would've come had I made the time to consider my decision more carefully. :-)
15. Heather Ashley said the following at 9:38 PM on Apr 25:
I have personally tried the 'gap year,' and I am in the midst of my sophomore year of college (what would have been my junior year). I think it is a great benefit and I really recommend it to any highschool student.
I wasn't unsure of what I wanted to do with my life knew as a junior and senior in highschool. I had my major and school all picked out, while the school stayed the same, in that year my major changed. I was able to work, co-direct a children's worship choir which I student directed in highschool, and do some part time mission work. There was no stress about what kind of sheets to buy, what to pack, until the next year, when I had nothing else to worry about.
I think sometimes, even now I have a little bit of questioning in my mind, wondering if I did the right thing. knowing that I could be a year farther. I see how much God has really blessed my life because I waited a year and I know it was the right thing to do.
I am now about to begin my junior year of college and it's been amazing. I think really God led me to this point, I prayed about it and He put me here and now.
I think God's will for our lives should be incorporated into how we handle college whether we wait a year, go or don't go. Letting Him take control of my college has been a huge blessing!
16. Rebekah said the following at 11:12 PM on Apr 25:
I started college the same year that I started my senior year of High School. I moved out of my parents home and into a dorm an hour away. Since them I went straight through college in four years and am almost done with my first year of medical school. While I would have liked to take a year off, it wasn't practicle. I knew that I wanted to go to medical school and the sooner I went the sooner I'd become a doctor and the sooner I'd be able to repay the huge amount of debt that I knew I'd rack up.
On top of that, my parents provide very good health insurance that covers me until I'm 25, which incidently will be the year that I finish medical school. If I had taken even 6 months off of school, I would have lost that. For some people that wouldn't be a problem, but I'm especially glad that I did because I broke my ankle this winter and had to have surgery and with the subsequent doctors visits it come of $20k+ in doctor bills. If I wasn't still on my parents insurance, I'd have been on the plan that the school requires we buy and the cost for paying this one freak accident off would have pushed me out of medical school and I'd probably never have been able to come back.
So for me, NOT taking a gap year was the best thing I could have done. Instead I've made sure that I've done something refreshing every summer: mission trips, vacations, interesting jobs and shawoding opportunities. I always did something that would keep me interested in what I wanted to do and to make sure that it's what I really wanted.
17. Debbie said the following at 12:30 AM on Apr 26:
I did not take a gap year, and to be honest, I am very glad I went to college right away. High school was not challenging enough, and although I begged my parents to let me take community college courses in high school, they said no. It was very healthy for me to leave home, be in a challenging and stimulating environment, and have extended opportunities to travel, which I took. The summer I spent in South Africa as part of a college sponsored trip changed my life. I think for some people a gap year can be a wonderful thing, but for others it is not the best option. In high school, I had no idea of the opportunities available for travel - going to college right away opened many doors.
18. Leah said the following at 1:37 AM on Apr 26:
Wow. For once, Australia is ahead of the US.
To those who think taking time off DURING your degree is a gap year, it isn't. A gap year is specifically grade 12 leavers who take a year off before beginning university. Gives them some time off from the full time study they've been doing for 12 years before they start a new education.
Gives them a chance to experience the "real world".
I didn't take a gap year. Partly because I had no idea what I wanted to do if I *didn't* go to uni, but also because I knew that if I didn't go to uni now, I probably wouldn't have the motivation to go later.
19. Jess said the following at 8:11 AM on Apr 26:
I come from a family where college was expected for each of the kids. My father was the first person in his family to go to college, and no one in my mom's family ever had, so there was that whole element of the American dream where parents want their kids to achieve more than they did. They raised me and my sisters in that spirit, so it never occurred to me to do anything but go straight to college after high school. And it's what I wanted too, so it's not like they pressured me into it. My dad told me early in high school that I needed to get good grades so I could go to school and so I could get merit scholarships because he didn't have money to pay for all of us kids. Taking time off during school or going abroad were never really an option because I was there on scholarship and needed to finish in 4 years, but after college, when I was supposed to go straight through and start med school, I was too burnt out on school to continue. I took a year to work, stayed at home and saved money and enjoyed my family and friends before making a big move across the country, and when I did start med school a year later, I was actually refreshed. And I had the money saved to get my first apartment and start my life as an adult fully independent from my parents for the first time. Many of my classmates are in a 7 year BS/MD program, so they went straight from high school to 3 years of college to med school, and for many of them, the immaturity really shows. I think a gap year can be a good thing for a lot of kids, provided they spend their time in a productive and enriching manner. I'd kill to have the time and means to travel for a year or work for a local non-profit or simply work and volunteer in my down-time.
