<p>I'm a junior in high school in northern Indiana, and am enlisted in the US Army. This summer I will be leaving for basic training in Fort Benning, Georgia. I'm enrolled in what's called the split-option program, where I attend basic this summer and advanced infantry training (or AIT) next summer. I feel I am a very well-rounded student, with a 28 composite ACT, a 3.8 GPA, multiple AP/honors courses, hundreds of volunteer hours, a few jobs, multiple leadership positions, etc. </p>
<p>Recently, I've been very thoughtful on my future, as I have always been a well prepared person. I've been looking at several out-of-state flagship Universities because I feel I can easily adapt and excel in a college where I'm above average. The other day it hit me, that because my AIT is 12 weeks long, I won't be able to attend at least the fall semester of the university I choose.</p>
<p>My question is, will a gap year between high school and college hurt my application proccess? Should I take online college courses for the University I choose until fall of 2016? Or should I enroll in the spring semester and knock out a few courses?</p>
<p>As long as you do something productive during your gap year, it doesn’t hurt your application and it could help.</p>
<p>Be aware that if you take online classes you may be considered a transfer rather than a fr applicant. The definition of a transfer applicant ranges from taking 1 post-HS college class to taking less than a year of full time post-HS college coursework; you need to go to the websites for colleges you’re interested in to see what their policy is.</p>
<p>Being a fr vs transfer applicant can affect you in many ways: acceptance rate can be lower for transfers; there are fewer merit scholarships for transfers and they are usually for smaller amounts; need based FA can be lower for transfers than fr admits.</p>
<p>Another option is applying to a school that, once you are admitted, will allow you to delay your attendance for a sem or year.</p>
<p>Hopefully you’re aware that as an OOS student at a public college, you are likely to pay substantially higher tuition and will get less FA than if you attend your IS public.</p>
<p>I realize out of state tuition costs substantially more but money is no issue for me if I’m attending my dream school. I knew a gap year had to be productive, but thank you for the insight on transferring. Would working a full-time job be considered productive?As long as I’d continue volunteering on the weekends?</p>