Help me take a gap year?

I did a study abroad program before college a million years ago before Harvard was advocating gap year, but even then they were happy to grant me one. Thanks to that gap year, I got interested in architecture (my profession) and I learned to speak fluent French which allowed me to take advanced French courses and interestingly made German much easier to learn as well. I ended up doing research in France and Germany for my senior thesis. I think it’s pretty rare that a student who has obtained a one year deferment from a college loses focus and doesn’t go back. Even a year of immersion language classes is a great break from high school. It’s a very different experience.

My worry about ‘gap years’ is a student never going back. There are many students who like having money and not having school – now that money is limited without further education, but sometimes people just get to comfortable NOT doing it. I get why your father feels as he does. Are you going to fund your own gap year or do you expect your parent to supply the funds?

Also the questions others posed about your parents personal and financial plans are valid. At some point they need to be DONE financing your education too.

But couldn’t earning college credit after high school graduation disqualify one from frosh admission at some colleges? That may be worth checking before doing something like that.

On the other hand, it can go the opposite way. Student is unmotivated in high school, goes to work or military service after high school graduation, and then later realizes that college would be a better stepping stone to career and life goals. Then the student is much more motivated to succeed in college than if s/he went directly after high school.

My D took a gap year and did not spend anywhere close to $6000. In the fall she had an internship in the Olympic National Forest through the Student Conservation Association. They pay a stipend, provide housing and a travel award. They have placements all over the country. Over the winter she worked, read a ton, and earned her Wilderness First Responder. Then she used the money she had saved to backpack with a couple friends in Patagonia/South America (we found a surprisingly low air fare and they roughed it) . She ended her time spending a month with family in a different part of the country with a completely different lifestyle. All in all it was a tremendous experience and she is doing fine at college now. She went through the whole application process last year and accepted one of her choices.They were fine with her taking the gap year and she did not lose her merit award.

Other kids we know did WWOOFing and Work Away.

"My worry about ‘gap years’ is a student never going back. "

Stats I’ve seen don’t support that as being an issue. Colleges like gap years for a reason - students are more focused and more mature and more rested to began college studies.

I took a gap year between my Junior and Senior year in college. My parents were vehemently against it, thinking I would not come back. In fact I not only came back, but my GPA and focus greatly improved after the experience. Furthermore, I was able to learn a foreign language via immersion (the best way to acquire a language), which allowed me to pass my language proficiency exams (a core requirement at my university). If I recall correctly, I convinced my parents to let me do this by basically stating there is no use in going to college if my motivation is lacking. I was just school-fatigued and needed to so something else for a while.

For the original poster – have you looked into rotary club international? If you can get in (it is a little late to be sponsored for some local clubs), it is a good way to do a low-cost gap year prior to college.

Consider WorkAway. It’s an international program which enables travellers to barter room & board for a few hours/day of work:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workaway

It’s legit.

Hi! (Sorry I haven’t been on CC in a while) I definitely agree that I need to have a proper conversation with them, but it’s hard because they don’t really want to hear it. I think it will come soon, though, as my interviews for NSLI-Y and YES Abroad are approaching. On that note, I am a semifinalist for NSLI-Y, I have applied to YES, and am preparing my application to CBYX. I really hope I get one of the scholarships but if not, I’m leaning towards WWOOFing. There are also a few other programs and scholarships people in some NSLI-Y and YES group chats have recommended.

I tried to look into Rotary, but I was confused. I’m fairly sure my local club has never done anything like it, though.

Also, I would be funding my gap year. We’re lower middle class and hopefully I’ll get some pretty good financial aid packages. In general, my parents aren’t going to be able to pay for much of my college tuition, whether I start next fall or the fall after. The only money they’re paying is from the money my grandmother left me, and that’s not going anywhere.

If your parents can’t help pay for school you may be better off working during your gap year. You can volunteer locally and take long weekends to do a little traveling.

You have ~$6k in savings, right? If you don’t qualify for Pell then the only aid you can count on is the ~$5500/year federal student loan. With $1500/year from your current savings that gives you a budget of ~~$7k/year; that’s not enough to attend residential college. If you work for a year you can probably earn ~$8k, and if you work summers you can probably earn another $3k. That would add ~$5k/year to your budget giving you ~$12k/year. If your stats are high enough to qualify for a full tuition scholarship, $12k might be enough to cover room and board. Unless your grandma left you upwards of ~$50k, I wouldn’t spend down your savings or forego the opportunity to add to your college savings.

Actually, for a student relying on need-based financial aid to attend college, it can be counterproductive to earn and save too much. The gap year money ends up getting double counted on the FAFSA-- both as student earnings and savings,which are weighted more heavily than parental income and assets.

Now that FAFSA has changed to allow reporting of the previous year’s income that might have changed somewhat-- maybe the OP can take a gap year and get financial aid calculated based on her financial status as a high school senior… but that could hurt her when sophomore year rolls around and she’s got a tax return from the gap year showing that higher income.

Colleges do include grant money as part of financial aid. From another post, we know that the OP is a hispanic female interested in computer science with a 3.9 UW/4.4 W GPA; 1510 New SAT. Many of the colleges she listed in that post promise to meet full need. Fairly high likelihood that she could win admission to several on her list with her stats.

A dependent student has a $6,320 income protection amount, plus there are deductions for federal, state, social sec taxes paid. Then income over that would be counted 50% towards FAFSA EFC.

Student assets count 20% towards FAFSA EFC. But if the money earned is earmarked for college, it could be put in a 529 account and then count as a parent asset.

A lot of students around here work between high school graduation and college to be able to afford it.

You mentioned Wwoofing–my D’s best friend did the program–she was in Sicily. It was a great experience and really worthwhile. Here’s the link for people who want to learn about it.
http://wwoof.net

Here what I say to any parents skeptical about a gap year for their child. If your child wants to take a gap year and has a well thought out plan and funding for that gap year that they researched and figured out for themselves, I’d be really hesitant to stand in their way. Yes, you may see postponing college as a risk or a waste but a much bigger risk and waste is sending off a student to college who isn’t wholeheartedly ready and willing to go. There are too many stories out there of heartbroken parents of good students who crash and burn freshman year. There are way more untold stories of students who just don’t have the optimal experience they would have had with that break between high school and college and that extra maturity.

oh how i WISH my son would consider a gap year!!!