Gap Year

Mind the gap

Students take a break from the academic track Emma Tomlinson tomliemm000@hsestudents.org

This year, a record number of students have taken funds that students use to pay tuition when they return to a gap year, mainly due to the coronavirus. A gap school. year has many purposes, from saving money for Money is one of the most important issues when tuition, traveling or just trying to find out if you actually it comes to getting a college education. The student want to go to college. Unfortunately, many high schools loan debt in the United States is around $1.6 trillion, discourage their graduating seniors from taking one and according to the National Student Loan Data System. The promote college as the only viable post-secondary option. average student loan debt for a single American is around Twenty percent of first-year students admitted to $32,000. Taking a year off to save up money is less Harvard University have chosen to defer their acceptance feasible for students who have to pay their own housing and take a gap year this year due to COVID-19, according and living expenses, as those costs would outweigh their to a statement by the university. During the summer, a money earned. Institutions such as Princeton and Florida study by SimpsonScarborough indicated that around 40% State University offer financial aid to students who take a of high school seniors said they would seriously consider year off to perform volunteer work, supporting gap years. a gap year as an alternative to attending college this fall. In a study of students at Temple University who took a Colleges this fall semester are offering mostly online gap year, 96% reported increased self-confidence, 93% classes. Some schools offer all online classes or a had increased communication skills and 98% said the combination of online classes with one or two in-person year helped them develop as a person. Mental health classes a week. A number of colleges are not allowing among teens and young adults is heavily influenced by students back on campus. school. According to the U.S. Department of Health and School counselors do not tend to offer a gap year as a Human Services, one in five children and adolescents suggested option after graduation. This may be due to experience a mental health problem during their school the fact that the school wants a higher rate of graduates years. Recently, schools have been emphasizing the to go straight into university, which reflects well upon the importance of student’s mental health, but their attempts school. However, taking a gap year doesn’t necessarily to help have fallen short. Some students simply need a mean that a student will not return back to school. break from the pressure of school. According to a study by Middlebury College, 90% of gap Additionally, going straight from high school to college, year students return to college within a year. a high-pressure academic situation, can lead to burnout. A year off of school can lead to academic benefits. Fewer than six out of 10 college students graduate in According to the same study done by Middlebury College, under six years. Hours of homework a night combined students who took a gap year tended to outperform by with academic pressure leads to high levels of stress. In 0.1 to 0.4 points on a 4.0 GPA scale. This disproves the the National Alumni Survey conducted in 2015, 82% of commonly heard argument that gap year students return students who took a gap year indicated that they wanted to college less academically motivated. to take a break from the academic track. Students may also take a year off to travel the world Adding up the academic benefits, financial savings, and and volunteer. Foundations and organizations, such as benefits for student’s mental health, a gap year should the Student Conservation Organization, offer internship be more normalized for high school seniors to consider. and volunteer opportunities within government Whether it’s traveling the world, or working to make a organizations, nonprofits and conservation groups. The little extra money, taking a gap year can greatly benefit organization also sponsors gap year students, providing students.