Some students prefer to take a gap year between high school and university, to work or to travel.
Do the advantages of this outweigh the disadvantages
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Over the past decade, taking a gap year between high school and post-secondary has become a prevalent and publicly recognized phenomenon. Although this may bring several downsides for students, the returns are highly justifiable.
On one hand, students deferring entry to university appear to have better opportunities to participate in constructive activities such as travelling, volunteering and working. In fact, spending time traveling during the gap year gets students exposed to different cultures and lifestyles. Such exposure will certainly help them not only make sense of the world, but also cultivate well-rounded minds for better functioning academically. Besides, by getting their hands on various tasks through volunteering and working, students are more likely to accrue practical experience, thereby becoming more mature, acquiring better job prospects, and gaining a new appreciation for their college degrees. Even a blue-collar job performed in the year break can be an excellent source of understanding how the real world might look like after their graduation.
On the other hand, there are certain disadvantages students need to consider. First, apparently taking a year off means they will have to graduate one year later than they would otherwise. This would inevitably lead to lost wages. Also, one might argue the gap year is not as valuable as the one that is lost after graduation since this is the ideal time to kick-start their careers and start building professional networks. In addition, it might take students some time to make several adjustments before settling back to studies.
In conclusion, although putting off one or two years of post-secondary education comes at a cost, the advantages still outweigh the disadvantages. Taking a short break seems to be a more plausible alternative if they are justified by constructive and fulfilling pursuits during that time.
294 words (Kien Tran - 9.0 Writing)