20. Laura Grace said the following at 9:10 AM on Apr 26:
I remember several years ago reading about Prince William's gap year -- he went to Argentina or something to do charity work with a bunch of other gap-year folks.
Even though I didn't take a break between high school and college, I did take a year off between college and grad school. I was really amazed at the folks in the Ph.D. program who had basically been in school for 25 years without any breaks -- four or five years of college, four years of Master's studies, three or four years of Ph.D. work... ridiculous.
21. Louise said the following at 12:40 PM on Apr 26:
I could just imagine the look on my father's face if one of his children had wanted to take a "gap year."
But then again, maybe his "oppressive attitude", which BTW I have inherited, is part of the reason I am in line to be a millionaire at age fifty.
:)
On a more serious note, different strokes for different folks!
I wouldn't have been interested in a "gap year", but
if others feel they have or can benefit from this arrangement, more power to them!
22. BDB said the following at 1:31 PM on Apr 26:
I did have a one-year gap between undergraduate and graduate school. I was applying for a one-year public affairs fellowship; made it partway through the process, and during the "evil interview" realized that I should just go get a real job.
Overall, that was the right thing to do. As a working student, I ended up much more mature than most of the straight-through students. I remember being surprised that the new MBA students thought their presentation group should consist of their drinking buddies...(my teams blew their "performance" away...)
23. P&P said the following at 5:58 PM on Apr 26:
I'm bothered by the concept of the "gap year" because it seems to be only for the upper middle class kids who can afford it. I also don't think that most 18 year olds are mature enough to appreciate the year if it's spent traveling or in some pseudo-educational program.
That being said, I think that a year in local community service, military or just plain old punch in/punch out work is a great opportunity to grow up so when the teens do attend school, they're more focused on studying rather than the typical teenage partying.
24. John the Aggie said the following at 6:32 PM on Apr 26:
I don't think we can universally say it's a good or bad thing to take a gap year - it depends on how well you know yourself and what degree you're going after. For me, it wouldn't have been a good decision since I had a direction picked and was stoked to go for it.
Even with an uncommitted mindset, an engineering degree can go anywhere - medicine, law, engineering, investment banking, consulting, etc... so I say go straight for it and make up your mind along the way. It's working out great for me, and I would have considered a gap year a lost year (but I am pretty driven academically).
25. Becky said the following at 10:12 PM on Apr 26:
I wish I had taken a "gap year" however, most of my state financial aid (and possibly college-specific) would have evaporated had I done so. So...maybe I was incredibly neurotic by the time I graduated, but it saved me $20,000 or thereabouts.
26. shanka said the following at 6:16 AM on Apr 27:
Well, as someone who went straight to college after high school, had an undecided major and no clue what to study, flunked out after 2 years, went and volunteered abroad for 3 years, now has a specific major and now makes straight A's, well, I think gap years are a wonderful idea!
27. Kelly said the following at 1:04 PM on Apr 27:
I didn't take any time off from high school to college to medical school, but as I'm nearing the end of it all, I'm pretty sure a year off after undergrad would have helped me a lot. It's hard when you're a really motivated student to imagine doing something other than school while your peers continue to work on preparing for their careers, but if I did it again, I would have taken that time off. I could have really used a year of normal adulthood before signing up for another 4 years of strenuous education!
28. Justice said the following at 3:06 PM on Apr 27:
Miss Canada, which YWAM base did you go to?
I personally went to YWAM after my first year in college and then was a staff member for a year and then found purpose in school, now I received my BA last month!
29. Michele said the following at 4:57 PM on Apr 27:
Re: P&P #23
I had to laugh, because I hear what you said a lot - only "upper middle class" kids can afford time off. I would argue that only "upper middle class" kids can go to school immediately after high school and graduate with zero debt. But you and I would both be wrong.
Because I went to college, took a "gap year" and happen to be non-minority, it is often assumed that I would also be from a family in the "upper middle class" category. I was actually from a barely-above-lower-middle-class suburban family, the kind you never hear about on the news when they do stories about college affordability stories because combined household income exceeds the poverty level and yet isn't enough to pay for school. And scholarships are scarce if you aren't a 4.0 student, because you're, again, non-minority and really nothing special in the eyes of the secular world.
Gap years, then, are great ideas for working and saving money - something a lot of us who only have accomplishments for our currency really need to do, because spending time working in high school might not have been an option.
So I think you nailed it in the second part of your post. Working, community service, or even the military are wonderful ideas for everyone who isn't 100% prepared for college. A lot of things - including the dropoff in church attendance - could be righted if we didn't teach our teenagers that four years of high pressure, high-cost educational are the only path to take in life.
30. Joseph said the following at 2:38 AM on Apr 28:
I am still on my "gap" year... although it wasn't until after 5 semesters of community college and it is lasting 4 years and some change, it is also called the Army...
It wasn't till I found myself in Iraq as I currently am that I have been able to take the time to become the self disciplined student I once was and be prepared for the next chapter of life.
31. Ericm said the following at 9:14 AM on Apr 28:
I feel that the idea of a 'gap year'(in the sense of not going to school, but working or doing some sort of volunteer work) between high school and college would be useful, but should be geared toward people who don't know what they want to do in college or why they are going. In my experience, most American high schools really aren't rigorous enough to require a break afterward to prevent burning out. A break after your undergraduate work, however, might prevent later fatigue.
I'm finishing up a year off of sorts (I'm in my fifth undergraduate year and have been taking 12 credits a semester instead of 16-19) and do currently feel much better about my upcoming grad school. I'm more excited about moving on and have a little reserve energy for the effort. But again, even this ought to be done on a case-by-case basis.
32. Irene M. said the following at 9:37 AM on Apr 28:
//I'm bothered by the concept of the "gap year" because it seems to be only for the upper middle class kids who can afford it.//
I agree. Although the idea sounds lovely, it's really out of reach for a lot of people. Who pays for these educational trips abroad? What kind of person can go straight from high school to a job that covers living expenses and pays for a nice trip? Honestly, I spend my summers working more than 50 hours a week at two jobs that pay slightly more than minimum wage. If I wasn't in college I wouldn't be able to get even those jobs.
Not that a gap year isn't a bad idea. Taking some time off to reconsider your future is a mature and helpful thing to do. Working hard can also build character. However, finances, local job market, and family background could make it rather difficult for a lot of people to have a gap year.
33. Natasha said the following at 10:21 AM on Apr 28:
Well, my problem was actually the opposite of what Irene (#32) describes. I HAD to take a gap year (actually it was 3) because I couldn't afford to go to university right out of high school. Of course, I was unusual in that I strongly believe in avoiding as much debt as I can- so I didn't get student loans. This meant that I had to postpone starting school & I also had to take a lighter load of classes so that I could also work part-time to pay for my living expenses. I was able to get my tuition funded through a special program for Metis students, or else I wouldn't have been able to even do that much.
Now I'm taking another gap year before I finish my degree, because I want to take the last year full-time and not work during the school year. In order to do that, I have to save up again. It's not a path that I'd advise for everyone- but it's working for me.
:)
34. Gail said the following at 12:33 PM on Apr 28:
//I'm bothered by the concept of the "gap year" because it seems to be only for the upper middle class kids who can afford it.//
Well it depends where you live and what you want to do. I took a gap year, and worked for the whole year in a lab, at slightly higher than the minimum wage, and was then able to spend some of that money on a 6 week holiday before I started uni. The experience I got that year was probably more important than my degree in getting my first post-uni job.
My earnings from my gap year plus summer jobs paid my way through the next 3 years of study, although I didn't have any living expenses during my gap year or summer vacs, because I was living with my parents then.
I also know of people who've done programmes abroad that were airfare cost only, working for charities, and living with host families. It is possible, but it takes a lot more effort to organise than paying megabucks for a prepackaged trip.
