The Student Room Group

Are you glad you took a gap year?

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In a way yes, but in a way no. I'm on an involuntary gap year, having dropped out of uni in January. Tbh it's A LOT more boring than I imagined. I am glad of the break, as I was burning out at uni and needed some time away from it. But all my friends are having fun at uni, I'm struggling to find any kind of job apart from part-time bar work. I'm not saving much money at all, I can't wait to get back into education tbh. I had these massive plans of going travelling round the world but the reality is you need a good few grand for that. Instead I'm attempting to get some cash together for uni, not very successfully though. It's all a bit frustrating.
Reply 21
Absolutely loving my gap year. i'm on the gap year internship programme at KPMG in London so I'm earning money and gaining valuable experience aswell! Also the gap year let me re-take some of my exams and then get into a better university. Honestly though working full time kills you off, now I can't wait for uni, going onto do Law at Nottingham (will probably feel differently come September lol). Bring on September! :smile:
Reply 22
Original post by rm22
Absolutely loving my gap year. i'm on the gap year internship programme at KPMG in London so I'm earning money and gaining valuable experience aswell! Also the gap year let me re-take some of my exams and then get into a better university. Honestly though working full time kills you off, now I can't wait for uni, going onto do Law at Nottingham (will probably feel differently come September lol). Bring on September! :smile:


Ooh what's this internship programme you're involved in and how did you get on it? Yeah I reckon I'll be dying for full-time work to get the money but then be physically drained by how hard it is...:frown:
Very glad :smile:

In fact I took 2 and a half gap years! Its perhaps a bit different for me, as I'm studying nursing where most students are mature students. I'm so glad I waited till I was 21 to start the course as although 2.5 years doesn't seem much, I grew up a lot during that time which has helped me so much on my course (I don't think I was mature enough at 18!) It was really nice to have a break from school. I moved out when I was 18 and worked full time, first in an opticians and then as a healthcare assistant. I also learnt to drive and was able to afford a car because I was working. 2.5 years later I was really settled in my uni town, had lots of friends already and had loads of experience at the hospital. It sometimes felt a bit frustrating that my friends at school had almost graduated by the time I started uni, but for me it was the best decision and I'm very glad I waited :smile:
Reply 24
Original post by dulciemae
Yeah, everytime I tell someone that one of the reasons i want to take a gap year is to earn a bit of money they're like, but "student loan" or "parents" but I hate relying on people for things, so I think getting a full-time job will confim how much I'll always want to be earning my own living.

Aha well that is lucky! How did you meet him?


Plus my student loan is minimal, and my parents refuse to help me unless it's an occasional food shop or an emergency.

I met him at work - he was training me on the bar and we got talking and went for chinese food after. Lovely times.
Reply 25
Original post by dulciemae
Wow well that's a good repsonse :biggrin: What did you do?


Worked for the Red Cross in Africa (Ghana), mainly teaching in a local school and volunteering for a small local NGO caring for Orphans and disadvantaged children.
Reply 26
Original post by dulciemae
Ooh what's this internship programme you're involved in and how did you get on it? Yeah I reckon I'll be dying for full-time work to get the money but then be physically drained by how hard it is...:frown:


The programme is called the gap year programme and you can do it in 4 different departments. I'm on the Risk Consulting department's programme and the application information is here: http://www.kpmgcareers.co.uk/VacationProgramme/GapYearProgramme_(6816).aspx?pg=6816

I felt exactly the same, but I did it more for the experience which is amazing, seriously. the money's good too, should help in the future, but I'm gonna be completely honest and say there's days where you're a zombie, it does get really tiring -_- but hey, 25 days paid holiday :wink:
Reply 27
Original post by rm22
The programme is called the gap year programme and you can do it in 4 different departments. I'm on the Risk Consulting department's programme and the application information is here: http://www.kpmgcareers.co.uk/VacationProgramme/GapYearProgramme_(6816).aspx?pg=6816

I felt exactly the same, but I did it more for the experience which is amazing, seriously. the money's good too, should help in the future, but I'm gonna be completely honest and say there's days where you're a zombie, it does get really tiring -_- but hey, 25 days paid holiday :wink:


That looks great, but is it hard to get into? How hard was the online application? And are you looking into the financial/business sector? :O Ooh, get you! ;D
Yeah. I had offers but I really didn't want to go and having a gap year allowed me to figure out what I wanted to do as well as get a job and live in the real world for a bit. I've almost finished my first year now and the time goes so quickly, one year is hardly anything.
Reply 29
Original post by dulciemae
That looks great, but is it hard to get into? How hard was the online application? And are you looking into the financial/business sector? :O Ooh, get you! ;D


Hmmm hard to get into? Well they take the best of the best that's why the grades needed to get in are fairly high, I actually didn't find it that hard, I got the bare minimum grades to get in but there's some interns here who are going onto Oxbridge in September so got A* 's mainly lol, there is a verbal and numerical reasoning and situation judgement tests, but they were fine, the situation judgement is pretty much common sense.

I actually wanna go into Law, hopefully going on to read Law at Nottingham University in September but i haven't decided if I wanna be a solicitor or a barrister so really just took this year to experience what solicitors do as KPMG does have an in house legal team. I'm leaning towards becoming a barrister though, I don't think I can spend the rest of my life in front of a computer screen lol, its just not for me.

