Preview

Viewpoint: Gap Years Are Good For Students By Chris Kelly

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
235 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Viewpoint: Gap Years Are Good For Students By Chris Kelly
Chris Kelly’s article, “Viewpoint: Gap years are good for students –and for schools” published in USA Today offers countless examples as to why taking a year off before college is beneficial for students. Kelly starts the article by using former president Barack Obama’s daughter, Malia Obama, as an example of a great student taking a year before college to get herself ready for the next stage of her life. He continues his claim by expressing that while in the past colleges have frowned upon taking a gap year, colleges today are actually suggesting students to take a constructive year off to get themselves mentally and physically ready before attending a university. Colleges believe students who do this come to college more ready to succeed

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Whether college matters to people or not, the purpose of college is to prepare students of their career and in all areas of life. Liz Addison is known for her essay published on “New York Times” in two thousand and seven called, “Two Years Are Better Than Four”, which it became a runner up for an essay contest. “Two Years Are Better Than Four” is a response to Rick Perlstein’s essay “What’s the Matter with College?”. Perlstein’s argument in “What’s the Matter with College?” is that college don’t matter and that it ends in America, but Addison opposed the statements elaborating on how college isn’t going anywhere and that it matters for the future. Addison is a writer who graduated in community college of Southern Maine and Piedmont Virginia…

    • 213 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    After graduating from High School, students are encouraged to keep pursuing education at colleges, whether at community colleges, state universities, or universities. Even if a student wishes to go to college, some of the families can’t afford for it. Also, colleges are difficult to get in for the past years. It is best to have a better understanding of college before attending one.…

    • 222 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lee described how her child grew up and “graduated” on time (par. 14). In her motherly aspect, this is positive; however, kids grow to be mature at different rates and the further mature kids do have an easier time succeeding in college. The mature college kids do not think of college as a time to beige drink, oversleep, or drive recklessly as individuals may label the college experience (par 10).…

    • 652 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Students going into college should realize what is most important in life. They should prioritize their time by putting the most important things first. “In the Defense of Liberal Arts”, Wallace explains how she took a leave of absence, because she was not sure that college was for her. She thought it was non-essential.…

    • 1480 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Larry Cuban, a former social studies high school teacher, superintendent, manages to compress the mantra that has been repeated for several of years with his article entitled, “Why Everyone Shouldn’t Go To College”. He accomplishes this by giving us countless of interesting facts about the reality of college and life. He argues that the annual college tuition seems to be extremely expensive, that may not worth the amount of money you’re paying.In addition, he makes note that college graduates working at manufacturing places that don’t need college diplomas, in order to complete their job. Furthermore, he makes clear that one might be a high school dropout or graduate of high school and can still be highly…

    • 117 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    “Refining the ‘Typical’ College Student” by Tressie McMillan Cottom. A writer for Slate and PhD candidate in sociology at Emory College. Tressie argues that higher education reforms should reflect nontraditional students more because they are older with more responsibilities and obligations. The article is discussing Obama’s affordability plan and how it is not beneficial to most students attending college. A nontraditional college student is typically a student who is older and attending college years after graduating high school. Many of these students are part-time with other obligations to attend to. Which is why a four- year enrollment isn’t ideal for these types of students. Therefore, to further their education many, of these students look for certain accommodations before choosing a college.…

    • 805 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    There is approximately two and a half months that high school students get off before they go to college. Those are the last few months when kids get to “hang out a little, learn to take it slow.” (16) However, instead of “hanging out” kids need to make sure they have a job or some other way of getting enough money to make it through college; they need to make sure they are prepared emotionally, mentally, and socially for this huge life change. Kids have to learn how to live on their own, make new friends, manage time.…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Transitioning To College

