college

Should You Take a Gap Year After Graduating College?

Jonathan Golding Gap Year, Getting Direction, Uncategorized, What Should You Do, What to do , ,

In my 30 years of experience as a college professor, I have heard a lot from students with regard to taking a gap year after graduating from college. Many are “all in”, but for various reasons. Here are the main reasons I have heard for taking a gap year—all should be considered positives:

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  • Some students have had it with school and simply need a break from school. Clearly these students are “burned out”, a state mental fatigue caused by overwork or stress. These students have worked hard in school for 15-20 years, and this work has caught up with them. They need the time to regroup, and mentally prepare for the future. This typically involves researching career options. In addition, during their gap year these students will secure a job or volunteer.
  • There are students who feel that before moving on to graduate school or starting a career they would like some time to travel and experience the world, including teaching/working abroad (e.g., Peace Corps). These students are not necessarily burned out. They just want to do something new and exciting right away, because their chance to travel and experience other cultures are probably going to be limited once they pursue graduate school or a career.
  • A student may want to go to graduate school or professional school, but they do not have the money to pay for tuition or living expenses. Students like this plan to work during their gap year to put themselves in a better financial position once they go forward with their education.
  • For some, a gap year is an opportunity to better prepare for applying to graduate/professional school. This can include bolstering their record by securing a job or internship. For example, a student may get a job at a hospital to gain experience in a medical context before applying to medical school. In addition, a gap year can allow a student to better prepare for the application process. This includes studying for a standardized exam (e.g., GRE, MCAT, LSAT) required for most graduate and professional programs, or having time to deal with the application process itself (i.e., filling out forms, securing letters of recommendation, writing a Personal Statement).

In talking about the reasons my students have given for wanting to take a gap year, I should note that it has not been my experience that students take a gap year to just sit around and hang out. Students use this time to plan and participate in activities that will facilitate their path to a career. Moreover, a gap year makes sense for many students despite the thinking in the US that it is critical to keep moving forward without breaks. As someone who had no breaks in their schooling, I feel comfortable saying that I should have taken a gap year when I graduated college (believe it or not) in 1981! When I think back to when I graduated, it is clear that I was burned out. However, it was just assumed by myself and others that I would go straight to graduate school. I was definitely not ready for this, and my initial year of graduate school was less than stellar. Yes, I got myself on the right track after Year 1, but in retrospect taking a gap year would have served me well.

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Although the reasons about for taking a gap year make sense, you must understand that there are several potential drawbacks to a gap year: (1) delay in starting a career; (2) loss of student health insurance coverage; and (3) for those planning to attend graduate/professional school, there might be a loss of motivation or momentum for going back to school.

Now that you know more about taking a gap year, you will need to think about whether time off after you graduate is best for you. One key thing to keep in mind as you decide is to talk to others about this decision. It’s a big one, so you can use all of the input from parents, friends, teachers, and advisors. In the end, however, the decision must be yours!

As always, good luck!

Please note that the comments of Dr. Golding and the others who post on this blog express their own opinion and not that of the University of Kentucky.

 

Special Guest Writer-Avery Thompson: Tips for Students with Disabilities

Jonathan Golding Disabilities, Time Management, Uncategorized, What Should You Do , , ,

Fellow readers,

I challenge you to the simple task of tying your shoes. Easy right? Oh, I forgot to mention one thing. Tie your shoes with one hand behind your back and your left eye covered. I challenge you again. Attend a university, community college, or any form of post-high school education. Easy right? Now endure your schooling with a learning or physical disability. A disability is any mental or physical condition serving as a limitation or hindrance on movements, activities, or senses. I offer up this scenario to give you an idea of the life of a college student with disabilities which include added difficulties to everyday endeavors.

There is a social stigma regarding the word “disabled.” It is this 3 syllable word that society defines as something wrong or different. Let’s all remember one thing. A disability is nothing to be ashamed of or seen as less than. I equate a disabled individual as someone who is running a race uphill while everyone else is running a straight path. I can attest to these tips because I apply them to my life every day after I had a retinal detachment at age 17. After several surgeries, my vision was left extremely impaired. Although this has caused limitations and issues within my academic career, I won’t allow this to define me or be a setback to my future. Disabilities, including my retinal detachment, are not academic-ending impairments. My hope is to offer tips for college success to those who have disabilities or those with relationships with disabled individuals.

