Should You Take a Gap Year?

Time off between high school and college sounds great, but are there potential downsides?

Which direction will you choose? Photo by Luca Bravo on Unsplash.

Gap years are a difficult topic to bring up, and whether or not you should take one is a tough personal decision to make. So, what is a gap year? A gap year is a year during which you take a break from school after high school graduation. You can decide to do anything that you want to during a gap year. You can get a job to save money, travel across the country, get an internship — there are thousands of different things you can do with this time.

“A semester or year of experiential learning, typically taken after high school and prior to career or post-secondary education, in order to deepen one’s practical, professional, and personal awareness.” — Gap Year Association

Now that we have addressed what a gap year is and what you can do during a gap year, we should address pros and cons of taking one. I suggest you make your own pro and con list that applies to you personally. This way, you can see the whole picture of what you stand to gain or lose from either option.

With time off, you can focus on other things you love. Photo by Vadim Fomenok on Unsplash.

Gap Year Benefits:

1. Time to Pursue Passions

Time is something that humans are constantly wishing for, and finally having time for yourself is a blessing. You can do anything you want with this time that you finally have, including taking time to pursue your passions. Maybe you want to take an acting class, get back into pottery, or improve your foreign language skills.

2. Time to Save Money

Having the opportunity to save money for whatever you like is an option not everyone has. So when the chance arrives, most people take it.

3. Gain Work Experience

There is no downside to gaining work experience. The more good experience you have, the more likely you are to be hired by other employers.

4. Time to Recharge

Taking a break to recharge mentally and physically is always something that we take for granted, and it’s an opportunity that doesn’t come around often. The weekends are supposed to be for us to recharge and take time for ourselves but many of us work weekends, or study on the weekends, or babysit on the weekends. Taking a gap year can give you all the time you need to be back at full capacity.

Plan ahead to use your time wisely. Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash.

Gap Year Downsides:

1. Variable Expenses

Depending on what you choose to do or where you decide to go, your gap year can be expensive. You need to make sure you plan ahead of time what you are going to do, where you are going to go, and how much you have to spend.

2. Required Planning

Planning your year and how you will use your time is important. Planning will guarantee that you have somewhere to stay and an idea of what you will do. A good plan can alleviate some of the fear of the unknown. Of course, things don’t always turn out exactly as we predict.

3. Lost Momentum

Returning to school after time off can feel overwhelming and depressing, especially if it seems classmates are all ahead of you and you don’t know how to catch back up.

The road you follow is yours to create. Photo by Greg Willson on Unsplash.

Time to Choose

Now that you completely understand what a gap year is, only you can decide if it’s right for you. Your time is valuable. If you do take a year off from school, make sure you use that time to your advantage.

Grace Stueckle is a junior at Yucca Valley High School. They love art, music and movies.