Gap year between HS and College, ramifications?

[Garga]

What ramifications are there from taking a gap year between high school and college?

 

Does it hurt or help getting into college? What about scholarships? By taking a year off, do you disqualify yourself from scholarships?

 

If a person takes a gap year, what should they do in that year? It wouldn't be for bumming around.

 

I know so little about this that I don't even know what to ask, so if you know anything about this, I'm all ears.

[Laura Corin]

In the UK, you can apply at the usual time, but say that you want to defer your place for a year. Would that be more likely to fit in with scholarships?

 

I've heard of problems with health insurance for 18yos who are not in education. I don't know if that applies to you.

 

Laura

[Ann.without.an.e]

The great majority of scholarships are available to current High School Juniors and/or Seniors. My sister was a great student with high scores but she found out the hard way during her year off that her new position as a graduate disqualified her for most scholarships :( It was a hard lesson. As a home school parent, I would say delay graduation (if that is possible since I don't know how that works?). If you have a child who is borderline between two grades, choose now while they are younger to opt for the younger grade if you are concerned about age? Just some thoughts.

[Shmead]

You can certainly apply and defer. In fact, the top tier schools will sometimes conditionally accept someone if they really want them but just don't have room: they will suggest a gap year.

 

A gap year, in my humble opinion, needs to be about building toward something: A Birthright year in Israel, a six month mission trip to Costa Rica, an internship in a field you are interested in where you are working on real stuff, training for the Olympics, being an exchange student for a year overseas, starting your own business, working full time on a political campaign, that sort of thing. I think that just staying home and working a generic job--retail or food service--is as bad an idea or worse than bumming around: a kid that is purely bumming around is at least broke. A kid who is working 40 hours a week and has few financial or other responsibilities really has a lot of time to party, and a lot of money to spend. I think it's actually harder to go from that lifestyle to being poor and hardworking and academic in college than to go from bored on the couch to college. Retail places, especially, are powerfully good at offering very bright hard working kids just enough money and responsibility and pride that they continue to put the retail job first, and dabble at college. But what is enough money and responsibility at 18 is a lot less when you are 25 or 30 and ready to start a family, and it's much more daunting to get serious about college then (and possibly impossible, if you start the family before you do the math!).

[Missouri Okie]

I haven't watched this recently, but I think in this video SWB gets around to discussing two options for the gap year.

[redsquirrel]

We are planning to have our son apply and then defer for a year. He might have other plans, but I really hope he takes the year.

[Crimson Wife]

My cousin has an August birthday and he did CityYear (a local affiliate of AmeriCorps) after graduating H.S. at 17 because he wasn't sure what he wanted to study at college and he just generally needed more time to mature. He got a small stipend, room & board, health insurance coverage, and then some money for college. He was also able to re-take the SAT during his gap year and improve quite a bit on his 12th grade scores. I don't think he would've gotten into the college he ultimately attended had he applied in 12th rather than during the gap year.

[thewaka]

I am so glad someone asked this because I had forgotten I wanted to! lol

 

My 14 yo would be 8th grade in a public school and that is what I have considered her. Her birthday is in February, not a usual month for delaying school entry. What would be the possible consequences of having her "repeat" the 8th grade and have her graduate at 19 (she would be 18 when starting her 12th grade year) instead of taking a gap year? She is very uncertain about going to college and could use another year of school work to be ready and have time to decide. Since 8th grade wouldn't be on her transcript (she isn't doing any high school coursework right now), does anyone think this would raise eyebrows about her age?

 

Thanks for any and all advice.

[freesia]

But how does it effect financial aid grants? I assume that you don't receive the original quoted amount. Do you reapply and is it likely to be less now that they are not trying to attract you?

[Crimson Wife]

But how does it effect financial aid grants? I assume that you don't receive the original quoted amount. Do you reapply and is it likely to be less now that they are not trying to attract you?

 

I think this really varies depending on whether the student applies in 12th and then defers entrance for a year after being admitted, or whether he/she applies during the "gap" year. If the student does the latter, there is still the opportunity to compare financial aid offers between schools.

[mims]

My daughter set a goal to finish early so she could take a gap year during what would be her typical senior year. She is spending the year as a missionary intern at an orphanage in Africa. I am considering her 'still in school' and will graduate her this May. I don't mind saying that because she is doing a British Lit course still and since this is an internship it is certainly educational.

 

She and I are working on college applications and scholarships this year. The internet is iffy so it has been a little bit of an hassle. I will second someone else's comment that most outside scholarships are for those that are current juniors or seniors. Of course the most money is from the institution itself and I haven't noticed at all that it matters what year you are when you apply as long as you will be an incoming freshman the next year.

 

I guess the short answer is we haven't noticed any detriment to it but we are still calling her a senior.

[Nscribe]

We are opting that if Dd wants another year, she will take math and lit/comp during it on top of whatever else she does it graduate once it is done.

