Taking Gap Years Is Actually Not A Bad Idea

When I was in my early high school years, I could have never thought of myself, or others, having to go through gap years. For me, it simply looked like a nightmare. Who wants to get a whole year of their life getting wasted, for not being able to be accepted in any universities? I wished that I would not have to go through that. That time, I just could not imagine myself on how to spent my year with, for I felt I was not qualified enough to have a decent work, or had no experience of running my own business, for instance. On the other hand, I was not ready for what my friends, neighbors, or other relatives would have thought about me. Sure, sometimes you couldn't just take your ears off the gossips, even if you actually never wanted to hear them anyway.

Later on, I was totally grateful that the privilege of becoming a university student was finally mine, without even taking gap years. However as time goes by, I deeply aware that those who previously took a gap year could easily outshine you and others, for instance, with their personality, their work ethics, and so on. To be honest, I was ashamed with all my previous thoughts. Therefore, what's really going on behind this gap year-thing? How could you finally manage to say that actually, gap year is not a bad idea at all?

First thing first, we need to get things straight on how we should define a gap year. According to a site called greatvaluecolleges.net, a gap year is the time taken between the end of high school and starting college when students can learn about themselves and become better prepared for entering higher education. If we take a look on this definition, even on the very first attempt of explanation, it doesn't show that gap year is a bad thing at all! Then again, why is that so?

One of the reasons is because gap years teach real life skills. Your typical smart classmates on high school may be really intelligent, hard-working, and all that, but are they life smart? How do they feel whenever they are interacting with adults or peers outside the school setting? Well, without trying to generalizing, but you may find one or two of these people during your lifetime: those who do great at class but socially awkward in reality.

If you can invest your time well during gap year, you may consider to forgo part-time jobs in favor of internships and resume-building leadership activities. Worried that your skills may not be qualifying enough? Now is the perfect time to push away those assumptions. For example, you may be good enough at one of the subjects back in your school years. Why don't try to give a private lesson for your juniors? And of course, the wide range of choices doesn't end up just yet. These activities attribute by getting students away from the familiar and stretching their limits in new environments.

Another reason is because gap years teach strategies to fight stress. It can teach new coping strategies for stress that will help us navigate college with added confidence. You might have heard the stories of those students who can barely survive their freshman year, especially those who live far away from home to study. Their anxiety, their depression, forced them to take medical leaves of absence, or simply their feeling of inability to accomplish the tasks. It may highlight another advantage of going through gap year, which is having more time to practice new responsibilities and increased independence without the pressure that comes with school.

Next, gap years teaches accomplishment without grades. This builds traits like determination and perseverance, with emphasizing achievement that is not score or grade-based. The goal is not to earn an A, it's to make an experience better for someone else, by having qualities such as empathy and compassion.

The other thing you should consider for taking gap years is because it can also be a Test Run for a career. It will be great to expose ourselves to the new things we can get from a gap year. We may find the one thing we want to do, or we may discover that the path we're one is not quite the right one. It's never a bad idea to explore those thoughts and feelings before investing so much time and money into college. You'll have more chance to decide which career you would likely to pursue.

The last but not least, gap years are simply a new mean of adventure. Why not? No homework or grades. No strings attached. You'll likely to find it more difficult for you to have such a leisure times whenever you have a family depending on you, or jobs and other things await for you. It is a perfect time to indulge in wanderlust. But please keep in mind that whatever adventure you are likely to take, you have the responsibility to shape yourself into a better one, so don't dwell too much on the fun things only and forgetting all your initial plan of success.

So if you are now on your final year of high school, and may be afraid that this year is not the year for you to become a college freshman, no worries. You are not out of your luck yet. In fact, a journey of becoming a better version of yourself lies upon you. It's a chance that not everybody can experience. Therefore, you should make the best of it, and do what you have to.

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Source :

https://www.greatvaluecolleges.net/faq/is-a-gap-year-a-good-idea/

https://www.teenlife.com/blogs/5-reasons-why-gap-year-very-good-idea