<p>I'm considering taking a year off for a myriad of reasons. The most important is that I'm not at all sure what I want to do with my life, and I have a tremendous amount of anxiety about choosing a major. The program I'm in currently is not living up to my expectations, but I could see myself remaining in it simply because I'm so terrified of being trapped in a specialization, and I don't think that's healthy. </p>
<p>The second reason is that I would like to take some time off to work, travel, and hopefully become fluent in Spanish. Ideally the situation would unfold like this: I'd be accepted to a summer program in Spain at my current university, gain an edge, and use those skills to apply for a job when I go back home. I'd work, volunteer, and do a lot of thinking while living at home for 6 months or so. I could hopefully then use the funds I'd amassed to take the trip to South America I've been dreaming about for years. Then, I'd apply to transfer in the spring of next year with a full year of college under my belt, a stronger GPA, and hopefully an interesting story.</p>
<p>Now, obviously there are a lot of potential problems with this plan. I might not be able to find a job (although I'm not at all picky), and I don't know how I'd go about getting recommendations from my professors after nearly a year's time. So, I guess my question is this: is the idea too much of a risk? Should I still apply to transfer this spring and see how that pans out before making a decision? I really want to go to Columbia but I feel like I have no chance of getting in at this point with mediocre stats and nothing that makes me unique. As long as I wasn't out of school for more than a year, though, I could still apply to CC, right? I'm not interested in GS. </p>
<p>Does anyone have any thoughts? Better yet, has anyone actually taken a gap year after staring college? If so, why did you do so and was it worth it? I'm really attracted to this idea simply because right now I feel SO incredibly burnt-out...I know that I have no excuse to feel that way compared to some, but I have worked very hard for little reward for the past three or so years of my life. Alternative suggestions are also welcome; I just feel like something's gotta give.</p>