[Tenaj]

When my son decided to do a gap year, he had already applied to college and been accepted. He just deferred attendance for one year which was accepted without any problem. He did end up just having two senior years. We didn't graduate him officially until after his gap year. He ended up playing one more season of high school basketball and taking more advanced math and science. He also ended up doing Sonlight's Brit Lit course during that year which was a wonderful choice since he has now declared an English major.

[Miss Marple]

No real experience yet (maybe the high school board would have more answers) but my senior this year is taking a "gap" year after he graduates. He won't be in line for any great merit scholarships and we don't qualify for anything from the govt. so we're not worried about the finances. We did, however, have him apply to the school he eventually will attend. He just found out yesterday that he was accepted. We will seek a deferment. He will be attending a Bible College in Capernwray England for the 2013-2014 school year. We wanted him to have an extra year for maturity as well as to determine what he wants to do in college. This will also provide him the opportunity to do a lot of traveling as well as volunteering and seeing more of the world. It seemed like a perfect opportunity for a student who isn't greatly thrilled with academia :)

 

A friend of mine has a daughter who graduated a year early from ps. She was accepted to the university with a national merit scholarship. She decided to spend some time with a ballet group in Chicago instead. She sought a deferment and was told that the scholarship would defer, but the admission would not. She would need to reapply the next year. She did and was accepted again along with the scholarship(s). We will find out shortly about deferment for my son. I would assume it will be the same as my friend's daughter because it is the same university.

[JennyD]

I am not a parent of a high schooler, but SWB's most recent Q&A video -- sorry, I don't have the link -- about homeschooling high school discusses gap years. She is a big fan of the concept, FWIW.

[duckens]

I wouldn't do it. I strongly recommend against it.

 

A couple of things from my experience:

1) If you child works during the gap year, their income will count against them for financial aid for a couple of years to come. One year, I made a whopping $16K (before taxes), and I had made too much to qualify for grants. I lived and worked out of state of my parents, so I still had living and transportation expenses. (The minimum has probably been raised since then).

 

This is further complicated because:

Consider that your child earns the $16K in the year 2014. He/she will have probably quit working full time in mid-August 2014 to live off savings and go to school full time for the Fall 2014/Spring 2015 year. Income from the year 2014 will be used to determine financial aid for the Fall 2015/Spring 2016 school year. In essence, if your child earns too much in 2013, they will be penalized through September of 2016 -- a full 21+ months after 2013 ended, and two years after their last good paycheck.

 

2) In our state, there are many general scholarships awarded to all Seniors with good GPAs. Here's an example:

 

Iowa Scholars Award

 

For incoming first-year students who are Iowa residents

• Value: $2,000
  
• Minimum Requirements: 27 ACT (or combined SAT critical reading and math score of 1210) AND a 3.80 GPA on a 4.00 scale; OR 30 ACT (or combined SAT critical reading and math score of 1330) AND a 3.70 GPA on a 4.00 scale
  
• Application Process: None. Scholarship is awarded automatically to eligible students upon admission.
  
• Deadline: Must apply for admission by April 1
  
• Renewal: One-time award for incoming first-year students only
  
• Contact: Office of Admissions
  

Notice that if I am an older student that has been working and paying taxes for a few years, I do not qualify for this $2K scholarship because I will not have a GPA. In fact, I have usually heard of these these scholarships as being just for high school seniors. So if mom and dad are sending me directly to college, I get a $2K bonus. If I have to work for a few years and save up for college, I'm on my own.

 

3) You DO forget things in a year out of school. You forget the bones of the body, the periods of writing, and how to do higher math. I have had to start and stop college many times due to financial and health reasons. DO NOT DO IT. DO NOT make things unnecessarily hard for yourself if you can at all avoid it.

 

4) If you take a year off, you will develop other commitments that may interfere with college once you go. You may start ballroom dance lessons, or join the Young Republicans, or play D&D once a week with friends. You may get a girlfriend or boyfriend, and all of the time commitments that goes with that.

 

Yes, college students do all of these things, but usually they start college first, then add activities if they have time. If you take a year off, you will have lots of free time for activities, and it will be difficult to cut back (friends will give you grief) when you need to study. Ask me how I know.

 

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My dream is that my children can go to college, go directly to college, do not pass go, do not collect $200. My dream is that Loverboy and I can support them (in housing and food, in partial tuition, in transportation, in finding scholarships). My dream is that they will not have to start and stop school as I had to. They can graduate from college at 22 or 23 debt-free with a degree that no one can take away from them, and they can qualify for a job unlike the ones I worked for years an years....with a good paycheck, healthcare, sick days and vacation days.

 

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If you do take a year off, use it productively.

 

My best friend in high school graduated a year early and won a Rotary Scholarship to study in Germany for a year. So, of course, she learn how to speak German fluently during her year off, plus had the "European Experience."

