ARE YOU CONSIDERING A "GAP YEAR" DECISION ?

Some Students when they finish high school feel they want to take a "gap year" to enhance their ability to seek and retain knowledge and understand the complexities of contemporary global issues before entering college. While it sounds like a good idea for some, it often is seen as a "risky maneuver". How will colleges view this alternative decision? Will the student continue to be academically challenged? Of course, if your time off consists of nothing but watching soap operas and eating potato chips, all you'll have at the end is a wasted year. But with research and planning, you can design a semester or year that is both a great learning experience and a lot of fun.


Maybe you're tired of the academic grind. Maybe you're not sure why you're going to college or what you'll do when you get there. Maybe you yearn to explore far-away places or a career that interests you. If this sounds like you, perhaps now is the time to consider taking a gap year between high school and college.

Maybe you are thinking that taking time off before college gives you the gift of time to learn about two essential things: yourself and the world around you.  or maybe you are facing significant peer pressure, parental pressure, and/or school pressure and need to take a break for a while and not go right on to college.



While this may sound like a great idea, it is important that students before deciding on and signing up for a gap year program should seiously consider and look at the desired outcome. Does it promise personal growth?, Will you be forced to reflect on their goals? Is it based around community service? Does it offer a rich academic experience in a foreign land?   These are questions you should ask yourself.

Students who have participated in "gap year" programs often have found most interesting aspect of doing a program like this is how all of their daily activities directly contributed to their lives.   Some students travel to a country where an  issue they were interested in was relevant, and they lived and worked with the people it was affecting, talk to local experts and innovators about their perspectives, and read articles and books about the issue.

Many times the decision to take on a gap year and explore life is supported by parents.  Some students, however, may need to acquire voluminous information on the subject in order to convince their families that the decision to postpone freshman year of college has merit. One important factor to remember early in the planning process is that the application process should not be postponed.

What ever your reason is for exploring the idea of taking a gap year is, it is really important to apply to college during the normal application process, during the senior year, then think about your year off.

Once you are sure you want to take a year off and you have thought it through, contact the college you plan to attend and ask that your admission be deferred for a semester or a year. Most colleges are very receptive to students who want to defer their admission. Admission people across the country encourage the idea of time out before matriculation.