Everything I Learned During My Gap Year

There are a lot of things that you can learn while taking a gap year before university. Here is everything that I learned during mine.

With so many students going on a gap year before starting university, they’re able to learn a lot. Here are some of those things.

1. If you go travelling, you’ll experience a new culture

A gap year allows you to live and breathe another culture. In my case, even though Australia is a western country, the culture is still completely different down under. I had the opportunity to live like an Australian for a year and broaden my horizon with the way Ozzies handle their everyday life.

2. …and while being abroad, you’ll make friends for life

… and those friends will last you for a lifetime. The other perk of having friends from all over the world is being able to visit them in their home- countries when you feel a little wanderlust.

3. You’ll get well deserved time off before uni

Sixth Form is stressful enough, so going on a gap year will give you a well deserved break and time to recharge and get 100% ready to start your university adventure.

4. You’ll become more independent

Because you will be living on your own for almost a whole year, you’ll have to learn how to do basic things without your mum’s help. This will come in super handy when you start university, as you’ll soon realise that you already know how to do basic life-skills, such as doing your laundry.

5. You’ll have more time to figure out what you want to do with your life

I applied for uni during my time in Australia and I probably changed my choice every five minutes, however, after a couple of months working and travelling the country, I figured out I wanted to study journalism. As cheesy as it sounds, gap years are great to ‘find yourself’ and figure out what to do with your life.

6. You’ll become more spontaneous

Most travellers start in one place with so many plans where they want to go but the second they meet other travellers, it’s more likely to throw all those plans away and hop on a cheap flight to Fiji. You can’t really plan a whole year abroad and you’ll instantly become more spontaneous, which is a great life skill to have.

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7. If you think employers will question your time off – they won’t

Every time I’ve had a job interview after my travels, the interviews mostly consisted of the employer asking me about my time abroad. It’s a nice ice breaker, as you’ve always got something to talk about.

8. You’ll learn how to save money

Travelling costs money and you’ll learn how to prioritise that money. During my year off I learned that shopping is a luxury and sometimes it’s more important to buy food or a hostel pass than that beautiful denim jacket from Urban Outfitters.

9. You’ll have time for yourself

Whether you go travelling or not, a year off gives you plenty of time for yourself and reconnect to some old friends.

10. It’s not easy

I thought a gap year was easy and though it was one of the best years of my life, it was also one of the hardest. It took me some time to adapt to the other country’s culture and get a routine going, but at the end of the day, I learned how to work hard and independent and I’m still benefitting from that.