I'd like to start a thread for those whose dc have decided on a gap year.

My younger sister who I am/was guardian for did this a few years ago. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do and had had a very turbulent year and decided the best thing to do was take a year to work, rest and think clearly about what she wanted to do next.

I was slightly nervous - I think I was worried she would never return to education/find a job she properly enjoys rather than just a convenient retail/waitressing position.

In actual fact she really surprised me. She went almost full time at her part time job to gain experience for her CV and build up a savings pot and within 6 months she decided to apply to university the following September to gain the qualifications she needed to be a primary school teacher (which wasn't something she had even considered previously.)

In contrast, lots of her friends ended up dropping out of university as they felt they had rushed into choosing their courses/weren't sure it was what they really wanted.

She will graduate this time next year and I am truly bursting with pride for her.

@paulaparticles , I would ask MN to move this thread to the Higher Education section.

I was rejected from my first choice and went to a perfectly fine uni as I felt it was my only choice and had a miserable time- I was too young (17) and wasn't sure of the course. So left after a year, worked and travelled snd enrolled locally for a completely different degree a year later, transferring to another to finish it. So I'm all for a gap year.
My daughter is doing an Art Foundation diploma gif the next year, with the intention of exploring different options even though she is fairly sure of her eventual direction. But she definitely wants a break from the academic rigor of the last couple years. She will also be another year older by the time she leaves home, more mature and secure in herself.

I took a year out, wasn’t sure what I wanted to do and I also needed to up 1 grade so had to resit a couple of exams.
I just upped my part time job hours a bit to fund it and started going out with people from work who also weren’t at uni and met a tonne of people through them. I had THE best year of my life, it was the happiest and most free I’ve ever felt and I’m so glad I did it. And those friends I made that year I’m still best friends with now 15 years later.
i did do Uni after, I didn’t love it though. Think the blast of a year out I had made it seem a bit crap in comparison.

This time two years ago DD got her A level results while quarantined in Australia at the school she was going to work at. She reminded me yesterday that yes she had appreciated the cake we arranged with a local supermarket delivery.

Her gap year gave a chance to learn a bit about "adulting" without the pressure of keeping up with study at the same time. The experience also contributed a lot to her getting a really good paid internship this summer that may well lead to ongoing freelance work.

We were ready yesterday to support DS in planning a gap year if things had gone badly wrong with his results; there are academic advantages to him going straight through (maths), but for everything else a gap year would probably have been excellent for him too.

My DD decided just before results day in 2019 to take a gap year. She spent 4 months in Germany doing 'workaway' with a family. She walked the dog twice a day, took and picked up the toddler from nursery, loaded/unloaded the dishwasher and chatted with the teenagers in the evening. She had only done GCSE German, but the family paid for language classes 3 evenings a week (which gave her another social group) and she went into the older children's school and helped out as a language assistant one day a week. DD changed her mind about her degree subject, choice of university during her gap year and ended up studying German as part of her degree. She has just graduated from LSE with a degree in Geography with German!

After Germany, she went off to Nepal for 4 months with ICS (International Citizen Service) which was a government backed initiative. They are starting a new programme this year for young people.

https://www.volunteerics.org/

https://www.workaway.info/

My dd ended up taking 2 years out, mostly working as a full time live in volunteer. It was brilliant for her - she ended up totally changing direction from her initial plans, & meant she had so much more confidence & life experience when she did decide to go to uni.

I'd really recommend full time volunteering as an option for teenagers who are uncertain as to what they want to do. It had lots of the side benefits of going to uni - living away from home with other, mostly young, people, getting a chance to grow up & spread her wings in a reasonably supportive setting etc - but without having to commit to a course / loans etc. In fact DD got a weekly allowance which was enough for her to have a social life, get the train home for visits & so on, which seems quite common.

DS is doing the same. He got BBD and has no clue how the D happened! It was always the plan for him to take a gap year though. We moved to a new area at the start of A-levels and he has thrived here, met a lovely group of friends who are all doing gap years, has a FT job in a restaurant where he has been PT for the past year. He is also going to be doing a bit of travelling next year if he can save enough. He has absolutely no idea where he wants his career to go so a gap year right now seems the most sensible option. Nice to hear @MexicanDrinkingWorm you loved your year I feel DS will feel the same - he loves life right now and has years to settle down.

My dd is just finishing her gap year. It was the best thing for her. She had applied to uni and asked for deferred entry. I worried she might not want to go a year down the line but she is really ready now. She needed a break as I can see how stressed she was now. She has learned to adult in the past year. She had savings so has done 3 solo travelling trips (terrifying for me), worked, taken driving lessons, volunteered and then did camp America. Hope it’s a great year for your dd. Camp America is worth looking at. Very hard work but great fun too.

DD1 wasn't planning a gap year but missed grades for her first choice, had changed her mind about insurance place and failed to get anything clearing offers she wanted. We're hoping she'll go up at least one grade with a re-mark and she may do a resit also. Not sure what she'll do for the year yet as it wasn't expected.

Interested so joining thread!

One of my dds took a gap year and worked for a few months in retail, then travelled, learnt to drive and to cook proper meals. She went to university brimming with confidence and it was the best thing for her.

Mentioned this in another thread. Dd and dniece both took a gap year.
In fact, I advised my dd to take a year out as I thought she needed the break
Both dd and dniece said it was the best thing that they have done.
They both travelled and got jobs in other countries. They saved some money and entered university more confident and mature.

One of my DC did a sort of gap year. due to injury and also switching from one their sciences to another subject (hated the science after first 2 terms) they spoke to the school who agreed to do an a level in a year in a completely new subject and that they would attend the classes for both years simultaneously and get help/support from staff. because the teaching was minimal really they also took up a voluntary role that led to a further qualification. they lived on their own, had to budget and manage household etc and all in all was a tremendously positive experience. DC has just graduated from an RG uni with a first and the deans award in their subject only possible I think because of the gap time.

@Oldowl my DD has been looking into workaway and worldpackers for Germany but she can't quite figure out the visa requirements. Do you remember what visa was required? Thanks!

@Yellowjade DD did 4 months of workaway in Germany in 2019 (pre Brexit) so no visa was required.

Last year she went out to Germany for 3 weeks and did workaway. She lived with a teacher and helped in her secondary school, prepared resources, marked tests etc. At passport control she said she was staying for 3 weeks in Germany with family friends in Hannover. She did not know the teacher, but she is certainly a cherished friend now.

We have had both workaway family members to visit us in England since DD's experiences.

@Oldowl Thank you. That sounds fantastic, what a great way to immerse yourself in the language.

Workaway looks really interesting, thank you for this idea. My Dd is thinking of a gap year in 24-25, still have year 13 to do. She wants to go to South or Central America to get her Spanish fluent - something like this might work well.

My dd took a gap year between 2016-17. She decided during her upper VI year that she would apply to university once she had her results. She mainly spent her gap year working and doing some solo travel. She saved quite a lot of money, passed her driving test, visited friends already at uni and generally grew up a lot!

The whole process of applying to uni with results was much less stressful even accounting for a complete change of direction whilst applying!

DS did really well in his GCSEs but A levels are a whole different ball game. He's going into year 13 with no idea about what he wants to do at uni and average predicted grades. but he's sure he wants to take a year out/gap year.

He will continue with his pt job to save for uni, travel and play football at a decent level.

What I can't work out is whether to apply now and defer or apply after results are out. This application year will be the last with personal statements so it's whether we want to apply under the new system in Jan 2025 or current system in Jan 2024. If current we'll have to get our arses into gear 🙂