Does taking a gap year negatively impact admissions and financial aid?

College Majors Musical Theater Major
1

I have a kid who will not turn 18 until end of June (after he graduates). He is overwhelmed with “senior year” and has a few gaps he needs to work on (dance and music theory) before auditioning. He really was going to attempt it this year, but now with some new developments and opportunities, he would be not able to focus as much on “something.” I have been following this for the last two years and know that the audition process is very close to a very busy part-time job during the upcoming months. His concerns are:

  • Will programs wonder why I took a gap year? And treat me differently?
  • Will I stick out auditioning with kids younger than me (I have tried to assure him, they won't be that much younger!)
  • Will it affect possible scholarships or financial aid in any way?

He would love to hear about people who did take a gap year and what their experiences were – good and bad.

As it stands, it will be hard for him this year to travel to many programs and he knows that some of the ones he is interested in don’t participate in Unifieds. He also has had no music theory (he didn’t discover until sophomore year he could sing and last year sang at Carnegie Hall for his second public vocal performance - EVER - with his “real” voice – not a character voice). I think it will be better for him to step back and focus on strengthening the skills he needs to and really devoting the time next year to auditions and applications.

He has asked me to post this – this board has been a WEALTH of info so far!!

2

Paging @owensfolks! (Her son took a gap year and was successful the following year, so hopefully she will see this!)

3

He will not stick out at auditions or at any school since no one will know how old he is unless he tells them.

4

I check in here now and then when I am missing my daughter, and thinking about this time last year, LOL! Saw this and am pasting in something I wrote for a previous Gap Year thread. My daughter took a gap year and is in her first semester of a BFA MT program now. She is really happy she did.

To answer questions above: no one will wonder about the gap year (in fact it would be a good thing to chat about if there is an interview). Some scholarships may be affected, though (merit scholarships, not any talent scholarships to my knowledge).

Below is pasted (slightly edited) post.

For her, a gap year was nothing but good. For merit scholarship purposes (which she needed to attend any program except a local live-at-home one), it allowed her to develop her list of possible schools KNOWING her final HS GPA and SAT scores. There would have been no point in auditioning for spots that she would have had to turn down because of lack of funds. (We are not doing loans, and can contribute under $20K out of pocket; but don’t qualify for federal need-based aid, so knowing pretty much what merit aid she would qualify for was essential for developing a list of schools.)

She worked a couple of part time jobs during the year, which allowed her to save enough money for probably 3 years of incidental expenses. We (parents) are covering room/board, tuition left after scholarships, and books.

She was able to audition for 13 schools (6, I think, at Chicago Unified) without having to worry about messing up her HS GPA or stressing over assignments due. And don’t minimize the sheer amount of time it takes to send in all those applications; I had no idea (did any of us? LOL).

She has been involved in community theatre for years, but didn’t participate during the gap year winter/spring so she could travel to auditions. She WAS in a musical over the summer, which was a great “warm up” for this year.

And she got in a program that she is happy with (as of the first 2 months anyway) so I guess it worked.

Down side of gap year? I guess there could be maybe a “freaked out” feeling if you are not going off to school along with all yours peers. Mom and Dad might also feel that way! My daughter didn’t have that kind of attachment to her high school, and in fact wasn’t there at all her senior year; all her classes were dual enrollment at a local community college.

Another down side was having to “do it yourself” when it came to preparing for auditions. She had a few private voice lessons/coaching sessions to prepare her audition pieces, but I am afraid I was her “monologue coach,” mostly in the car on the way to schools. She didn’t apply anywhere that required a prescreen because the though of having to figure out how to do that was very daunting to her–she is definitely a non-tech-y person. However if you ARE a tech-y person the extra time would be extremely helpful, I am sure.

It seems that most people had help from HS drama or chorus teachers picking material, coaching, filming prescreens, etc. She felt that she was not as prepared as others at the auditions.

Finally, there are some schools that don’t award freshman merit scholarships to those who aren’t coming right from high school. So watch out for that. Don’t really remember any more, but I believe UAB was one of them. Also, think first before taking college classes during your year off; that might make you ineligible for some good scholarships if you are considered a transfer student instead of a new freshman. (Dual enrollment credits don’t count against you.)

Hope this helps someone out there who may be considering a gap year.

5

From what I understand, it’s a great opportunity to train and earn money and the next year’s audition process will come soon enough to keep you busy! For every school we applied to, the only way that freshman scholarships did not apply is if you were not a true freshman, and that was defined by if you took a single unit (or more) of college credit after graduating from high school, not your age. Ask each school of course, but if he doesn’t do any college work post-graduation, they should look at him as any other freshman, just possibly a little more prepared and focused, and a few months older.

6

I appreciate the comments I have gotten (including the ones through PM). I can’t PM anyone yet, so…If anyone has any more stories I can show him, I would really appreciate it. He still isn’t convinced. He is just very worried that he will not be viewed the same and will lose opportunities. From what I see and hear, that isn’t the case…

7

I haven’t checked in here in ages; but I guess my spidey senses told me to do so. :slight_smile: YES, my daughter took a gap year, and is currently a Freshman BFA MT at her happy place-a school that was not remotely on her radar during her first audition season. As long as the student is a TRUE freshman (doesn’t earn too many credits at community college) the finances should be the same. I would caution against taking classes for credit, as there is often a huge difference between Freshman scholarship/aid, and transfer scholarship/aid. Thank goodness, I learned that here. It was one of the BIG reasons that D took a gap year instead of matriculating at one of the schools that she was accepted to on her first go-round.
Re admissions: I actually think the gap year helped her, quite a bit. She used the year to do community theatre and take stage combat; so her resume looked more diverse and interesting. And I think that at almost every single audition, she was asked about the experience. It gave her something to speak about; and speak with emotion. Because it was a tough choice, and difficult at times to not be away at school like most of her friends.

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Last year, after a painful process, my d and I were considering a gap year. She wasn’t at first, but because of people like @owensfolks and others, I felt like it wouldn’t be the end of the world if she did. She ended up getting 3 late acceptances, and committed to one (and is very happy thus far). She has a friend in her program who took a gap year (she said he ‘needed it’ for maturity reasons, and hardly anyone realizes he is a year older, unless he points it out). There is also another guy in the program, whom she says is an actual adult (lol). I saw the banner and he definitely stands out from the crowd, but I couldn’t tell you how old he actually is (she said he is engaged!! lol again). When you’re in college, it’s not really about age and grade anymore. Colleges are well aware that not everyone does (or can) start at age 18, right after HS. I am a professor, and no one keeps track of how old you are (unless you act like a child, or are one of those older ‘know it alls’ 8-|

My biggest concern was about her level of productivity, especially if she would have taken it because she had no acceptances (or ones she wasn’t happy with). If done properly, it can be a great time to improve their skills set (dance classes, if that’s a weakness), taking time to hone their ‘type’, go on some real auditions to improve on that skill, and make some money to save for when they have no time to work!

9

I am currently taking a gap year and I totally recommend it. Last year I started the process but quickly realized I was not ready and wanted to be able to have time to 100% focus on auditioning. Take #2 is going so much smoother! Applications are in, auditions are scheduled and I am feeling MUCH more prepared. I also have been working so I have been paying for some extra coaching out of pocket which is definitely a bonus. Compared to my friends who are or did audition senior year I feel a lot less stressed and overwhelmed. If you’re on the fence I would say do it! It’s not an easy choice but I think taking the time to make sure you’re truly ready both for auditions and college is a good thing! As long as you’re entering as a freshman it won’t affect scholarships and aid.