With colleges and universities restricting in-person classes and activities, detracting from the value of tuition in the eyes of many students, a gap year has never been more attractive. For others, financial strains due to the current pandemic’s economic impact has made staying at home inevitable, especially in low-income communities. This summer, a report from the Office of Institutional Research at Williams College revealed that the on-campus population “will not be as racially and ethnically diverse as the student body as a whole this fall,” a trend echoed by data from other institutions.
Many students from various backgrounds have already decided to take a semester or year off, causing university enrollment to dip and gap year numbers to skyrocket. At present, college enrollment around the country is down 4.4% from last year and down 13% specifically for incoming freshmen. Now, the question is how gap year students can make the most of their time away from school.
A lot of existing gap year programs focus on travel or service. Both of these are heavily limited right now due to COVID-19. However, the main intention behind a gap year is to develop personally and professionally. One study found that 60% of gap year students said it had either inspired or confirmed their career choice or academic major, and that students who take a gap year report higher job satisfaction to an overwhelming degree. So, let’s explore some valuable ways to spend time for those students who don’t want to or can’t afford to go back to school at the moment.
Gain Experience With A Remote Internship
Professional development is one of the most valuable components a gap year can include. Spending time gaining real-world experience and building skills that actually matter in the workplace will set you apart from others your age. Unfortunately, internship opportunities are often limited to your personal connections, making it difficult to find the right fit—or any internship at all.
Ampersand is a 13-week professional development and internship program that works with students to develop professional skills designed to prepare young professionals to enter the workforce. In addition to rotating through three one-month internships tailored to each individual student’s interests, students will take part in 250 hours of live curriculum sessions that teach valuable workplace skills like navigating corporate communications, managing feedback, crafting a resume, brainstorming, budgeting, and so much more.
Learn A Valuable Skill
There are more free, worthwhile resources on the internet than you can consume in a lifetime. On top of that, it’s so easy to keep busy with your immediate surroundings throughout high school and college that it’s impossible to take advantage of all that the world wide web has to offer.If you’re a self-starter who has a little discipline, YouTube and Google might be the only teachers you need.
The good news is, there’s something for every profession out there. For creative types, the internet is bursting with tutorials on Adobe creative products (or free alternatives like Canva and DaVinci Resolve). Anyone interested in STEM can learn to code. For the business-minded, learning Salesforce or another CRM software can boost your employability. If you’re not sure what skill to learn, search for entry-level jobs in your field of interest and note the desired skills or softwares for applicants.
While building skills independently can yield incredible results, it’s daunting to jump straight into a task with no accountability. The Gap Year Association, a nonprofit that provides resources for gap year students, recommends starting with more structure and becoming more self-sufficient over time. A program like Ampersand can help you maintain structure and demonstrate how to market your new skills to future employers.
Start A Personal Project
Learning on your own without the structure of a course load or peers to motivate you may not be the best way for you to learn. Instead, starting a personal project can be a great opportunity to work toward a goal and structure your work.
Learn guitar and record an album. Write a compilation of short stories. Teach yourself to code by making a video game. Start a YouTube channel to practice video editing and public speaking. In fact, launching your own apparel company can be a great way to learn about both design and business development, and it requires shockingly little money to build a brand and automate products. Learning skills in a project format is a great way to build a portfolio and reinforce skills through experience.
In fact, the possibilities are so endless that it can be overwhelming to decide the most productive way to spend your time. Ampersand can help pinpoint which of those resources are right for you and what path makes the most sense. Between personality assessments and access to mentors whose breadth of knowledge can help you use your time wisely and enjoyably.
Work And Save Money
Let’s face it: COVID has brought financial strain for many Americans and their families. Cost is a widespread factor for students taking time off from school right now, so spending that time saving money makes complete sense. Even if making money isn’t urgent for you right now, the job experience can help build skills like customer service, creative problem-solving, or sales that will prepare you for future roles (and interview responses).
A good place to start is to survey jobs in your surrounding area through Google Maps, Yelp, or going for a joyride around town. Chances are good someone is hiring, and it may even be a store you never noticed before. If going into work in person isn’t feasible, freelance websites like upwork, fiverr, or freelancer are a way to find remote opportunities while building a portfolio of projects.
And if you need help on developing your resume to get that first job, or learning how to translate those skills into a professional role, Ampersand is here to help!
The nice thing is, a gap year or even a gap semester is long enough to fit in more than one of these options. How much you gain from a gap year depends on how much you’re willing to learn and self-reflect!
