Gap Year: Regrets?

My gap year wasn't the typical get your backpack and travel the world kinda gap year. People sometimes ask if I wish I hadn't taken a gap year or if they wished I had done it differently. 

Taking a gap year was the best decision I made, whether I made the most of it or not is arguable (but maybe that is society just making me feel bad I didn't travel the world). 

Taking a gap year allowed me to experience 'adulthood', learn more about the 'real world' and meet so many people who had so many different life experiences. Although the latter, is something that also takes place at university, it was great to mingle with many people who I wouldn't of. 

Working

During my gap year I worked full time, stepping up from my part time job. So although it was what I had been doing for a year already, I hadn't been as invested as I was during my gap year. I learnt more of the serious side to the business, the 'behind the scenes' and experienced working more than 12 hours a week which was quite different. 

Working obviously helped me save for university, which I'm so glad I did as it just makes first year a little less stressful, second year not so much. 

Friends

When having a full time job, not everyone is your age. You go from spending everyday with people your age, to spending everyday with a massive age range. I had friends that were 30, married with babies, or people who were 60 with grandchildren. I love that I got to work with so many people of different ages as it made me more aware of my surroundings, allowed me to learn different life lessons from them and they always gave great advice. 

It was hard transitioning to hanging out with people my own age everyday as I had been so used to hanging out with people who had also experienced the 9-5 (or 9-8) working world with real shit they had to deal with (like mortgages). So then going back to hanging out with fresh out of school 18 year olds, you do feel as if you've reverted back to being younger. The feeling doesn't last forever, but it feels weird to adjust to first.

Healing

I had always had school work to focus on and exams, so when I went through some hard times I had to put more of a 'pause' on dealing with things. Even when I had a counsellor during school, I didn't really focus on my issues, instead pushed them to the side to get through my exams. So during my gap year, I had time to invest properly into my counselling, facing my issues and demons.

Memories

I did make many memories while on my gap year. One of my favourites being on holiday with my ex, thinking "wow, I'm going to marry him" (I  was wrong). But that was the best we had been, and there was no worries and was just such a relaxing and fun holiday. My first holiday without my family and was just overall an amazing holiday.

I also made so many memories with family and friends also. 

Family

I am a proper home bird, so I was a bit cautious about going to university. Having a gap year allowed me to spend more time with my family, making memories and appreciating the time we had before I left. I felt like during the last year of sixth form, your so busy with friends or getting ready for exams that you push family time aside and forget how close university actually is, so having a year out let me focus on it more.

Dog
Of course when you have a pet, swanning off to university is really hard to leave them, especially as they don't understand. So I got to spend much more time with my dog too, sometimes missing days out just to spend more time with him (am I sad?)

Being Sure

I was on the fence a little about joining university, which is why I took my gap year. By being on a gap year it solidified the fact I wanted to go and I even changed which university I wanted to go to completely. It allowed me to reflect on what I really wanted to do. If I had gone to university fresh out of school, I don't think I would of been able to cope and might have come back. 

Having a gap year really helped me, shaped me more as a person and was just the best decision for me. It's not the right choice for everyone but I would say if you think you want to go to university, but not sure you are ready or 100% want to go, maybe consider a gap year. 

- Meg