ARE GAP YEARS STILL WORTH IT?

WHY A GAP YEAR IS EVEN MORE RELEVANT NOW THAN THE BEFORE-FORE TIMES

BY ETHAN KNIGHT

Ironically, the premise of the gap year has not needed to change as a result of the pandemic – its value has only grown. Indeed, it feels like a significant part of the gap year field has been hibernating and now it’s awakening with gusto to serve a backlog of eager students. Whether in the study abroad space, or the gap year space, students are desperate to “get out there.”

At the Gap Year Association, we’ve seen our membership almost double since the pandemic began, with new offerings coming from college providers of gap years, as well as continued growth of the domestic option. Inevitably, as we look forward to 2022 and beyond, more international options will be coming online as vaccines become more available to those in host countries and communities around the globe.

While it’s certainly more work to run experiential programming in this era, it’s also all the more reason gap years are needed: to invest in our own relevance in a rapidly evolving world. In fact, there’s been more career mobility in the last few years than ever in my lifetime (est. 1978), but also that means those willing to strive for what they love in an experiential and practical way - well, I can’t imagine a better list of ingredients to achieve “success.”

DURING A GAP YEAR, STUDENTS NOT ONLY EXPLORE A NEW EXPERIENCE, THEY SEE THEMSELVES THROUGH A NEW LENS.

As well in this era of Black Lives Matter Protests and the January 6th Riot at the Capitol, with so much division, there’s been incredible social justice efforts specifically improving opportunities for diverse students and staff. Not only have programs made inroads towards equity issues, but they’re also radically democratizing the gap year option by making it more independently available, with increased options to DIY a gap year as was never an option before.

In this remote working era, gap years have been able to respond with more online options, internships, and increasingly hybrid models. While a departure from traditional experiential education, these new models have been highly successful in many ways and I think are a surprise to many of us, reflecting tremendous innovation.

COLLEGES STILL LOVE GAP YEARS

Even colleges like the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Princeton University, Duke University, Long Island University, McDaniels College, Warren Wilson College, Colorado College, Portland State University, Florida State University, Harvard University, and many more are embracing gap year education, leading to increases in financial aid for gap year students.

Research is now established showing that taking a gap year clearly benefits academic GPA over the entire undergraduate career (not just the opening years). In fact, there’s a new effort amongst higher education’s Gap Year Research Consortium at Colorado College that is looking at longitudinal data for outcomes at a larger scale than ever before.

According to the 2020 National Alumni Survey, participants reported that their gap year experience increased their maturity (98% to some extent, 81% a lot). Over 75% of survey participants also reported that gap years contributed to some extent to increasing their academic motivation, giving them a competitive advantage when applying to college and/or jobs, influencing their course of study, influencing their career of choice and inspiring them to volunteer more.

PERSONAL BENEFITS OF A GAP YEAR

During a gap year, students not only explore a new experience, they see themselves through a new lens. In the 2015 National Alumni Survey of gap year participants, 98% of respondents reported that their gap year helped them develop as people and allowed them time for personal reflection. This leads to a clearer direction for future life and career goals.

Harvard University research reports that “many (gap year students) speak of their year away as a ‘life-altering’ experience or a ‘turning point,’ and most feel that its full value can never be measured and will pay dividends the rest of their lives,” according to an article posted by Harvard’s admissions department.

CAREER BENEFITS

A gap year can lead students in a clear direction toward a successful and positive career experience. Karl Haigler and Rae Nelson, who did an independent study of more than 300 gap year students, found that 60 percent of these students said their experiences either “set me on my current career path/academic major” or “confirmed my choice of career/ academic major,” according to their book,

“The Gap Year Advantage.” The 2015 National Alumni Survey reported 84% of gap year students felt their gap year helped them acquire skills to be successful in their careers.

PLANNING A SUCCESSFUL GAP YEAR

Students typically plan a full gap year or more commonly only a semester, it could include several structured experiences abroad or staying in their own communities. For optimal benefit, we suggest planning at least two months of experiences, combining up to four of the following components: service/ volunteering; career exploration/internship; paid work; and at least one “free radical” – exploring a previously undiscovered passion.

These experiences could be independent, part of a program, or a combination of several distinct components that include both independent and organized group experiences. Gap year students seek out different opportunities: some build their gap years around one goal (for example, Spanish fluency, assisting an ailing family member or learning a trade); others spend the year exploring possible future interests, testing new waters through a combination of part-time work, an internship or an intentional travel program.

The benefits of a well-designed gap year can include gaining hard and soft skills, clarifying career goals, expanding an understanding of one’s self and the world and improving academics. Students should consider involving a college counselor, a gap year consultant, family and friends – hack what you don’t know and network what you can’t hack.

MAXIMIZING YOUR MONEY

Financing a gap year may feel daunting, but a gap year does not have to add to the already high cost of college. More and more students are leveraging their 529 College Savings Plans successfully, and even more are simply working to earn extra college credit so they can count their gapping towards college goals. In fact, GYA has a very popular arrangement with GYA Accredited Gap Year Programs that allow their students to earn up to a full semester of college credit through our relationship with Portland State University.

As well, there are a growing number of opportunities for financing, and in 2020 gap year programs supported students from all financial backgrounds with a combined $5+ million in financial aid. Increasingly, paid and independent opportunities are available within traditional gap year channels, and we have been proud to further partner with AmeriCorps for domestic service opportunities that are paid.

A GAP YEAR FOR EVERY DREAM

Whether you’re looking towards a domestic program doing a (virtual/in-person) internship, activism, outdoor conservation work, assistant teaching, disaster relief, literary education, certification studies, or even parallel with online college, there are options for you. Or, if 2022 has you angling for some of the expanded international program options, I strongly encourage you to make a list of exciting activities and follow our soon-to-be-released Planning Guide 2.0, … there really are more options out there than you have ideas.