On a more pragmatic note I forgot to mention that at least in my circumstance the decision to take a gap year meant going to college…period. When it was April of my senior year I was looking down the barrel of more than $60,000 of student loans (at least) if I was to stay in-state and go to school. All the other out-of-state schools were not pragmatic either…until I found Alabama. I found out about Alabama and realized how amazing their deal was for someone like me with a 32 ACT. Unfortunately, I missed the scholarship deadline by then. However, I contacted admissions and they let me know that I could apply in the fall of a “gap year” in order to qualify for the scholarship. So my options were 1) go to college straight away, take out soul crushing debt on my family who was already underwater in credit card and mortgage debt, risk not graduating if I don’t get the loans I need, and destroy the future of my brother who is only 4 years younger than me since I would eat away the only finances left my family has or 2) chin up, take the gap year, apply to Alabama in the fall, get the scholarships I need for college, work full-time to help with living expenses, and be able to say I can graduate college without destroying my family with debt in the process.
I chose option 2, even though it was an emotionally difficult decision to make and I had to watch my peers go off to college and have fun while I worked. Ultimately though I did not regret my decision because I will be going to college without the debt and I can rest easier knowing 1 year of sacrifice meant the best chance of graduating college with a better footing.
Was my choice the best for everyone? Probably not. You need a special level of dedication and focus to not become lazy during a gap year, especially without a guided academic gap year program. But I kept myself busy working full-time at a restaurant, saving what I could, and taking up new hobbies for my spare time. Now I am ready to start college in 2 months. The choices I made were the best for my situation. Everything needs to be evaluated by individual circumstances.