Let’s run this race together

1) Accept Help

As a disabled student, you have been given a challenging aspect in your life and academic career. Because of this challenge, most institutions provide accommodations to aid these obstacles; accept this help and take advantage of it. At first, I did not want to get any help; I just wanted to tough it out and do it on my own. I finally and realized that the Disability Resource Center is there to help me; I needed their help. If you have been given extra time on exams, use it. If you have been given alternative options like paper copies, use them. If you have been given copies of visual note presentations, use them. If you have been given assistive technologies like audio or braille books or audio note translators, use them. Exploit these resources. Also, exploit resources that are given campus wide; I urge you to go to office hours to form relationships with your professors and use tutoring resources. Make good use of the opportunities you have been given.

2. Plan, plan, and plan!

I believe the most vital task for academic success is applying effort into creating and executing a plan. This will set the tone for your intentions for optimal performance. Tools like Google Calendar, for example, are free and allow users to plan and track day-to-day duties. The tool that has helped me the most is keeping an academic calendar. Filling out academic calendars allows you to view your current and upcoming assignments from different viewpoints including daily, weekly, and monthly. It is beneficial to look ahead at upcoming assignments, but don’t look so far ahead that you create unwanted and unnecessary mental and emotional strains. The viewpoint that has been the most helpful to me is the weekly approach. I start at the very beginning of each week and make a list of what I will need to accomplish that week. Furthermore, it is helpful to add a task to your list immediately after gaining knowledge about that task; this is most useful for those who have memory troubles. Also, order tasks by urgency. Planning through academic calendars and lists equip you to stay on task and not take in too much information.

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3. Organize and Manipulate Studying Methods

Every individual, disabled or not, prefers and succeeds in certain study methods over others. No matter the method… have a method! It may take trial and error but acquire a study method that is specialized to your particular strengths and weaknesses regarding your disability. The most beneficial study method for my set of circumstances is flash cards. I transfer my consolidated notes to flashcards right after class; this is an automatic review session and forces you to acknowledge the material when it is fresh in your brain. While using flashcards, color coding the cards or using various colors of ink allows you to generate the information in a grouping fashion. Whether you use flashcards or not, studying works best during “prime mental time” which is the time you are most productive. While studying, find an adequate environment that will aid in keeping you focused. Decide if your study environment needs to be quiet vs. background noise, alone vs. study partners, or outside vs. inside of various locations. General study tips can include rewriting important definitions or formulas for memorization, doing practice problems or exams, taking breaks, and creating mnemonic devices for mental associations.

4. Utilize All Resources

There are endless avenues of assistance that are intended to extend a helping hand. In other words, seek help beyond local resources. For those with learning disabilities, the National Center for Learning Disabilities empowers student, revolutionizes education, campaigns for equal rights, and provides scholarships and awards. Also, for those with speech disorders, the American-Speech-Language-Hearing Association aims to provide educational resources, and the Center for Hearing and Communication includes up to date information on speech technology. There are a wide range of disabilities but an even wider range of outlets that administer support and services.

problem-2731501_960_720.jpgUltimately, you need to understand that disabilities DO NOT inhibit or eliminate academic success. Focusing on positive features of your disability will lead to a positive outlook in your academic career. College is a pivotal stepping stone in the path of life. Whether you will embark on this journey in the future or are enduring the journey right now, just know college is demanding when carrying a disability on your shoulders. Although it’s difficult, you can make it easier by accepting help, planning, manipulating study methods, and utilizing all resources.

Please note that the comments of Dr. Golding and the others who post on this blog express their own opinion and not that of the University of Kentucky.

Life as a College Student Athlete: Keeping the Right Perspective

Jonathan Golding Getting Things Done, student athlete, Studying, Uncategorized, What Should You Do, What to do , , ,

     It seems that a lot has been written about student-athletes in college, but often this writing skips past the challenges that these individuals face balancing their lives. No matter what the sport, big time men’s basketball or less publicized women’s tennis, student athletes have a difficult task negotiating the academics and athletics. Over my 30 years as a Professor, I have taught and supervised hundreds of student-athletes. I have talked to them a bit about dealing with college with dual-demands, but I never took the time to really understand how these individuals manage their lives. For this post, however, I talked at length with Jenny Schaper, a star catcher on the University of Kentucky women’s softball team (coached by Rachel Lawson) to try and uncover what it is like to be a college student athlete. Below is our conversation.

