Detour Ahead: Taking a Gap Year After Graduation

By Marianne E. Green
from the Spring 2006 NACE Journal 

According to a recent article in The New York Times, career practitioners across the country encounter growing numbers of college students, especially in the liberal arts, who want to “take a year off” after graduation rather than go directly to graduate school or interview for serious career positions. They assert the need for a “breather,” a “break,” “time to figure out what they really want to do,” or a chance to “make a difference.” When questioned in a career advisement session about the specifics of their plans, however, many seniors are vague about what this year off would entail, how they should proceed, and how their decision would impact future educational and vocational plans. And, some are concerned about their parents interpreting their “time off” as “slacking off.”1 

In contrast, the practice of taking a gap year between high school and college, and between college and graduate school, is commonplace in Europe.

“It has become a rite of passage for Irish, British, and other European students—it’s the odd student who does not take time out,” says Sarah Ryan, careers adviser at Trinity College Dublin. “We support and encourage all our students to fill their gap year with valuable experiences.”

Ryan was surprised to learn that only a minority of American students choose this option or receive active support from faculty and counselors.

Career practitioners in the United States, trained to help students pursue graduate school and career job-search options, may not be as well informed about how to advise or encourage students who want a “time out.” How can we effectively help our students weigh the pros and cons of this decision? What resources can we offer them? What steps should they take to reduce possible negative consequences for their future graduate school and career plans?

To meet the needs of this group of college seniors, the MBNA America Career Services Center at the University of Delaware designed the “Transitional, Temporary, and In-the-Meantime Jobs” workshop. The 90-minute workshop has been offered at least once each semester since 2004 and continues to attract 25 to 35 students for each session. The students are typically drawn from a variety of majors, with the majority from the liberal arts.

Since 2005, “Transitions” has been web-streamed on the career services web site for those who cannot attend the workshop in person, and has received hundreds of hits. The goal of the workshop is to promote the idea that taking a year off should not be a spur of the moment decision, but a meticulously researched and planned event.

In the first phase of the workshop, students carefully identify the advantages and disadvantages of taking a transitional year. The second phase showcases many exciting options for a qualitative experience. The third phase introduces caveats to minimize the negative impact of taking a year off on future graduate school or employment plans. The fourth—and final—phase helps students narrow their choices, identify specific goals, and construct an action plan. The final phase also focuses on preparing students to evaluate their transitional year in order to communicate its value to potential employers or graduate school admission representatives.

What are some of the pros of taking a transitional year? In phase one, the facilitator prompts students to articulate their reasons for seeking a “time out” position, such as to:

• Gain additional experience to build a resume, solidify career goals, or identify appropriate graduate programs;
• Have unique experiences before “settling down” to the world of 9-to-5 jobs or the grind of graduate or professional school;
• Have the opportunity to “give back” to society;
• Have a practical desire to establish residency in a particular state, study for the GREs, take a graduate course to improve GPA, and so forth;
• Work to pay off loans or save for graduate school;
• Travel and work in another city, state, or country; and/or
• Have fun.

On the other hand, students also need to enumerate and evaluate the cons of exiting from the mainstream for a year or two, including:

• A poor reception by family members, such as “You’re not facing the real world!,” “After all the money we spend on your education, you need to take a real job!,” or “Once you leave school, you’ll never go back again!”
• Limited access to job-search support once the student has left campus.
• Difficulty in getting applications and supporting materials together for graduate or professional school without ready access to faculty and resources.
• Remuneration for the “year off” tends to be low or nonexistent. And, in some volunteer, service, or work-abroad programs, a fee will be required for participation.
• Health insurance may have to be privately purchased by participants, depending on the program. Some programs offer group coverage, but it’s minimal. (See chart, figure 1.)

Phase two introduces students to the many interesting options for a dynamic and productive “year off.” Typically, we invite a panel of four alumni who have experienced a year off before undertaking graduate school or employment. Our last panel, for example, included alumni who had served in an AmeriCorps program, worked as a nanny in the far west, taught English in Japan, and backpacked through Russia. Panelists shared their motivation for taking the “year off,” summarized their experiences, explained the benefits, enumerated the drawbacks, and provided advice to students who might want to follow in their footsteps. A question and answer period follows the panelists’ remarks.

