<p>Hello, I'm having my first graduate school interview in a few weeks. After I finished undergrad, an extra year for extra classes and working and etc, I left home and went on a solo backpacking trip for about 7 months around the world (actually I'm still traveling). I did not mention this in my essays or application when I applied. The thing is, I'm not quite sure how to bring this up in the interviews. There's obviously a gap of a few months so I will have to mention this either way. I personally found the experience to be life-changing, however, it has nothing directly to do with any of the programs I'm applying to. </p>
<p>Should I be downplaying this experience since it wasn't mentioned before? How should I bring this up? Is there a way I can use it to strengthen my interview?</p>
<p>Don’t be afraid of mentioning it but it is not really too important unless it is directly relevant to the graduate program you are trying to enter. For example, my oldest son is an evolutionary biology Ph.D. student and he took time off between B.S. and M.S. AND between M.S. and Ph.D. to do a combination of field work and backpacking. This kind of experience is extremely important to his field. You state that you worked for some time after the B.S. so taking some time off after working and before shifting gears back into a Ph.D. program is not a bad thing. If your work experience is relevant, make sure to discuss that. I find that students who come back after working are highly motivated and in engineering, this is actually a plus.</p>
<p>Mention it if it organically comes up. I was in a similar situation - got to backpack the world for almost a year after undergrad. It’s pretty much the only time in an average persons life when they have the time, money and physical ability to do something like that. I added a short explanation for the unaccounted for year in my resume and it came up a couple times in interviews, always very positively. Don’t brag on it, bring it up out of nowhere or spend too much time on it, and it may work in your favor by making you memorable.</p>