

Ask HN: What is a good reason to take a gap year? - gschiller

Me: Top high school student.
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pathy
Practically everyone in Sweden takes a year off before starting university. To
get motivation back, to travel, to work a bit and so forth.

Usually you don't really know what you want to do in life (or even what to
study if you choose to go to university) when you are done with high school.
Taking a year to experience new things and enjoying yourself is great excuses
to take a gap year.

I took a gap year, got my drivers license, worked, went to Munich for three
months to study German. Great time and gave time to figure out what I wanted
to do with my life. Or at least partly figuring out what I wanted to do.

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vtanase
As some of the people in this thread have already suggested, the idea of
taking a gap year is all about having a plan/purpose. Taking a year off just
for the sake of it, is not worth it.

From the way your question is phrased it feels like you want to take a gap
year, but don't have a reason yourself. If this is the case the answer is
simply put: don't do it.

On the other hand if you have some ideas and want to validate them and see if
they are worth it, post them and we can give you feedback on them. This way
the discussion would be a lot more constructive.

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argonaut
The right opportunity presents itself. This applies to dropping out and, well,
any other kind of change in your life.

If you're going to take a gap year, you should know what you're going to do
and know what you want to get out of it.

~~~
mercer
I'd nuance this by saying that often it's more important to just set some kind
of goal than to _know_ what you want. Very often, the whole point of a gap
year is to figure out "what you're going to do" and figure out "what you want
to get out of it."

In those cases, a gap year is better than just plowing ahead with whatever
you're doing (and don't want to do).

~~~
argonaut
Right, right. That's really what I meant. When I said "know what you want", I
meant "know what your goals are," even if your goals are vague, like "explore
[X] career field", or "learn about [Y]."

For example, a good gap year would be a full-time (or perhaps _paid_
internship - unpaid internships are usually crappy and pay-your-dues type
affairs) job at an interesting company in a field you're interested in. So an
example would be working at a startup as a software developer or even a
business role.

~~~
mercer
Ah, yeah. I do agree with that. A gap year with some kind of plan is (usually)
preferable over just a gap year, but just a gap year is still better than
staying on automatic pilot.

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mercer
The following quote from The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (by Haruki Murakami)
pretty much expresses how I see this:

 _" For the time being, there is no need for either of us to be here. And if
that is the case, I feel, it would be better for us not to be here."_

I mostly disagree with those who say that you need a plan or purpose for a gap
year to be useful. Mostly, because I do think _some_ kind of plan or purpose,
however vague, is good, just to provide you with initial and general
direction.

A gap year is often exactly the kind of thing that can give you a long-term
plan and a purpose, so waiting on these things before you take a year off can
be counter-productive.

I used to do a lot of hitchhiking for fun. When I went hitchhiking with
absolutely no plan, I wasn't always happy with the aimless results. But when
I'd set some initial goal, a random city or country, the result was wonderful.
Very often I wouldn't arrive at this initial destination, but see many others
instead.

If a gap year is not going to negatively impact you, I see no reason why you
wouldn't do it. Even without a plan other than partying!

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j2h6mW
Have you considered going to university for 1-2 years, then taking your gap
year, then coming back to finish your degree? Many universities are OK with
their students doing this.

As a university student you'll have more information, travel opportunities,
and potential outside funding than you currently do. There are some organized
programs that only take university students. It can be easier to find work or
an internship as well. You may know what you want to do better by then.

Good luck, whatever you choose!

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mattwritescode
To get stupidly drunk and get laid on every continent

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benologist
If there's nothing you strongly feel you should be doing instead then there's
no good reason.

