Gap year before college and already feeling behind
3 weeks after enrolling into college i decided to drop out for an apprenticeship without much research into apprenticeships or much thought into my decision of dropping out. It is now too late to rejoin this acedemic year so i will be a year behind my friends when i rejoin next september. i am going to be doing work experience and a part time job in the mean time but am really worried about how i will feel when they leave for uni and im still at college. I am even more worried about making friends in college and uni with being a year older than everyone. the only positive thing is that i will now be doing the courses i truly want to and have had time to think about my desired career path. and my friends will be there with me for one year so i guess that's good but yeah please reply if u have similar experiences and if you think it's considered weird to be a year older than everyone else.
Reply 1
No it is not weird to be a year older than anyone else. When you get to Uni people will be a wide range of ages. In the workplace you will be amongst a wide range of ages. In society, people are a wide range of ages.
You are not 'behind'. You are simply a few steps along a different path. You cannot compare yourself to other people on similar or other courses. These things are meaningless in reality, it's just that you can't see that from your perspective now.
You're thinking the way you are because for the last 10+ years you've been in this little sausage factory of education where everyone is in lock-step and in a familiar closely regulated system. Tertiary education isn't like that and neither is the rest of you life.
You are not 'behind'. You are simply a few steps along a different path. You cannot compare yourself to other people on similar or other courses. These things are meaningless in reality, it's just that you can't see that from your perspective now.
You're thinking the way you are because for the last 10+ years you've been in this little sausage factory of education where everyone is in lock-step and in a familiar closely regulated system. Tertiary education isn't like that and neither is the rest of you life.
Reply 2
2
Original post
by ErasistratusVNo it is not weird to be a year older than anyone else. When you get to Uni people will be a wide range of ages. In the workplace you will be amongst a wide range of ages. In society, people are a wide range of ages.
You are not 'behind'. You are simply a few steps along a different path. You cannot compare yourself to other people on similar or other courses. These things are meaningless in reality, it's just that you can't see that from your perspective now.
You're thinking the way you are because for the last 10+ years you've been in this little sausage factory of education where everyone is in lock-step and in a familiar closely regulated system. Tertiary education isn't like that and neither is the rest of you life.
You are not 'behind'. You are simply a few steps along a different path. You cannot compare yourself to other people on similar or other courses. These things are meaningless in reality, it's just that you can't see that from your perspective now.
You're thinking the way you are because for the last 10+ years you've been in this little sausage factory of education where everyone is in lock-step and in a familiar closely regulated system. Tertiary education isn't like that and neither is the rest of you life.
Thank you so much for this it really means a lot to have this kind of reassurance. I've had a confirmation today from my local council that there is no way for me to re join any course before the next academic year starts in September so i will definitely be in the position i mentioned. i think because of this i have kind of accepted the reality a little bit more and am now looking forward to being able to do courses i will really enjoy. Thank you again for replying.
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