GAP YEAR ADVICE..Thank you

College Search & Selection
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<p>How do colleges look at students who take a year off from high school and pursue volunteer work and community service, while also perhaps taking a few parttime AP classes and then apply as an incoming freshman?</p>

<p>Personally, I am in the same predicament of getting rejected from my top schools. I am applying to DUKE ED this fall.</p>

<p>As for my current plans, I just graduated from high school. I went to a pretty good boarding high school, but I only took the basic sciences for the first three years. At my school, we were only limited to taking 5 classes a year, but I did not take any AP Science courses. I am actually going to India for this gap year. I have not been there in over 10 years and I think that this will be a rejuvenating experience for me to truly develop in my global outlook and personal growth.</p>

<p>My main activites will be:
-About 4-5 hours each day as a part-time student at a Biomedical science college taking 3 classes- Bio, physics, and chemistry all equivalent to AP level
-Do parttime research with a professor ( I will send a reserach paper)
-Hospital Volunteering India: Everyday for 2 hours; shadowing doctors
-Start a Fitness and Health Camp for students: Big Fitness person/ Helped others eat right and workout - on weekends
-Also become an English tutor- several days a week</p>

<p>-Since I plan on submitting a dance tape, I perhpas will learn some traditional Indian dancing on weekends.
-I will also submit 2 Indian professor reccs mentioning my academic performance and the AP-syllabi equivalence of the courses and extensive science classes...but I won't submit transcripts because I will not have them ready in time.
-I will make a community service portfolio.</p>

<p>Overall, this year off will help me serve to connect both academically in learning a solid science background and also personally as these expereriences of community service will be things that I have not experienced before. Primarily, the science foundation will be key to me.</p>

<p>My anxiety is that I hope that this science racking up in one year does not look like a bad thing or the fact that I did not take the opportuniy to do AP science in high school. My plan is actually to apply to Duke ED this fall and I hope to put my best foot forward in the admissions process.</p>

<p>Other notes to clarify (I had contacted all my schools):
-I will still be considered a domestic high school student (thus not international)
-I will still be consdered as applying as an incoming freshman. (thus not a transfer)</p>

<p>What are your views of this? I am not sure if it is the 'quality' gap year that most competitive colleges would like to see? Any other advice or opinons, I would really appreciate it.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

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<p>.............................?</p>

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<p>Although i don't know much about it, i think you'll be fine.</p>

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<p>Don't you want to apply to Harvard ('cause your name implies it)?</p>

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<p>No Duke...</p>

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<p>other inputs?</p>

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<p>I think you look good. I doubt they'd really look DOWN on this...it's not like your gunna sit around smokin' pot. You'll be doing something that they will prolly look favorably on.</p>

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<p>omggggggg,, this is the dude from Deerfield Academy who got rejected by cornell and waitlisted by JHU. WOW, this is like ur 5th screename.</p>

<p>P!</p>

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<p>I love you collegekid! you are the coolest kid I have met on this site!! Yea baby, cali! surfin usa duude</p>

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<p>other thoughts?</p>

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<p>Harvard, I think it shows your persistence, and could be a postive for school like Dartmouth or other LAC. I also like to say this is not the usual case for gap year. It is most often associated with acceptees who defer their attendence for up to a year to purse personal enrichment usually in some far away places.</p>

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<p>thanks, well personally, i am applying to duke ED</p>