If you're thinking of applying, I can help you prep! We're actuallyencouraged by KPMG to help potential applicants...

Oohh did I mention Lunch is free! Highlight of my day haha :rolleyes:
Reply 30
I'm glad.
I was on my gap year 2 years ago. I decided to travel to Indonesia for an internship with internship-indonesia.com. I gained great work experience and met lots of new friends. I hope I'll travel there in the future again.
Reply 31
Original post by mimezu
I'm glad.
I was on my gap year 2 years ago. I decided to travel to Indonesia for an internship with internship-indonesia.com. I gained great work experience and met lots of new friends.


And what you think about Indonisia? Because I have plans to travel to Asia for internship but I can't decide to which country.
Reply 32
I think Indonesia is a beautiful country. People there are very nice and friendly, even when they can't speak english. I'll never forget the hours I spent watching indonesian landscapes.
I'm on my gap year at the moment. It was planned as I felt pretty burnt out after A levels and figured that my attitude towards MORE essays after I'd just finished a bunch of them would be pretty negative and I don't want to compromise my uni experience. In actual fact I managed to get a job at my local uni and have been working there since September. It's not only earned me GOOD money (which I'm now half saving for uni, and half spending on a month in South Africa), but it's made me sit up and realise I don't want to working in an office my entire life.

Also, I've matured a lot as I've been spending time with people at work who are much older than myself, and have a pretty large amount of responsibility to get my work done as it affects the students ect. A lot of the academic staff I spoke to say that they can see a HUGE difference in those students who have come straight from school, who are often (not always, but a lot of the time) the ones who don't take the course seriously, think they're just there for a bit of a piss up and never just pitch in and do the work. They've still got a "school" attitude to education and think everything is going to be handed to them on a plate, whereas uni is a different story, and if you don't put in the work, you're not going to be getting much out of it. They said there's a larger amount of passion for learning and sense of responsibility (to themselves and their own education) from those students who have taken gap years.

Either way, it's not always been a walk in the park, as doing a job all day that you don't really like can get you down, but I know in retrospect, both financially and mentally it will be worth it.

Plus, I've saved up money to be part of an experience that I'd never thought I'd be able to do. There's such a sense of acheivement being able to pay for that first BIG thing, all by yourself with the money you've earned.

If anything, I think gap years should be looked upon favourably. Depends what you make of it though I spose. If you work hard and get the experience, it'll be worth it.
I'm very glad I took one.

Firstly, I changed my mind about what course I wanted to do at the end of year 13, so I was glad I hadn't wasted time applying beforehand. Then I spent a while concentrating hard on getting my UCAS application perfect, and got into a university I would never have thought possible.

Now the travelling aspect has started - I have spent two months in Southern India with my parents, which was very, very special. Experiencing an environment completely different to your own for a decent length of time and getting completely used to it is just wholly worth doing. This month I go to China for a few weeks.

All the while, I've been learning to cope as well as possible with my Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which has made me feel a lot better, and the time I've spent doing very little has really made me want to go to university.
Reply 35
The problem with a gap year is people tend to just use them as a stop gap between school and university. They use them as a break but never really build on from them and just go back to studying again.

I went away for 3 months to Cusco, Peru 2 years ago and it completely changed my life. I was very grade-conscious before and thought everything was about work and getting a good career. Since i've been back i've just been getting by at university (i'm on steadily for a 2.1) and really just looking forward to the day I leave. Travelling allows you to see not everything is about education and fancy graduate jobs. There is a lot more in the World. You can travel on minimal amounts of money and meet the most amazing people.

I would wholly recommend doing some travelling though!
Reply 36
Yes. Definitely. On a personal development side and getting out of education institutions for a bit it's great. It can you more self-assured, more confident and more mature for when you start uni - going off into the world (either to work or travel) by yourself is imo way more of a 'growing up' experience than starting in halls. :smile:
Reply 37
Im currently on my gap year and heading to uni in september.
Pros- I was one of the most immature people that I knew so I have grown up alot this year. Been working alot so I have a fair bit of money saved up for when I hit uni

Cons- I have stayed in my home town working 40 hour weeks and I am incredibly bored and have been since october.

DONT STAY AT HOME go travelling, see places, go mental just dont stay in the same place and aslong as its what you want to do then stuff the teachers and parents! Everyone told me not to but its been an alright year and a fair learning curve of what the 'real world' is really like
My gap year definitely has been the best thing i've ever done so far, it sounds cheesy as hell but it really did change my life.

Imo for a gap year to be worthwhile you really need to get off your bum and do something, for goodness' sake don't stay at home!
Get out there and travel or get a job somewhere new, but don't waste the year make sure you have a plan even if it changes. It's a year to do whatever you want with, so go crazy.
Reply 39
I wanted to take a gap year but 10 years ago when I did my A Levels, my school seemed dead against it and convinced me it wasn't a good idea so I went straight to uni. I lasted 6 months before dropping out and taking 6 gap years! I don't regret anything I did and I had some amazing experiences (plus I'm just about to complete my degree) but things would probably have been a lot more straightforward if I'd just taken that gap year in the first place!

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