Dr. Golding: How do you manage your athletic and academic schedules?

Jenny: I have a lot of late nights and a lot of early mornings. I’m pretty much used to it now. It was a lot harder when I was a freshman to manage everything because freshman year you had to have mandatory 8 study hall hours a week on top of class and practice and adjusting to college life so I think freshman year was a lot tougher. But as I’ve gotten older I’ve learned my own time management techniques.

Dr. Golding Did anyone ever tell you about time management skills?

Jenny: We have an academic advisor and she’s really helpful. Freshmen go through orientation, where they’re talked to about grades, time management, getting your work done, all that kind of stuff, I think that’s really helpful. But it is a lot on yourself just figure it out and kind of learn as you go. There’s usually about five or six other girls in an incoming class who are doing the same thing as you. Our coach actually made us fill out time sheets our freshman year. The day was broken up into 30-minute segments every day, and you had to write what you were going to be doing every thirty minutes of the day. I know, it’s a little excessive, but it helped you think about what you had to get done. Stuff like that was really helpful.

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Dr. Golding: Have there been times where you had to make a decision between studying, for example, and going to practice, or working out on your own? Or do you find that you manage things so well that that doesn’t really come up?

Jenny: You never really have to pick one or the other. Our coach, personally, is really good about school coming first. She’s a very big believer in that. Just last week, one of our girls was struggling a little bit with her grades, so the coach didn’t take her on our away trip so she could stay and do schoolwork. I guess there was a choice where she picked academic over athletic, but personally, I’ve never had to not participate in something in order to get schoolwork done.

Dr. Golding Do you talk to your professors about being an athlete?

Jenny: Most don’t ask. You’re the one who asks about it. I’ve never had any professors have issues with it, but girls on my team have.

Dr. Golding: Professors who said that your teammates couldn’t miss class?

Jenny: Yes. My roommate this year—a professor told that she should quit softball to take the class more seriously. And she’s a 4.0 student, so it’s not like it’s causing problems. She stayed in the class. She was like, “I’m going to prove her wrong, I’m going to show her that I can do it.”

Dr. Golding Are you ever jealous of students who aren’t participating in sports?

Jenny: Sometimes, especially around the holidays I get very jealous. We have to come back January 2 every year, just to start practicing. We get about two weeks for Christmas, which is nice, but most students get about a month. We’ve never gotten a spring break. Plus, I stay here over the summer just to work out. Definitely, at times like that, yes I’m jealous. I’m not so much jealous of the party scene, but just of having free time.

Dr. Golding: When you’re here in the summer, you can’t have an actual job, right?

Jenny: You can, but you just have to register it. And you can’t get any special perks. That’s a really big violation.

studentAthlete-studying.jpgDr. Golding: You’re a junior now. What advice would you give to freshmen about how they have to think about being in college, because it’s so different from being in high school?

Jenny: You have to know yourself, and you have to understand what kind of student and worker you are. The most important thing is your choices. You could choose to sit down and do your homework, or you could choose to hang out with your friends. It’s about where you want to succeed in life. One thing I remember my coach saying was that in college you can be good at athletics, academics, or partying, and she said you can be good at two out of the three, but you can’t be good at all three. So it’s your priorities, really.

Dr. Golding: What keeps you so motivated to do well? A lot of students who aren’t athletes could learn from the athletes.

Jenny: I think that being an athlete has taught me how to work hard for things, and that things aren’t just going to be given to you. You have to actually earn them. I think very highly of myself and of the people I like to associate myself with. I take a lot of pride in being able to be a successful athlete and a successful student, and I think that just being able to say that I do it and I do it well is important to me.

After talking to Jenny (and I hope you will agree), I have a much greater appreciation for what it is like to be a student athlete, and the demands you must deal with to succeed both academically and athletically. Of course, thanks to Jenny and best of luck to her as she moves on to her senior year!

Please note that the comments of Dr. Golding and the others who post on this blog express their own opinion and not that of the University of Kentucky.