<p>is that a good thing or a bad thing (btw i skipped a class. if i hadnt skipped that class, i'd be 17 and in college). There is a .001% chance that i will take a gap year and i'm not sure if i should be thinking about it at all</p>
<p>You have the rare opportunity of being able to take a gap year and not be put “behind schedule” so to speak, so yeah, it is something you should be considering. Assuming you’re not the kind of person who will take a gap year and then be tempted to just not go to college ever. Only take a gap year if you’re going to spend it travelling, interning or working some other kind of full time job. Don’t do it if you don’t have solid plans. But if you do, I would recommend it just because you have the opportunity to.</p>
<p>thanks!!!</p>
<p>Go to community college and get some GenEd classes out the way. Much cheaper, and it’ll get you a chance to explore your interests before you decide to go to four year institution.</p>
<p>If you want to go to college, and feel ready to go to college, you should go to college. However, I would definitely recommend taking a gap year if you are interested in spending your time doing other specific things. Essentially you have an “extra” year; if you feel up for a gap year, you could create an amazing experience for yourself.</p>
<p>Honestly, if you are mature, your fellow students will only know you are younger if you make a point of telling them. Was the age gap a problem in high school? I highly doubt it. </p>
<p>If you are intereted in a gap year to travel etc, go for it but only because that is what you want to do. DO NOT do a gap year solely because of your age.</p>
<p>What do you want to do?</p>
<p>If you want to go to college, by all means go ahead and go to college. A friend of mine will graduate college at 19 (he is a college senior now) and he has not regretted being younger than his classmates. I personally started taking college classes overseas at age 17 when most of my classmates were 20 already (mandatory military draft or community service). I blended right in.</p>
<p>If you want to take a gap year and have the means to do it, this is your opportunity to do it! But I agree with the poster above me that you should not take a gap year solely because of your age.</p>
<p>Take the gap year.</p>
<p>If you go to college now it won’t be as good as if you waited. Sure there are academic reasons to do it, but your social life will be better if you wait. You’ll be able to drink if you choose, and you’ll also be able to have sex without it being illegal (depending on the state).</p>
<p>There is also a big difference in maturity between 16 and 18, and it might be harder for you to make friends. I don’t know you, you might be fine if you are extraverted and very social.</p>
<p>One of my good friends took a gap year during work with Americorps and the California Conservation Corps. She told me she really enjoyed it and was happy she did that. She had a wonderful experience and matured during that year. My cousin attempted a gap year and just never got around to going back to college. If you feel you are mature enough to do it and have all your college plans lined up before hand, go for it. </p>
<p>There is also a big difference in maturity between 16 and 18, and it might be harder for you to make friends. I don’t know you, you might be fine if you are extraverted and very social.</p>
<p>This is very true.</p>
<p>Being 16 and in college may be uncommon, but it’s not as big of a deal as some people make it to be. You shouldn’t feel like you have to take a gap year.</p>
<p>haha .</p>
<p>Go to college, just get your education over with. Having that diploma in hand doesn’t mean you have to get a job and can’t travel the world. But it does mean you can get a job. Besides, most gap years are a waste of time. </p>
<p>That said, if you feel you are not mature enough for college in some major fashion, do consider alternative options.</p>
<p>Why not take a gap year?</p>
<p>
Cause it may not be the right thing to do for a particular person at that point in their life? I can only speak for myself, but I was more focused and ready for academics at the end of high school than at most other points in my life. Taking a break from school would have only been a distraction at that time.</p>
<p>I guess I should explain. To me it seems that the overwhelming norm is to not take a gap year. So when I see someone expressing interest in taking a gap year, I would rather they address both sides of the issue instead of letting the societal norm answer the “why not?”.</p>
<p>I would take some sort of a gap year either before or after college. Although I would like to take one after college it might not be best for your job search… (I really want a year break… that’s why I’m studying abroad! Should be fun!)</p>
<p>It depends on the OP’s plans for the hypothetical gap year, and how the year spent can help prepare them for college.</p>
<p>I have three cousins who got into college at 16 also, but when they “finished” undergrad, they were told to stay back because they weren’t old/mature enough (not that their grades were insufficient / their maturity was way off). I think that’s what happened I can’t remember - my parents told me.</p>
<p>OP, consider which school /direction you are thinking about and think about whether or not you might encounter this situation or if you will end up having a gap year after college… Consider the school and whether or not taking classes in a community college or some other institution will benefit you before going into the “real deal”. Or if you’re not planning to take classes, then try to do something productive c:</p>
<p>Just some stuff to think about, i’m only a HS senior so I might be wrong; i don’t know much either.</p>
<p>Honestly, take the gap year. Hell, take two if you feel like it. The difficulties presented to you at being 16 (I would love to italicize “16”) amongst 18 and 19 year olds will be astounding. You may think you’re mature, and you may well be, but the fact is you’re years away from the people around you. You will be far better off taking a year/two off and doing something truly interesting. There are numerous international exchange programs where you can travel abroad for relatively little (you are eligible for this mainly because of your age), and you could try really developing an academic interest in a specific field. Most people leave high school with an idea about what they want to study, wait the four years to learn about that, and then do research/find another job/whatever. You have the rare opportunity of immersing yourself into a subject of interest (or finding out what you want to study ahead of time) on your own free time and truly developing a self-guided interest. </p>
<p>If those don’t sound appealing, try try try to do something like an internship, teach at a local school, something. From personal experience (I’m a junior), the last two years we’ve had girls who were 17 for a month or two into their freshman year (I did themed housing, which was co-ed and across all academic levels) and it was noticeably difficult for them, as those months between people really do bridge a maturity and life experience gap (not to mention a lot of events and off-campus activities that people will want to do will be targeted at the 18+ crowd). </p>
<p>It’s a weird situation to be in, and I am sure you could make the best of it by going into college now, but honestly, I would wait a year or two.</p>
<p>I also took a gap year (though I’m not sure if you can call it like that in my case, anyway I was working for 2 years). I am a junior in college now and I feel that being older than most of my peers, having work experience in the field I am studying, knowing how to take care of myself and my money and having experienced other countries and cultures is giving me IMMENSE advantages over my classmates. This is both in terms of GPA and how I look at the college experience and what I am trying to get out of it. </p>
<p>In your case a gap year or two is definitely worth consideration.</p>
<p>wow. i didnt think i would get so many replies but thank you. going to college at 16 is kinda sorta the norm in my country…if you started school at 18 you may be considered a bit ‘old’… but its nice to know that i have the chance to take this gap year… :-)</p>