<p>To those of you who took gap years and <em>got in</em>, how did you spend that year? How did you write about it in your essay?</p>
<p>For most students, it is easier to take the gap year after admission. That is to say you apply as a HS senior (with all of the resources of your school behind you), and then, once admitted, you indicate that you wish to defer your admission. MIT accepts deferrals of up to two years (though one year is more common).</p>
<p>If you have graduated and then spent a year doing [something] and I have probably interviewed a half-dozen students over the years for which this is the case, then it is exactly as it appears: you describe what you did, why you did it, how it has affected you. Basically, MIT, along with any competitive school is very interested in the choices that you have made, because that speaks a lot to the choices that you might make when you get to MIT. For students who took a gap year before applying, then MIT should see a clear demonstration of your decision making.</p>