Students Use The Student Room To Find Advice on Taking a Gap Year

With more focus on the alternatives to going to university, many students are using the Gap Year forum on The Student Room to find advice and information on how they could spend a year out before going to university.

Some of the top topics asked or spoken about include:

• Volunteering
• Travel
• Employment
• Work schemes
• Work experience and internships (in the UK or abroad)

Not only are students seeking advice and information on gap years, but many students are recommending taking a gap year before university to their younger peers.

“I ended up taking a spontaneous gap year in 2007 when I changed my mind on what subject I wanted to do, and reapplied. It ended up being the best year of my life, and I wouldn’t have changed a minute of it. I worked for 6 months, and then worked abroad in politics for a while. It was amazing. I met friends for life, learnt so much, and went off to university a much happier and more confident person.” ice_cube, TSR user and moderator

During the UCAS applications cycle of 2010-2011, there was a sharp drop in the number of students deciding to defer a year because of the rise in tuition fees but now students are reconsidering taking a gap year.

Many students are now considering taking a gap year to give them more time to decide whether they want to go to university, so that they don’t rush into making the wrong choice of institution or course.

“Taking a gap year was the best thing I have ever done, I can’t even imagine how I would have coped going to University last year. So many people in my halls dropped out and came back again because they couldn’t cope or had realised they hadn’t made the best choice during that stressed, rushed UCAS and exam period.” kirstied, TSR user

Finding out about the alternatives to university from their peers is invaluable for young people looking for some direction for their future. Often the advice of parents, teachers or careers advisers is ignored but when it comes from those of a similar age the reaction is much more positive, which is just one of the reasons why young people keep returning to TSR for advice on everything from education, to careers and general life advice.