Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people are getting confused because there are two very different types of kids who are pursuing gap years these days.

Group 1 are the kids who are kind of middling students, not particularly motivated or interested in school, whose parents think they need a year to mature so that sending them off to college won't be a complete waste of money as they party through their days and flunk out. This is the group that most parental-aged people think of when they hear the words "gap year".

Group 2 are the kids who have spent the past four years working their butts off in a Big 3-TJ-type intense academic environment, who are highly motivated and have been accepted to top 20 colleges, and who may be considering careers that require graduate school as well. As they look ahead, they think "is this really all there is to life?" They are kind of burned out from the intensity of their high school experience and want a little break before they plunge back in for the next 4-8 years. They are the ones who start exploring volunteer trips or internships in other countries, travel, etc, because they want to experience something different and meet people who are not just like them. In this group, the kid is the one doing the research and planning the year, not the parent. This is the newer group, at least in the US (apparently this has been more common in other places like Europe). These kids are already fairly mature, and there is no question that they will be going to college, and probably excelling there, when the year is up. For this group, a year of sitting on the couch in the basement is the last thing they would do with this gift of time.

Mom of two "group one" kids here. Sneer all you want. Both have now far outperformed many of their peers who went the traditional route. Very few h.s. grads, no matter their resumes, are prepared for the wild partying on college campuses.

^^^This^^^

I can't tell you how many kids we know who went straight to top tier colleges and ending up partying, having mental breakdowns, etc. A lot of these kids really need a break and some time to mature while not constantly under the thumb of mom and dad. Many seemed to treat their whole college experience as a "gap time" and didn't get serious until a gap year after college, then grad school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people are getting confused because there are two very different types of kids who are pursuing gap years these days.

Group 1 are the kids who are kind of middling students, not particularly motivated or interested in school, whose parents think they need a year to mature so that sending them off to college won't be a complete waste of money as they party through their days and flunk out. This is the group that most parental-aged people think of when they hear the words "gap year".

Group 2 are the kids who have spent the past four years working their butts off in a Big 3-TJ-type intense academic environment, who are highly motivated and have been accepted to top 20 colleges, and who may be considering careers that require graduate school as well. As they look ahead, they think "is this really all there is to life?" They are kind of burned out from the intensity of their high school experience and want a little break before they plunge back in for the next 4-8 years. They are the ones who start exploring volunteer trips or internships in other countries, travel, etc, because they want to experience something different and meet people who are not just like them. In this group, the kid is the one doing the research and planning the year, not the parent. This is the newer group, at least in the US (apparently this has been more common in other places like Europe). These kids are already fairly mature, and there is no question that they will be going to college, and probably excelling there, when the year is up. For this group, a year of sitting on the couch in the basement is the last thing they would do with this gift of time.

Mom of two "group one" kids here. Sneer all you want. Both have now far outperformed many of their peers who went the traditional route. Very few h.s. grads, no matter their resumes, are prepared for the wild partying on college campuses.

Anonymous wrote:We're thinking of making our child take a gap year. We're told this isn't a good idea, but he is dozing his way through school and is immature and interested in nothing. We've been helping him (dragging him is more like it) get through his senior year, but I'm not sure it's such a good idea to let him go right to college. He's smart, so was accepted, then let his grades fall into the toilet. He's not used to responsibility and has no concept of how difficult the world is without parents there to pick up the pieces (yes, guilty as charged). I think it would be great for him to get a job stocking shelves at Wal-Mart for minumum wage. He could see how real people live, how hard it is to make a living and make ends meet on such poor wages.

He wants to go to college. I imagine he'll socialize and do a little studying. Wouldn't a gap year be a good idea, or would it be just a waste of time for him?

Anonymous wrote:I think people are getting confused because there are two very different types of kids who are pursuing gap years these days.

Group 1 are the kids who are kind of middling students, not particularly motivated or interested in school, whose parents think they need a year to mature so that sending them off to college won't be a complete waste of money as they party through their days and flunk out. This is the group that most parental-aged people think of when they hear the words "gap year".

Group 2 are the kids who have spent the past four years working their butts off in a Big 3-TJ-type intense academic environment, who are highly motivated and have been accepted to top 20 colleges, and who may be considering careers that require graduate school as well. As they look ahead, they think "is this really all there is to life?" They are kind of burned out from the intensity of their high school experience and want a little break before they plunge back in for the next 4-8 years. They are the ones who start exploring volunteer trips or internships in other countries, travel, etc, because they want to experience something different and meet people who are not just like them. In this group, the kid is the one doing the research and planning the year, not the parent. This is the newer group, at least in the US (apparently this has been more common in other places like Europe). These kids are already fairly mature, and there is no question that they will be going to college, and probably excelling there, when the year is up. For this group, a year of sitting on the couch in the basement is the last thing they would do with this gift of time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We're thinking of making our child take a gap year. We're told this isn't a good idea, but he is dozing his way through school and is immature and interested in nothing. We've been helping him (dragging him is more like it) get through his senior year, but I'm not sure it's such a good idea to let him go right to college. He's smart, so was accepted, then let his grades fall into the toilet. He's not used to responsibility and has no concept of how difficult the world is without parents there to pick up the pieces (yes, guilty as charged). I think it would be great for him to get a job stocking shelves at Wal-Mart for minumum wage. He could see how real people live, how hard it is to make a living and make ends meet on such poor wages.

He wants to go to college. I imagine he'll socialize and do a little studying. Wouldn't a gap year be a good idea, or would it be just a waste of time for him?

We required our son to take a gap year. He worked for a year, then went to good regional school. His attitude was totally changed by the time he went and he graduated with top honors. He's now with the State Dept.

Anonymous wrote:We're thinking of making our child take a gap year. We're told this isn't a good idea, but he is dozing his way through school and is immature and interested in nothing. We've been helping him (dragging him is more like it) get through his senior year, but I'm not sure it's such a good idea to let him go right to college. He's smart, so was accepted, then let his grades fall into the toilet. He's not used to responsibility and has no concept of how difficult the world is without parents there to pick up the pieces (yes, guilty as charged). I think it would be great for him to get a job stocking shelves at Wal-Mart for minumum wage. He could see how real people live, how hard it is to make a living and make ends meet on such poor wages.

He wants to go to college. I imagine he'll socialize and do a little studying. Wouldn't a gap year be a good idea, or would it be just a waste of time for him?

Anonymous wrote:

I did that in Peace Corps after college. Those paid for gap year programs in developing countries are paid for tourism by rich kids. They do not have the experience/training to add value nor are there long enough to make an impact. They should wait tables for a year and just send the money. It would be more helpful to the beneficiaries.

I totally agree with respect to the one week, or even one month, programs, but do you really think that an 18-year old working in a third world country for an entire year couldn't contribute something meaningful?

I did that in Peace Corps after college. Those paid for gap year programs in developing countries are paid for tourism by rich kids. They do not have the experience/training to add value nor are there long enough to make an impact. They should wait tables for a year and just send the money. It would be more helpful to the beneficiaries.