Common Application Processing Issue — The Common Application is currently facing technical difficulties in delivering applications and forms to Princeton and other institutions. They are actively working to resolve these issues as swiftly as possible. Please rest assured that we are aware of the situation and it will not adversely affect your application. We kindly request that you give our office until Friday, Nov. 8 to receive your materials before contacting us regarding any missing items.

Should I Do a Gap Year?

November 20, 2020
Kathy Palomino

This fall semester has been very difficult to adapt to, and I can’t imagine the spring semester will be much easier. While I initially believed this semester would be a sprint, it is quickly proving to be a marathon, and I have been struggling for an opportunity to simply catch my breath. With that in mind, I have been wondering whether it would be in my best interest to take a gap year if Princeton is forced to stay virtual for yet another year. I would love to spend my final year as a Princeton undergraduate (since next year, I’ll be a senior) on campus surrounded by my friends and the environment I have grown so fond of. But with so much uncertainty about the COVID-19 pandemic, the question remains: to gap or not to gap?

Taking a gap year would be a good opportunity to think about my future. I could do research for my senior thesis. I could work on self-improvement: time management, eliminating procrastination, as well as productivity. It would allow me a lot of time for self-reflection and even internships. I could do remote internships to prepare when I am actually ready to enter the job market. It would be a valuable experience. The only limitations are physical as I would be trapped indoors, but this might be true regardless. However, I enjoy the structure given while in school. I am hungry for everything I can absorb now, and I would feel restless aimlessly wading through the months, waiting for COVID-19 to subside. I know that there will be experiences I will miss out on either way. I also wonder if I can abate my appetite for the classroom for a whole year. Even beyond that, if I chose not to take a gap year, with so much uncertainty surrounding in person interactions, entering the job market also feels like facing a behemoth. I would have to face employment decisions, which are already nerve wracking, compounded by the unease of a pandemic looming over.

There is also the possibility of COVID-19’s halt on in-person instruction extending longer than a year. I would be faced with the same question: How long am I willing to wait to return to Princeton? I cannot put off my education forever while I wait for the pandemic to blow over, especially with how the progress on developing a vaccine is going. This is not an issue that will be solved anytime soon; this is the message I have been getting from the news, Princeton updates, and conversations with friends and loved ones.

All in all, I think that taking a gap year should be a choice made with intention and should be executed purposefully. While I know that if I do decide to take a gap year, I would take full advantage of it, but I also know that it is a risk I may not be able to take. As a first-generation, low-income student, taking a gap year is a gamble because of financial aid and the murky future of the nation’s political and economic situation. Until the end of my junior year, I will be weighing the pros and cons of taking a gap year and deciding whether it is a risk I am willing to take or not.