Gap years have gotten a lot of press since Malia Obama announced she’ll be taking a year off before heading to Harvard. For the uninitiated, a gap year is planned time off—usually one year—before attending college. It can be an appealing option for students who intend to work, travel, or otherwise engage in something they likely couldn’t do while concurrently attending college, or for students who feel too burned out and want to refuel their intellectual and emotional gas tanks before starting their college careers.
Not surprisingly, that widespread coverage of the gap year option has led a lot of applicants to explore the option, or to flat out ask their counselor, “Should I take a gap year?”
The gap year is a wonderful option for some students. But it’s also an important and potentially complex enough decision that I shouldn’t try to dispense advice in a blog post to help you decide whether or not a gap year is for you.
So instead, I’ll just encourage you to do one thing—apply to college first, then make the decision later about whether or not to take the gap year.
Here are three reasons I recommend that approach:
1. If you choose not to apply to college because you intend to take a gap year, all of your options are now pretty much off the table. You can’t change your mind next spring (or if you do, you’ll have limited options). And I’d hate to see any student begin their gap year already wishing they’d made a different choice. Why remove options prematurely if you don’t have to?
2. If a college that admitted you agrees to hold your spot for another year, you’re all set on the college front. You won’t have to apply next fall, you won’t have to keep your fingers crossed that you’ll get in, and most importantly, you won’t have to explain what you’ve been up to for that last year in a way that makes you a compelling admit. I’m not suggesting that you should then embrace the opportunity to do nothing but watch television and eat frozen burritos. But why put unnecessary pressure on yourself? A waiting spot means you can direct your energy into deciding what to do for the next year without worrying about what will happen next.
3. When people ask you where you’re going to college, it will feel better to say, “I’m going to College X, but I’m taking a gap year first,” as opposed to, “I’m taking a year off and then applying.” The former is a student who’s embracing options and the freedom to do something interesting or necessary before beginning college. The latter is a student who could appear a little aimless. I don’t typically suggest that students make decisions based on what other people might think—you need to do what’s right for you and your family. But I know that there’s a very real psychological difference between having a college plan in place and waiting another year to find one.
Any student who decides to take a gap year deserves to get what they want out of the experience, without regrets or added pressure. In most cases, applying to college first, then ensuring that a school will hold your spot for a year, will help you get what you want from your gap year experience.