The 12 years at Greenwood are finally over, and now students are offered a choice for how the next year of their lives is going to pan out.

Graduating seniors are in control of their future careers and a big question is how will they go about completing their plans. They could go to colleges, join trade schools, begin their career or take gap years. A gap year has plenty of benefits for certain students while it delays the future for other students. There are many pros and cons for taking a gap year or jumping straight into future plans.

For starters, the biggest negative to a gap year is it puts students a year behind. Most college degrees take four years, and many trade schools last at least a year. Many students benefit from going directly to these schools and not wasting time before they attend. Careers take time to build, and a year off can affect the outcome of the future.

On the other hand, some students do not have plans yet, and a year to figure out what they want to do could be beneficial. Many people change their degrees and career paths, which take a lot of time and money, but taking a gap year would allow time to gain financial support, while creating a better plan for the future.

Many people get burnt out of school and need a break to enjoy their lives before they begin to work again. They would benefit from a gap year to enjoy themselves for now to prepare for the future. This allows them to be at their best when they decide to push themselves again to have the best opportunity for success.

While his year off may be nice, students could lose a lot of knowledge and drive for school. It is a lot of hard work to find a successful job, and after an easy year off, it would be hard to get back into the mindset of taking on assignments and meeting deadlines. Once they start school again, they might miss their gap year and head back to their easy jobs.

Some students enjoy the new opportunities to start their new lives by themselves, and they take advantage by moving out and taking on small jobs to pay the rent. This can teach them responsibility and give them control  over their lives as they figure out the real world on their own. The gap year allows students to experience their lives how they want them to be all on their own.

The main reason students take the gap year is to build the funds that are required for school. College and trade schools can be very expensive. Although money can be an issue, the salary of someone with a college degree is much higher than the salary of a high school diploma. The student would make much more in their first year out of college or trade school than they would during the gap year. There is financial aid, scholarships, grants, and loans available to help students afford college. Even though the student will acquire more debt, they will start at a higher salary and pay off the money faster than a student in a gap year.

Overall. I believe that a gap year will only slow a student down. It is better to get everything done and pursue the career that best fits as soon as possible.