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In illustrating the downfall of students transitioning to college, one might take into consideration their study habits in high school, their work ethic and the amount of time they put into their classwork. Often times, students are unprepared for high school because they lack the motivation and effort of these things, or sometimes because their mentors and teachers were not interested in their success. By this, I mean teachers have an obligation not to just graduate their students, but to help them succeed. For instance, teachers should help their students pass the SAT by teaching learning strategies or preparing them for the rigorous work and to inform them of the amount of time it takes studying for each subject. However, the academic aspect is not the only importance in transitioning to college. While teachers are a huge factor in our success, parents also have an obligation outside of the classroom to instruct…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Today we have the highest number of students who attend college. All of these students are pursuing their dreams of getting a better future with an education while each and every one of them went through different levels of difficulties just to graduate. These difficulties range from not having a safe home to live in to not knowing what career to pursue. As a college student right now I can see the fall backs I have and how others have it a lot easier than I do. This can be said for every college student. But one thing college students don't realize is the students who have it harder than we do. Right now the group of individuals that have the most difficulty graduating are first-generation college students who make up approximately twenty…

    • 1971 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    There are many points about taking a gap year it can be a good opportunity to meet new people and also you can improve on your people skills. Another point is that it can give you time to actually think about the right career you would want to follow up on. Taking a gap year can help you on discovering different aspects in life. There may be a student who doesn’t want to attend college right away that can be a great opportunity for them to travel and get an outlook on the world and figure out what he/she really want to accomplish in life. Me for example I waited 4 years to attend college and it’s been a struggle because I haven’t been in high school since the year 2009 and I’m a little rusty on my academics but it made me mature. Taking this “Big” gap year helped me find myself and what I really wanted to become in life.…

    • 632 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Once you're out of college, you're busy with a new life, a new career and will be wondering when you'll be able to have the time to go on that dream trip to Hawaii. Well it's not going to happen because you don't have something called 'holidays' any more. You'll regret not being able to take the chance to travel to new places, experience a different culture and environment when you were younger. That time should have been used when you had just bloomed into adulthood. That year before college. High school graduates should take a year off before entering college so they can travel. In the future, they will come across financial problems and time management issues that will stand in the way of them.…

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Gap Year Essay

    • 1516 Words
    • 4 Pages

    One of the most difficult periods of life for a young adult, is college. Studying for classes, commuting, new expectations, and the list could go on for a long time, but one thing that tops it all is student debt. It is important to pick the right school and the right major, because if not, a lot of valuable time and money is wasted that could have gone into something that was a much better fit. This is where a “gap year” could be a helpful solution in the long run. It may not seem like a great idea at first and can even seem ludicrous that this idea could even save money, but if…

    • 1516 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gap Year

    • 988 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In its most basic form, taking a gap year refers to taking a year out of studying to do something else. Many people take a gap year before starting college or work, but it can be taken at any time. A gap year is also taking “time off with a purpose.” It is not a time to do nothing, but is an intentional time of reflection and discovery before a major transition in life. It’s a chance to take a different route for a while, push yourself in a new direction before continuing on your path to higher education or work. The origination of the gap year concept was born out of the ‘Grand Tour’, an essential part of the education of many young English gentleman in the eighteenth century, which generally involved traveling for up to three years and stopping at cultural centers such as Paris, Venice, Florence and Rome. In the 1950’s, after WWII, youth travel and cultural exchange was viewed as a useful tool to build better global understanding and prevent future war. The first 'gap year', generally occurring between high school and college, actually started in the UK in the 1960's. Since the 1990's taking time out has become a rite of passage for tens of thousands of UK students. The gap year is now becoming increasingly popular with US students. Students today have experienced high to extreme academic pressure since elementary school. Educators and psychologists agree that many students are burnt out and have had very little time to reflect on who they are, what they’re truly interested in and what their life’s purpose will be. A gap year can be a precious time to explore, learn, travel, and experience more of a personal evolution. Perhaps these statistics offer further proof points. According to the College Board, three out of five students who enter a public four-year college don’t graduate within five years. And nearly 30 percent of all students who enter college don't return for their sophomore…

    • 988 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Pick One

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages

    When I was about to graduate from high school in 2007, I had a lot of questions on my mind. One of the main questions I had was, should I start college at an early age in my life, or should I just wait awhile before I rush into getting my masters. A lot of my friends never went straight into college after high school and hence I thought to myself, I don’t want to be in their position. Starting college has a lot of benefits.…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In conclusion, Students who take a gap year tend to be self-motivated, not afraid of taking a risk, not bound by conventions and open to explore their interests and discover their…

    • 359 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays