Overall View on a Gap Year

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Gap year

Once only a common occurrence in Europe, embarking on a year-long break, or gap year, before starting college has become almost mainstream in the U.S. Even former presidents’ children took a year off before attending university. And now college graduates are increasingly taking a gap year before graduate school.

By the time students graduate from college, they may have been going to school for some 20 years. The idea of charging right into another two to seven (or more) years of academia, depending on a student’s post-graduate goals, can be daunting. Educational burnout is a real possibility for some. A gap year allows students to take a breather – to rest, recharge, refresh, reinvigorate and reflect on the next step in life.

“It’s a very American mindset to keep going and going and going,” says Yulia Fires, a founder of a consulting firm that provides support for students taking a gap year. “I call it the ‘conveyor-belt mindset’ of kindergarten through high school, into college, into grad school, then you get a career, and then you retire … We are obsessed, as a culture, with productivity. People need to be more deliberate with their choices, and a gap year offers that time for deep reflection, and also for deliberate action to inform their grad school choices.”

No longer are the only options graduate school or a job. The gap year offers a third, just-as-productive option, which can include travel, volunteering, internships, experiential learning opportunities, or working professionally to gain experience in one’s chosen field. The possibilities are endless. “The magic of a gap year is in trying different things and awakening interests or skills that may have stayed dormant in your college years,” Fires says.

While little official data has been kept on gap years, especially pre-grad school, the Gap Year Association says gap years are increasing in popularity in the U.S., as evidenced by a booming industry of gap year programs.

This organization also conducted the first-ever nationwide study on the effects of a gap year experience. While the survey was of students who had participated in a gap year before starting college, some of the data can be applied to pre-grad-school “gappers” – especially regarding the motivation for taking a gap year. Of the gappers surveyed, 92 percent cited a desire to gain life experience and personal growth; 85 percent wanted to travel, see the world, and experience other cultures; and 81 percent wanted a break from the traditional academic track.

“Put it in this perspective. You’re 22 years old. What is a year in the grand scheme of your life, and for the purpose of discovery and maybe a little adventure or education?” Fires says. “When you survey people who have done it, they say they wouldn’t give it back for the world.”

To get the most out of a gap year, planning ahead is key. Students should figure out what they want to do, where they want to go, what goals they hope to achieve and how much they are able to spend – and then establish a timeline with a firm end date.

Whether the year will include travel, volunteering, a job, or time for quiet self-improvement, students can opt to participate in structured programs, or tailor their own self-directed year. While there is no right or wrong way to take a gap year, it is important that students remain engaged and spend that time doing something that will further their personal, academic or professional development. In my opinion, people deserve to take some time out to pursue other interests tangential to their career path and just good for their mental well-being.