At the conclusion of the panel discussion, the facilitator distributes a handout with a representative array of relevant Internet and print resources. These transitional opportunities include service (domestic, international, and faith-based), volunteer options, international jobs, fellowships, internships, research opportunities, recreational options, travel possibilities, odd jobs, and other temporary positions. Students are advised to consider these resources as merely points of departure for examining the vast number of interesting transitional positions available.

Phase three brings up the practical considerations of taking a year off, introducing steps that will minimize or eliminate disadvantages that might accrue from not going directly to graduate school or pursuing career employment after college graduation. Suggestions for students include:

• Contact professors while still on campus to serve as reference writers for graduate school or law school. Prepare to stay in touch to ensure pertinent letters of recommendation later on. Previous employers also should be alerted so that prospective employers can easily contact them later on.
• Shape up a resume and cover letter so they can be easily “tweaked” for graduate school or employment applications.
• Consider taking appropriate standardized tests prior to leaving campus; it may be difficult to find the time to study or a place to take LSAT, GRE, and MCAT when you are in your transitional position.
• Investigate short-term health insurance that will cover the transition.
• Improve your academic record by arranging to take a graduate-level class or two during the hiatus—in person or online—as a continuing education student. This will demonstrate your commitment to furthering your education.
• If you take a transitional position unrelated to your field of interest, consider volunteering in this field to demonstrate commitment and build your resume.

In the final phase, students write preliminary goal statements for their transitional year, including strategies for monitoring and assessing their progress. Some students have trouble with this because they are overwhelmed by the diversity of options, and need time to process the information and narrow down their choices. Others are able to be specific about what they want to pursue and accomplish in their year off. When students read and discuss their goal statements during the workshop, attendees are prompted to seriously evaluate their options and translate dreams into reality. For example:

• “My goal is to use my transitional year to work as a cowboy in Montana to challenge myself, explore a different lifestyle, interact with the environment in a new way, and learn self-reliance. I will keep a weekly journal to record my thoughts and experiences to monitor my progress.”
• “I plan to teach English in Japan or in another Asian country. I want to further develop my teaching skills, learn more about Asian cultures, gain experience to help me decide if a master’s in education is the best graduate program for me. I will keep track of my progress with my blog.”
• “I want to spend my transitional year as a public ally, in one of the AmeriCorps programs. This program will pair me with a nonprofit organization—maybe something that has to do with animals— and provide [me with] training sessions on personal and professional development topics. I hope to find out how I can combine my love of animals with leadership in the community. I’ll have to make a presentation on my year’s accomplishments to a panel of community leaders, so I plan to keep a log of my activities.”
• “I will look at all of the programs that will help me find an internship in Washington, D.C. I don’t know exactly what I want to do, but I know where I want to do it. I hope that this internship will help me figure out what I want to do with my political science major.”

In the final phase, students are reminded that graduate school admissions representatives and potential employers will inquire about their year off, or expect they will address this topic in their personal statement. Students are advised to anticipate questions, such as: Why did you decide to pursue a transitional experience? How will this experience make you a better graduate student or better employee? What did you learn from your experiences that you would not have known otherwise? What were some of the obstacles you faced and how did you overcome them? What was the best part of the experience? Students need to be prepared to effectively communicate the value of their transitional year, both verbally and in writing, using compelling examples to illustrate their points.

Knowledgeable students who are well-prepared will benefit substantially from a transitional year without putting their admission to graduate school or employment in jeopardy. As more students seek alternatives to graduate school or traditional employment directly following graduation, career practitioners need to embrace this trend and respond with appropriate advice, helpful programs, and extensive resources.

Endnotes

1 “For Some College Graduates, a Fanciful Detour (or Two) Before Their Careers Begin,” The New York Times, October 23, 2005