Gap Year 2024-2025 🔥

hello! yes cooking! A huge goal for me as well. Can't get to uni and end up eating meal deal everyday. 😂

I already have an A Level in French but I studied it in a year so I want to spend more time securing my knowledge. I have a languages programme near me which I could use to help prepare to take the DELF C1 exam in the next year or two hopefully!
Yep if I can build myself up to GCSE level Urdu or Spanish that would be great. I personally agree with you the layout of the GCSE and the a level are really so clear.
Sounds like a plan then! I’ll work on python then move onto C++.
You’ve a nice set of a level subjects, I’m assuming you’ve already sat your maths a level. Have you a particular uni course/apprenticeship in mind? Personally, I’m leaning into physics. 

Also, the machine learning with python sounds _very_ interesting, what exactly are you doing with that?

I would like to attend some free/ affordable short online courses on some uni level topics, coding, and languages ( esp French) . Does anyone have any platform or courses to recommend? thanks

I’m learning python with codeacademy, personally I think it’s a little expensive but I managed to get a subscription for £24 for three months so that’ll give me time to nail the basics then I can move to a more affordable platform.
Courserra is one place that is highly recommended but again not the most affordable.
For languages, where I’m based there’s a place called brasshouse languages, where you can essentially attend free language courses ( French included) which im looking into for this year.
I’ll keep an eye out for more courses tho

Hello! Just came across this thread and I’m also taking a gap year )
I have a deferred offer for university so thankfully I don’t have to worry about all that sort of stuff! I have a few things in mind that I’d like to do over this upcoming year (and reading the comments above, thanks for the tips on how to get into coding! I’ve been meaning to get into that)! I also want to learn how to play an instrument (probably going to buy a keyboard/piano) and I need to learn how to cook 😬

how to play an instrument (probably going to buy a keyboard/piano)
I find it difficult to find in person tutors for adults to learn specific instruments. If you have never played an instrument before, it takes a lot of dedication and work before you can get to a decent level.
Also, depending on what level you intend to take your playing to (there are officially 8 different grading scales for instruments; see: https://www.abrsm.org/en-gb/instruments/piano, https://lewishammusic.org/taking-part/exams/)
If you just want to learn how to play pop songs, there's always Stephen Ridley: https://www.ridleyacademy.com/

and I need to learn how to cook
Depending on the type of cuisine, you can always pop into your local adult community college or vocational college for a quick cooking class or some sort of cooking class offered in your area. You can also look at online courses such as those in the following:
https://www.masterclass.com/categories/culinary
https://www.udemy.com/topic/cooking/
https://www.bbcmaestro.com/courses/category/food
Personally, I prefer in person classes for cooking, since it's something I would need more hand holding with and need a second opinion on whether I am doing some things right.

In some cases, I have looked for courses where I can spend a few months abroad to learn how to cook. For example, I was looking at some classes for sushi in Japan. However, if I just want something quick, I would just do a day course through day experience packages eg.
https://yosushi.com/sushi-school
https://www.virginexperiencedays.co.uk/michel-roux-jr
https://saucebylangham.com/classes/
https://www.redletterdays.co.uk/p/online-classic-french-cuisine-course-the-roux-way-taught-by-michel-roux-jr/11194858 (online version)
https://www.virginexperiencedays.co.uk/cookery-courses
https://www.virginexperiencedays.co.uk/jamie-olivers-cookery-courses
https://www.gordonramsayacademy.com/en/uk/woking/cooking-classes
https://jamieolivercookeryschool.com/jamies-ultimate-cooking-experience-book/
https://www.wonderdays.co.uk/experience/cooking-lessons
https://www.redletterdays.co.uk/food-drink/cookery-courses

If you want to take things up to the next level, you can always try to get into a culinary school like Cordon Bleu in London: https://www.cordonbleu.edu/london/programmes/en. However, these involve full time commitment.

Failing all of the above, you can always look up for basic cooking lessons on YouTube (you just won't know whether you're doing it right). See the following for example:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzI9I8xeK5kSkzn6mmMu-yM92EJ_4kHjs
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDQiao1ddTg7WLJD4XXj0NZqpfOnR-wLB
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcpoB2VESJmeYr83XMw6PPuFaN84uuIq-
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcpoB2VESJmfzKxZwcLc0IPpK7qOelPwe
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTzMGnJjrsSyTppvwM66fJbQQFeaEgyxE
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTzMGnJjrsSxns7AaPGwWHBBNUC2HmsB0

Omg thank you so much for taking the time to give such a detailed response!! I’ll look into the instrument info and for the cooking, my mhm has promised to teach me everything I need to know 😁 and your other suggestions are great too thank you!

I would need to know specifics. e.g.

I’ll probably end up watching yt videos or use your suggested “Stephen Ridley” to learn piano rather than get a teacher! For cooking my mum will be teaching me how to cook south Asian cuisine (Pakistani food) and if I wish to learn to cook other cuisines I might watch YT or follow recipes from books or the internet! 😋😋😋
Thank you though!

I'm trying to automate some research work extrapolating data for a few science based analysis (mostly biochemistry, chemistry, and physics). I'm also looking into economic and financial stats for the fun of it.
It can potentially be useful in my personal statement.

Datacamp is said to be good for what it's used for, but you would have to use it a lot to make it worth your while. See:
https://www.datacamp.com/pricing?period=yearly
There's also CS50's course in python (free) if you don't already have a firm grasp of the language yet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLRL_NcnK-4
https://cs50.harvard.edu/python
https://www.edx.org/learn/python/harvard-university-cs50-s-introduction-to-programming-with-python
I have picked up a few courses in Python that cost a few hundred pounds, so they might not what you would consider cheap.

Thank you for the reccs!
I’m planning to resit physics and maths as extenuating circumstances meant I didn’t reach my predicted.
I want to improve my French from an intermediate level to a more secure B2/C1 and get to a basic conversational level in Urdu/spanish
I’ve just started learning python but Java and C++ also look really interesting!
What a levels are you studying and what other plans do you have for this year??

I’m planning to go through the UCAS cycle again next year : )

will you resit any of your a levels?

Yep I’m hoping to resit Mathematics and Physics, and depending on what I’d like to do after this year, potentially French as well, which isn’t really a chore since the a level is very interesting to me! What about yourself?

Yep I’m hoping to resit Mathematics and Physics, and depending on what I’d like to do after this year, potentially French as well, which isn’t really a chore since the a level is very interesting to me! What about yourself?

3 mate bio chem n maths

How much do you need to improve your grades by for each of your subjects?