With the massive turn out of students from high school, there is clearly a need to stand out from the crowd amongst the many applications for universities and future employers. Not every gap year will enhance personal and academic growth, but if you play it right and think carefully about the sort of gap year that you go for, then they can be a great way of distinguishing yourself and at the same time developing your personality and getting more comfortable in your own skin.

A gap year, by definition, means that you will be taking time away from your studies and career.  It is therefore an important choice to make. Clearly, taking a year off to play World of War Craft or to hang out with your mates isn’t a great option for anybody. But, a gap year where you do a work internship or travel and work abroad, can have the following benefits:

Better Work Ethic
The kind of real world experience that you gain from a Gap Year can be vital to your future performance, academically and within the work place. Your maturity level can be greatly increased, allowing for better discipline and work ethic. After picking fruit in horrible, sweaty heat, earning precious travelling pennies, sitting down to do an assignment at University will seem like child’s play!

High Adaptability
Everybody knows that, on the whole, University is a massive amount of fun! But, as with any big changes, there can be a mix of good and bad and ups and downs. Someone coming straight from school in to University, or from University straight in to a job, isn’t as likely to have had as many experiences where they have had to be truly flexible.

If you go travelling in a poorer country, then you definitely have to learn to be accepting of what might seem like weird and wonderful moments, when things don’t quite go as you expected! Equally, if you take a year off to work in a job, then you will likely encounter some times of stress and unfamiliar environments in which you will have had to do some problem solving in order to best deal with the situation.

Prime time adventure!
Going on an adventure is always exciting and thrilling. But, isn’t the best time to enjoy adventure when you are wide-eyed, young and active? You turn eighteen only once. This is the time when you have no kids, no mortgage payments, no worries, and at the same time no homework!

A better CV
A CV needs to be shiny, inviting, and show that you have had some experiences. Many employers will look for experience, over and above a top grade degree. And, if you are competing with someone else with the same grades as you, then your experience in a gap year could be the deciding factor.

Better networking
Let’s face it; your chances of meeting well-connected people at high school are extremely slim. A Gap Year can be an opportunity for you to meet new people in new locations. Not only could this help you to score a future internship or other opportunity, but it can also help you to decide what it is you actually want to do with your life! Whether it is a casual chat in a hostel, or a career conversation with your boss, these could be crucial conversations that will help you to make better decisions on your future.

Plus, having a friend in France and Australia could be pretty handy for future travels! They will also have unique approaches to life, which will most likely rub off on you.

If Gap Years are so great, then why doesn’t everybody do them?

What about the cost?
There is the perception that Gap Years cost a lot of money. This will of course completely depend on the type of gap year that you take. Clearly if you take a year off to work and save money, the converse is true.

Plus, there is always the option of working and traveling at the same time. How about trying to make some money online, while you travel?

Else, a safer option could be to secure something before you go. Take a look at Bunac who offer programs for working abroad.

You’ll be behind by a year
This is a major reason why many students do not buy in to the idea of gap years. It really boils down to how desperately keen you are to move on in your education/career. This can be of even more concern when studying a longer course, such as medicine or architecture. Ultimately, you have to weigh up the benefits of postponing your studies for a year versus the experiences that you could gain from doing so.

Bare in mind that a year might seem a long time now, but when you are in full-time employment a year will fly by and you might regret not doing things when you were younger.

Homesickness or the feeling of missing out
Homesickness can range from missing friends, family, or even just the comfort of your home. The good news is, nearly everybody manages to overcome homesickness, if they are patient and give it time. And, if you do get homesick and manage to overcome it, you are likely to grow as a person and feel a strange sense of pride.

Gap years are a great way of standing out from the crowd, gaining new experiences and giving yourself a bit of extra time to do some growing up! They do, however, come with their own challenges, and you need to make sure that you do a Gap Year that will give you the experiences that are right for you. Take the time to think about it carefully, write down the pros and cons, and make sure that you do your research!