<p>Hey, I was accepted to Brown this year, but I was thinking about taking a gap year.</p>
<p>I feel that a gap year is one of those opportunities that never comes back in life. I want time to explore myself and pursuit new activities, but I also want to start with college already.</p>
<p>However, I can’t help thinking that “No one ever regrets having taken a gap year, but plenty of people regret not having taken one.”</p>
<p>Also, this is what I found on Brown’s website:</p>
<p><a href=“http://brown.edu/academics/college/advising/curricular-resource-center/guide-gap-years/guide-gap-years[/url]”>Guide to Gap Years | Curricular Resource Center</a></p>
<p>What do you think guys? Should I take one?</p>
<p>Well, given how there is currently no room at the inn with the U having over-enrolled, Brown will certainly want you to! </p>
<p>That said, there certainly are people who regret taking a Gap Year. These are the people who view it as a ‘vacation year’ and don’t actually have a plan beyond not doing schoolwork. My friend in high-school sat in his house pretty much all year and watched all his friends go off to college, with basically nothing to do. Speaking with him and his family over the summer, I think the only person who was less happy about the experience than him was his Mom, who had to deal with him bumming around for months. That said, if you have/develop a plan, the finances work, and view it not as a long vacation but rather as an opportunity, go for it! It seems every person who has done a well-planned Gap Year has felt it very worthwhile, saying it gave them the time and experience to deeply consider what they wanted out of the Brown experience.</p>
<p>tl;dr: How much you get out of a gap year depends on how much you put into it. Plan!</p>
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<p>You need formal approval to take a gap year and still be guaranteed a spot next year. Part of the approval process is writing up a short essay explaining what you plan to do during your year off; I don’t think you would get the OK if you wrote that you just wanted to chill, play video games and watch movies.</p>
<p>You are not allowed to apply to any other college as a degree-seeking applicant during your time off (my son did take a single class as a student-at-large at the local state university and that was deemed OK). You will also need to reconfirm your intention to attend Brown around January 1st. And you will be invited to a gathering of other students who took a gap year when you start school.</p>
<p>That makes sense. Also explains why, unlike at my high-school, all my friends at Brown have nothing but good things to say about their experience gapping. Just in case there was any lack of clarity, after I finished high-school I wanted to get to Brown ASAP, so gapping was not on my radar. So I don’t have any info regarding the nitty-gritty of gapping at Brown, though I’m sure much of this info is easily accessible online.</p>
<p>What did your friends at Brown do in their gap year?</p>
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<p>My son taught himself more programming and started a web development firm with his older brother, who has a CS degree – now he has had enough real-world experience to know that the CS major is right for him. One kid hiked the Appalachian Trail. Quite a few traveled overseas; some did charitable work.</p>
<p>The best thing about a gap year is that you have the chance to focus on one area of interest at a time, rather than have to switch subjects all the time just as something gets interesting. You also get a chance to recharge your batteries between having had an overly-hectic high school schedule and taking on an equally-hectic college schedule.</p>