[OnTheBrink]

I'm not sure if we'll have a gap year or not. I've informed the EX that I reserve the right to call for one if I feel dd needs more time to mature. She's a year younger than kids her grade in PS. She'll be attending a local CC for her first two years for free, so grants and scholarships aren't an issue for now. When she's 16, she can take classes at the CC, and I plan to start her out slowly, probably a math class and may be a study skills class. If at the end of her "senior" year, I feel she's mature enough to handle full-time college, we'll go forward. If not, we'll spend the gap year working on more preparation for college.

[Guest maroon]

Possibly someone can feel overwhelmed by the cumulative years of studying. Textbooks, forced material, etc. The person may want a breath of freedom. The year can be a positive or negative experience.

[Ann.without.an.e]

Just to clarify, with my sister...it wasn't about being accepted to a college. She was still accepted. She just found (when she sat down with financial aid) that many of the scholarships and merits couldn't apply to her because she was no longer in high school. It ended up costing a lot more $$$.

 

I like the idea of delaying graduation. Take a higher math, British Lit, and do tons of volunteer work :)

[Laura Corin]

3) You DO forget things in a year out of school. You forget the bones of the body, the periods of writing, and how to do higher math. I have had to start and stop college many times due to financial and health reasons. DO NOT DO IT. DO NOT make things unnecessarily hard for yourself if you can at all avoid it.

 

 

 

In the UK, there are some subjects where the departments discourage gap years: maths is one of them. Other subjects see a gap year as possibly enriching.

 

Laura

[Kathryn]

I wouldn't do it. I strongly recommend against it.

 

A couple of things from my experience:

1) If you child works during the gap year, their income will count against them for financial aid for a couple of years to come. One year, I made a whopping $16K (before taxes), and I had made too much to qualify for grants. I lived and worked out of state of my parents, so I still had living and transportation expenses. (The minimum has probably been raised since then).

 

This is further complicated because:

Consider that your child earns the $16K in the year 2014. He/she will have probably quit working full time in mid-August 2014 to live off savings and go to school full time for the Fall 2014/Spring 2015 year. Income from the year 2014 will be used to determine financial aid for the Fall 2015/Spring 2016 school year. In essence, if your child earns too much in 2013, they will be penalized through September of 2016 -- a full 21+ months after 2013 ended, and two years after their last good paycheck.

 

2) In our state, there are many general scholarships awarded to all Seniors with good GPAs. Here's an example:

 

Iowa Scholars Award

 

For incoming first-year students who are Iowa residents

• Value: $2,000

• Minimum Requirements: 27 ACT (or combined SAT critical reading and math score of 1210) AND a 3.80 GPA on a 4.00 scale; OR 30 ACT (or combined SAT critical reading and math score of 1330) AND a 3.70 GPA on a 4.00 scale

• Application Process: None. Scholarship is awarded automatically to eligible students upon admission.

• Deadline: Must apply for admission by April 1

• Renewal: One-time award for incoming first-year students only

• Contact: Office of Admissions

 

Notice that if I am an older student that has been working and paying taxes for a few years, I do not qualify for this $2K scholarship because I will not have a GPA. In fact, I have usually heard of these these scholarships as being just for high school seniors. So if mom and dad are sending me directly to college, I get a $2K bonus. If I have to work for a few years and save up for college, I'm on my own.

 

3) You DO forget things in a year out of school. You forget the bones of the body, the periods of writing, and how to do higher math. I have had to start and stop college many times due to financial and health reasons. DO NOT DO IT. DO NOT make things unnecessarily hard for yourself if you can at all avoid it.

 

4) If you take a year off, you will develop other commitments that may interfere with college once you go. You may start ballroom dance lessons, or join the Young Republicans, or play D&D once a week with friends. You may get a girlfriend or boyfriend, and all of the time commitments that goes with that.

 

Yes, college students do all of these things, but usually they start college first, then add activities if they have time. If you take a year off, you will have lots of free time for activities, and it will be difficult to cut back (friends will give you grief) when you need to study. Ask me how I know.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

My dream is that my children can go to college, go directly to college, do not pass go, do not collect $200. My dream is that Loverboy and I can support them (in housing and food, in partial tuition, in transportation, in finding scholarships). My dream is that they will not have to start and stop school as I had to. They can graduate from college at 22 or 23 debt-free with a degree that no one can take away from them, and they can qualify for a job unlike the ones I worked for years an years....with a good paycheck, healthcare, sick days and vacation days.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

If you do take a year off, use it productively.

 

My best friend in high school graduated a year early and won a Rotary Scholarship to study in Germany for a year. So, of course, she learn how to speak German fluently during her year off, plus had the "European Experience."

 

 

I agree with all of this. I had a gap before college due to health reasons. I would not recommend it.