THE GAP YEAR

The Gap Year

The Gap Year

Introduction

The gap year is a British phenomenon referring in a general sense to a break between secondary school and university to travel, volunteer, or work abroad before continuing with formal studies. Once a domain of affluent youth, the gap year has become more accessible to the general populace as a result of the decreased cost of foreign travel, the availability of organized programs, and the increasing social acceptance of the gap year. It has been estimated that up to 200,000 British youth now take a gap year on an annual basis.

A typical gap year may last between 3 and 12 months, and involve structured programs that are .educational in a broad sense and may include, cultural courses and exchanges, expeditions, volunteer work, or structured work placements. Reflecting the popularity of the gap year in the UK, over 200 businesses and nonprofit organizations now offer gap year programs and services. Likewise, universities, career services, and other youth-oriented organizations in the UK often encourage taking a gap year, and provide information and Web resources to help young people make this time as constructive as possible.

What do we hope to get out of it?

The decision youth face on where to invest their time and energy, and how to develop the skills and experience to create an ultimately fulfilling life, is a complex process affected by many factors. High-school graduates (mostly close to 18 and legal adult status) are in a unique situation to exercise greater freedom of choice and independence than they could as minors in secondary school. They may, for instance, move out of home, find a full-time job, take time out to travel, or continue with their studies. How fruitful this time is will depend on their personal circumstances, desires, determination, creativity, and access to resources. The challenge for youth is to harness these forces in compatible directions that can maximize their potential.

Due to the uneven and complex nature of development, Mohamed and Wheeler (2001, p12) suggested that youth are at varying levels of maturity, focus, and readiness to exercise their independence and direct their life. Some yearn for greater challenge, freedom, and the chance to explore, while others are more apt to follow traditional courses of work and education. In either case, youth are constrained and directed to some extent by available resources, and by the pathways defined, condoned, and legitimized by organizations and by expectations of society. In a knowledge-based society such as ours, access to many career opportunities requires a post-secondary degree or diploma.

Government and institutional policy increasingly aims to encourage young people to continue directly into post-secondary education in order to maintain momentum and gain relevant technical skills and knowledge to “succeed” in the knowledge economy. The effort makes sense when one considers that opportunities for knowledge based jobs and increased wages are likely to result from successful completion of a postsecondary program.

One difficulty with this present strategy is that finding (or creating) a fulfilling life and ...