Thinking of Taking a Gap Year? Think Again.

Why taking a gap year is less than ideal

Taking a gap year is like taking a leisurely walk through the Washington D.C. Mall even though the trolley would get you to your destination quicker.

Why would anyone consider the walk instead of the ride? Well, exercise, people-watching, taking in the beauty of the cherry blossoms, perhaps. But all of these will slow you down at a time in your life when momentum is strong.

Lately, I’ve been hearing my college students talk about taking a break.

They have good reasons. Some say Covid-19 is forcing them to re-think their career trajectory. Others have had to drop out because of financial pressures or to help family members who are not able to work.

While these reasons are important, taking a break is almost always a bad idea. Don’t take a gap year unless someone is paying for you to have a phenomenal experience.

Are you going to be backpacking through Europe? Do you have an uncle with connections? No, not Soprano connections, but legit ones like knowing Bill Gates or the Governor of your state?

Maybe you’re at Harvard and you’re going to help the next new tech giant construct a social media platform that is going to topple Facebook.

Like Steve Jobs who dropped out of Reed College in 1974 to study eastern religions and visit India, you might discover a gap in the market and become the next innovator. Or, you may just as easily end up with some great pics on your phone and a credit card bill to pay when you return.

Worse yet, you could end up working a minimum wage job, being designated essential, and risking getting sick for the privilege of living in your parents’ basement for a year.

Seriously, unless you’ve got a game plan, taking a gap year or a year off is most likely going to set you back more than you can imagine. Many counselors and people who’ve taken a gap year may disagree, but not all.

In a Wall Street Article by Sue Shellenbarger, “Delaying College to Fill in the Gaps” Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, says, “If you’re going to loiter around the margins of life for a year, you may be better off in the classroom. ”

This is so true. Without a specific goal, it is really easy to become derailed.

Even though 90% of students who take a gap year return to the classroom and return with a renewed sense of purpose, 10% don’t come back.

In my experience as a secondary school teacher and college instructor, I have found that the majority of the students who take a gap year don’t return for any formal education whether trade school or college. This may have to do with the demographics of the schools (high-need, lower middle class) where I work.

Sadly, my local experience doesn’t match the stats documented statewide. Advising kids with few opportunities outside of school to take a gap year usually makes going back a herculean task. Many do, but why does it have to be so hard for them when the easier path is to get a good education early in life, as early as possible?

Some students say they need time to think about their career choice, maybe they’re not so sure about what they want to study. The first two years of academics at colleges are usually foundation courses, so waiting is just going to prolong the inevitable core classes. If you don’t know what your major is going to be, you have a better chance of figuring it out in a classroom than almost anywhere else.

Taking a break to work may be necessary, but I’ve met so many students who did just that and never resumed their studies. They found love, travel, money, success in other areas of their lives. That’s all great, but I wonder if they will regret not getting the college education they had initially aspired to achieve.

Some students say they would rather wait until …

Until their girlfriend graduates; until their parents can contribute to supporting them; until Covid-19 is history. Until we have a vaccine. until face-to-face instruction resumes, until …..fill in the blank.

“Until” turns into “Never “and they end up cheating themselves out of a world of possibilities. Life is just waiting to saddle us with all sorts of responsibilities, so seize the opportunity to attend college, earn the degree you always wanted, study a trade, learn something in a formal classroom from an expert — those opportunities will most likely diminish as the years go by and you will have more people relying on you to support their goals and passions.

Be selfish. Take the time to pursue your educational goals.

Move toward them with tenacity and determination. Be willing to fight for your educational goals before you cheat yourself out of them with the same dexterity as a card shark at a newbie poker table.

If you wait for the ideal time to pursue your goals, you may end up with nothing but unfulfilled ideals.

Thanks for reading. You can find more of my writing here on Medium or my website: writingforeverydayliving.com