Bridging the gap

After high school it is typical for students to go straight to college, but what if they aren’t ready? What if they don’t know what they want to do with their life and they want to take sometime before secondary education?

A gap year is the perfect solution to these problems. Generally, a gap year is a year or two between high school and college that students take to travel, volunteer, work, study, and much more.

There are plenty of programs for people to choose from, but you don’t necessarily have to go on a program. A gap year could just be working at home and figuring out what you want to do when you’re older.

Taking a gap year is beneficial because it helps you potentially discover what you’re interested in, but it also gives you a year to do what you want and a year off from sitting in a classroom everyday learning.

I personally started to become interested in a gap year program called Nativ College Leadership Program based in Israel. This past summer I went to Israel with a youth group and the gap year program came to the youth hostel we were at and gave a presentation.

At first, I was not convinced. I thought it sounded interesting, but I knew it wouldn’t be right for me.

As my junior year started and classes began to become harder, I found myself wanting to be back in Israel. I started to look into the Nativ gap year program that was presented to me. Along with Nativ, I looked into Kivunim and Masa Israel and decided that Nativ was the right choice.

This gap year program would give me the opportunity to study for a semester at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, study hebrew, and volunteer for the second semester teaching children english or even work on Magen David Adom, the Red Cross Ambulance system of Israel.

This is just one example of a gap year program. Gap year programs are amazing and enables incredible once in a lifetime opportunities but this comes at a cost.

The Nativ College Leadership Program is $25,000, not including spending money. Gap years are pricey if you go through a program. Nativ is one of the more modest abroad programs.

Other programs can be upwards of $50,000 not including any spending money for the year. It is completely understandable to not go on a gap year and use the money on college instead, but if this option is available you should take advantage of it.

I am not the only person who feels this way towards a gap year.

“Harvard College encourages admitted students to defer enrollment for one year to travel, pursue a special project or activity, work, or spend time in another meaningful way—provided they do not enroll in a degree-granting program at another college.”

Under the section called “Should I Take Time Off?” on Harvard’s website they clearly encourage a gap year. Harvard has encouraged taking time off for more than four decades because it is overall beneficial to the students and the graduation rate of those attending Harvard.

If possible and if the money allows, I highly recommend and prestigious colleges just like Harvard recommend taking a gap year for your own benefit in the future.