My sister travelled the world in her gap year, after she'd spent 6 months doing secretarial work to pay for it.
35. Esther said the following at 4:54 PM on Apr 28:
I didn't take a gap year, but I did something that I recommended to my younger sisters, and anyone else who asked. Because there wasn't any normal entry level type work in the town where I grew up, I went away for summers in high school, and worked somewhere else, one summer as a lifeguard at a Salvation Army camp, and another at restaurants, putting in nearly 60 hour weeks, with the intention of getting a start on my college expenses. Both were challenging, eye -opening and broadening experiences. I remember quite clearly getting the realization that I didn't want to do THIS for the rest of my life, and I was much more motivated once I started college. It might have been more fun spending those summers living at home and hanging out with my highschool friends, but I think I prepared myself for living away from home and having new friends and responsibilities, even without taking a year off.
However, when I was finishing my bachelors, and my advisor and others were urging grad school, I was clear that I wanted to get out and work for a while before making any such decision. I'm glad that I did! I now find myself doing something that I didn't even imagine existed, that is pretty much everything I could have asked for, and my company is paying for me to go to grad school, in exactly the field that will be useful.
36. Kelly said the following at 9:15 PM on Apr 28:
Taking a Gap Year really worked for me. I took a year off between high school and university where I worked (3 jobs!) saved money like mad, and then went backpacking in the UK by myself. The experiences I had working and travelling set me up really well for post-secondary...I was completely focussed in my first year, got really high marks and really enjoyed my studies. Plus, I paid for the entire year myself (with some scholarships) so I didn't need any student loans. I discovered my passion for history and geography during my travels, and I ended up taking those subjects as my major & minor.
I basically used that year to get my act together. So I think that for a lot of people, a Gap Year is a great idea! It should not be looked down upon as a year to slack - that is not its purpose. And for many people, it may not be the right thing to do, either. But if you think it might be something you want to do, I would definitely consider it!! (And now that I am finished my BA, I am using the next few years to work, pay off some student loans and travel before I go to grad school for my MA). Why not take a year off? If you know you have the self-discipline to go back to school, then take some time to work, save some money, volunteer and maybe do some travelling.
37. Leah said the following at 11:15 PM on Apr 28:
P&P: I'm not sure how middle upperclass kids can afford a gap year more than anyone else. A student in a gap year tends to be working full-time, or at least lots of shifts. Any kid can do that, no matter what socio-economic class they were raised in.
Irene M asks "Who pays for these educational trips abroad? What kind of person can go straight from high school to a job that covers living expenses and pays for a nice trip?"
Umm, generally the kid themself. Most people I know who travelled during their gap year had been working their butt off outside of school hours for the past year to save up for it, or worked for a semester after school finished before going away for a semester, or took 2 gap years and worked for a year then travelled for a year. I don't know *anybody* who had their travels paid for by someone other than themselves.
Also, everybody I know who travelled during their gap year went as part of a student exchange program, and didn't just randomly travel around as they liked. They were part of an exchange, stayed with a host family, and went to all the planned activities of the exchange program. It's much cheaper to do that for a year then just wander around the world as you like.
38. Nada said the following at 5:33 PM on Apr 30:
As said before, gap years are much more common here in Britain, I had to explain the concept so many times when I came over to the U.S. as no one understood it. I did one and am now in my first year of university.
I basically got a full time job working in a pub and saved enough money for the flights to America and stayed with various people I knew. Then I got a different job doing data entry and saved enough to go to South Africa with Soul Action for a week.
Personally I think it's a really good idea, a few of my friends who dived straight into university, quit in the first year. I think it also helps that you can apply for a government loan to cover fees and accommodation costs which doesn't matter if you've taken a year or three out. Doing my gap year really proved to me that I did want to go to university. Downsides are that you can feel quite lonely as all my friends disappeared off to uni, you'll be a year older than everyone else when you go to uni and unless you are lucky enough to have enough money to go backpacking for the whole year, you most likely will be staying with your parents which won't teach you how to cope with living on your own as much.
It was nice to dispense with homework and exams though, at least temporarily for a year.