Currently I am a biology major and sophomore at the University of South Florida. After I graduate, I plan on becoming a Wildlife Biologist/Rehabilitator. I am deeply unhappy with my college life. I am stressed, depressed, angry, frustrated, anxious, and confused about everything all at the same time. I can barely find the motivation to pass my classes and I feel as if I am in a downward and endless spiral of unhappiness. To change this, I want to take a break from school and just travel and participate in wildlife conservation opportunities! Whomever is reading this, please make any suggestions and opinions you have on this. I would like to at least tell someone before I bring this idea up with my family and start making real plans to do this. I plan on volunteering and taking this gap year approximately from August 2018 to April 2019 which will be after I get my AA this summer term. During this gap year, I would like to become more knowledgeable about my world, become more humble, learn, and experience. Please write below your opinions, experiences, suggestions on what programs are best for a gap year in wildlife conservation, and everything else in between.
Just a couple of thoughts. Do you feel like this all semester or just at the end of the semester? I know that by the time I got to the end of semester, I wanted to dig ditches or pretty much anything that wasn’t class.
If - after consideration - you feel this isn’t just the end of the semester dip, would an internship fill that need? Sometimes the internships are summer and sometimes a semester. Maybe check the pathways/government site to see it there is something available.
The word that concerns me in your post is “travel.” Traveling and working as part of a gap year are two different things and I am concerned that your vision and reality are not going to match, which could leave you in a lurch. And a lurch means money.
You need to have a concrete plan before you attempt something like this. Talk to the school
They may not have accommodations for a gap year which means any scholarships you might have would be in jeopardy. You need to talk to the financial aid office to find out if this gap year would trigger payment start on any student loans. The last thing you want is student loans without the degree. And going back after being out a year is hard.
IMHO, look for hands-on activities at the college and internships. Taking a gap year without a concrete plan while out and a concrete plan to go back looks dangerously like dropping out.
Thank you for your reply! And yes, I do feel like this all of the time, every single second of every single day. I do also understand that traveling and working can be two different things and that after doing this all of my problems will not be magically fixed. My life in its current state makes me deeply unhappy and I want to do something to change that instead of wasting my life suffering. To pay for my gap year, should I have to after speaking with financial aid, I was going to start saving for it starting January of next year up until August. I have no plans at all to drop out especially since I am already halfway done with my degree. After the gap year is over, I will return to school and finish no matter how I feel.
First: Get checked out to make sure your psychological state isn’t being caused by a chemical imbalance. No need to bring your misery with you.
Second: If you are simply burned out, look into the Arcas Guatemala volunteering programs. As a long term volunteer you could make a big difference. The cost once you are there isn’t that bad.