Why take a gap year after university?
Taking a Gap Year could be the best thing you ever do.
Many of us ponder whether to take a Gap year after graduating or head straight into employment. There are many things to consider; how to afford it, where to go, how long to travel for or even – is it worth it?
So, to help you decide, here are just a few reasons why taking a gap year could be the best thing you’ve ever done.
You deserve to have a break!
By the time most people have graduated from university, if you followed the traditional route, you could have spent up to a whopping 16 years in education. That’s an average of 3120 days of hard work! Many would agree that you deserve a well-earned break before you head off into full-time employment. And what better way to spend time off than travelling around the world?
You can spend time soaking up the sun on scenic beaches, visiting historical monuments, climbing waterfalls, eating fresh local produce, managing your own time and relaxing at your leisure.
You learn valuable lessons of life
There are some lessons in life that simply cannot be taught in the classroom. Travelling gives you lessons of life, such as confidence and interpersonal skills, as you will communicate with people from different cultures and backgrounds. You could even pick up another language.
Best of all, you can learn things about yourself that can help to shape the rest of your life. Maybe you’re more adventurous than you once thought you were, or are more resourceful than you realised. Travelling boosts your personal development, which will help you maximise your potential.
Travelling looks good on your CV
Believe it or not, taking time out to travel enhances your CV for prospective employers. Travelling teaches you a great deal of personal responsibility, adaptability, and is proof of a can-do attitude, attributes that employers value in a candidate.
You also refine organisational and planning skills, decision making skills, financial planning and many more, which is not only great for landing that amazing job, but potentially for progressing within it, too.
It becomes harder to take time out
Sometimes, ‘later’ can easily become ‘never’. When we graduate, we are motivated, excited, and filled with optimism-ready to jump straight onto the path to career success.
It can, however, become increasingly hard to travel around the world once you’ve settled in. There are many reasons; you may not have any allotted holiday left, you’re up for promotion and can’t possibly take time off, or there’s exciting events happening that you simply don’t want to miss! Travelling while you’re young completely avoids this-so you can travel stress free!
Whether you want to zip line through the incredible landscapes of Peru, party at the vibrant Rio de Janeiro Carnival in Brazil or experience the Infinity Rooms in New York, travelling is an exciting way to spend a well-deserved gap year after university.