#SeptemberStudies- Should you take a gap year?

Gap years, gap years, gap years. They can be so problematic, can't they? 

When I just started out in secondary school, I thought that gap years were for travelling. You travelled the globe for a year and then came back and resumed life as normal- and yes, some people do do that. But that's not all that you can do! Some things you can do in a gap year include:

• Continuing to study, for example, studying a short course to prep you for university
• Working to save money for uni
• Travelling
• Volunteering abroad 
• Interning
• Completing an apprenticeship
• Chilling (hey it's not the best option, but if you just want need to take a year out, you do you, boo)
• Re sit some exams if you're not happy with the results

That's already a huge list, and there's probably more I don't know about! You don't have to just stick to one thing either, some people choose to work for six months then travel for six months, something like that. But that's not what is important here- what's important is the million dollar question. Should you take a gap year? 

The answer is, it's up to you. 

I know right, how unhelpful am I? 

To be honest, I'd recommend a gap year to everyone. I took one myself and used the time to study a short course at my local college to prepare me for my three year university course. It was during this time that I discovered I didn't actually enjoy what I had applied to study at uni, I wanted to pursue a totally different career altogether and I used the year to begin following this one, completing a huge number of work experience placements and internships. In the space of a year I had progressed massively with this new career choice and by the end of the gap year I had withdrawn my uni application, knowing that it wasn't right for me. 

I think a gap year can be good for lots of reasons though, not just for giving you additional time to think about what you want to study. After 13 solid years of school, learning and exams (particularly those nasty A Levels that you finish off with), sometimes a year out is necessary. You just need time to be you, relaxed and carefree, doing what you want to do and doing it when you want to do it. School can be so damaging to our mental health, more than we usually realise, and a year out can really help with that. 

If you're looking to travel, taking a year out is an excellent way to learn about different cultures, maybe pick up a language or two and get some real experience of the world, before heading off to uni and trying to gain what everyone calls "life experience". It's also an excellent opportunity to make some new friends too, which is always a plus. 

I never viewed my gap year as a "gap year" because I was studying throughout it, but when I look back I realise it was a gap year. It was a gap between education to mess around with career ideas, explore what subjects I actually enjoyed and to finally decide what I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing (or my twenties, at least!). 

Of course, gap years aren't for everyone- if you took a year out from education, you might never want to go back and that would not be helpful! However, if the opportunity arises and you feel up to it, I couldn't recommend taking one more, no matter how you choose to spend it. Sometimes, just to do something different from five days a week of school is highly beneficial and, more importantly, a lot of fun. 

Did you take a gap year? Would you recommend it? Let me know in the comments below! 

Love from,

Florence Grace