Gap Year Essay

“Students who take a gap year are more likely to finish college in four years than those who enroll directly after high school. They also have higher GPAs and tend to be more focused, they also found that 60% of gap year participants said the experience influenced or confirmed their choice of major” (Karl Haigler and Rae Nelson, authors of The Gap Year Advantage). “In the end, we only regret the chances that we didn’t take," said my brother Sam. Some might argue that consistency in education improves students’ chances of being successful in the real world. Time after time, we hear that more and more students are on academic probation. I think the best solution to this problem is for students to take a gap year in between high school and college.

One of the definitions is a year that you spend traveling, working, etc. . Another definition for gap year is a one-year hiatus from academic studies to allow for nonacademic activities, before continuing your studies. The first definition of gap year is pretty straight forward stating a student should take a year off from an academic career to work and do other productive things. The second definition of gap year, in my opinion, states take this year off to do whatever you want before being tied down on academic studies. For a gap year to be successful a productive student should lean more towards the first definition of gap

The first reason is “60% of gap year graduates said the experience either 'set me on my current career path/academic major' or 'confirmed my choice of career/academic major. About 66% also said they took their academic work 'much more seriously' after their gap year”. In my first paragraph I quoted my brother Sam who went straight to college from high school majoring in hotel and restaurant management. He later realized that hotel and restaurant management was something he didn’t want to pursue. He came back three years later to take a break from college to make money so he wouldn’t have to be in debt when he got out of college. If Sam would have taken a gap year he would have had the opportunity to explore other majors and save money. The idea of consistency in education is valid. However, taking a gap helps prevent students from committing to things they aren't prepared for and preventing the regrets they might have in the future. Another reason why students should take a gap year is because “Gap students in the Haigler survey returned to college generally within six months after their gap year, with a (re)ignited passion for learning, and the ability to connect formal education with 'real-world' experiences,” (Karl Haigler and Rae Nelson, authors of The Gap Year Advantage). Going straight from high school presents two challenges for students. For the first time, they will have to