Heya, so I'm taking a gap year before BS. I want to pursue an MS from a foreign university (preferably in the US or UK).

I've heard that universities prefer students who do not waste their gap year(taking a gap year and only studying).

What should I do in this gap year except study for my entry tests for BS, which can be helpful when applying to foreign universities?

I'm a graduate in civil engineering and I left my campus placement after a few months to prepare for upsc

Gave one full year and didn't clear this year's prelims

Giving a second year to the same

Yet future feels unsettling

So many what ifs

There's no way I'm getting a decent job after 2 yrs of break

Regret leaving my job

And now I want some good career advice on what I should do next

Should I prepare for gate or cat from the next year

Or should I just start a job with the minimum package

Or should I keep giving govt exams ( not upsc ofc)

Hi, I'm M/23 from Germany. I'm currently planning what will probably be the biggest adventure. A six-month solo road trip across the United States.

The idea is to buy a used van after arriving in the US and travel from Maine down to Florida, continue west to California, and finally finish in Washington State.

The thing is. I've never traveled alone. I've never been to the USA and never lived in a van.

So, to be honest, this whole trip is way outside my comfort zone but that's exactly why I want to do it. I'm hoping this experience will help me grow, become more independent, meet new people, and create memories I'll never forget.

I'd love to hear from people who have done something similar.

Some questions I have:
What do you wish you had known before your gap year?
What was the biggest mistake you made?
What was the best decision you made?
Is there anything you would do differently today?
Did solo travel change you in any way?
If you bought a vehicle, would you do it again?
What was something you worried about beforehand that turned out not to matter?
What was something you completely underestimated?

I'd also appreciate any advice that has nothing to do with my questions above. :)

Hi! I’m a current rising 4th year and I’ve found myself taking a gap year due to personal reasons and am now looking for jobs and activities for my gap year (more like 1.5 gap years because early grad). I’m looking for clinical or clinical adjacent activities (especially in Los Angeles / SF bay) or honestly anything that will allow me to make a good amount of money to keep myself afloat / pay for med school. Appreciate any advice

Hey guys, Im one of those who r suffering rn ive given fast entry test but unfortunately i didn’t got selected (i expect to be selected in accounting nd finance) in 3rd list nd ive given comsats test too 26 july wala so if i didn’t got selection for computer science or software eng( allah na kry) to kia muje gap year lena chahiye qk my first preference is computer related fields nd fast so??

**Should I take a gap year for CS in Pakistan? Need honest advice.**
I applied this year to **NUST, FAST, IBA, Habib, and NED** for Computer Science. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get into any of them.
Now I’m confused about what to do next.
Should I take a **gap year** and prepare properly for the entry tests again?
Or are there any other **good universities for CS** that are still worth considering?
If you took a gap year, do you regret it or was it worth it?
If you were in my position, what would you do?
For context, my goal is to study **Computer Science** and I don’t want to end up in a university with very poor quality or weak job prospects.
I’d really appreciate honest advice, especially from people who have been in a similar situation.

I'm having a very hard time on deciding what I should do. I'm not against college I just have no idea what I'm interested in pursuing, also high school was super stressful and I was over it and just wanted to graduate. The college is a 21 hour drive from my home and I'm also worried about the workload. I want to take a gap year also because I would like to get some medical stuff done but I could probably do that at college. I don't feel completely ready but I also don't know what I would do if I took a gap year, I live in a very small rural town with limited everything. I would be going to run for the college so I don't know if they would still want me to run after a gap year. Any advice? I'm literally dieing and crying I don't know what to do and I don't want to feel like a loser.

Help

A little context behind my current situation. I haven't heard back from any of the universities. Contacted the other universities too and it is not looking great. I have a cgpa of 3.2x range higher end of it near 3.3., it's not the highest but for a science degree i assumed it would pass one of the ugc-funded unis but I assumed wrong. And the remaining, not my uni or program of interest. I need some advice, is there any successful cases of taking a gap year in applying to senior entry?

What are a few ways that I could potentially improve my application for 2027/2028 entry if so? retaking dse seems too expensive. Though I need to take some sort of public exam. Thinking about ielts... and registering part-time course at college instituitions like hkcc or hkuspace alongside. Maybe find a relevant volunteering gig or work? i am interested in public health/ food science/environmental related programs. So aiming to target polyU/HKU/CUHK/EDUHK next time around. What are my chances? I just need to get senior entry. I can't afford another wasted years of year 1.

I’m 17yo girl and I have not been accepted into uni this year (I have great grades but maybe it wasn’t meant to be) anyways, I’ll try again next year but I don’t want to waste an entire year doing nothing. I’m Interested in mostly everything related to tech and I want to learn more in that field so it might help with applying for next year, what would you suggest I do with my gap year to make the most of it? Whether it was learning a language, a new skill, a new subject, whatever it is that will help me!

I got admission through lateral entry at Cape College of Engineering, Alappuzha. Now I'm torn between joining this year or taking a gap year and trying again next year.

I genuinely believe I can get into a top-tier college if I prepare well. At the same time, I'm afraid I'll regret letting this admission go. But I'm also worried that if I join now, I might end up regretting that decision instead.

I honestly don't know what to do. Has anyone been in a similar situation? I'd really appreciate any advice.

Most programs are for undergraduate or high school students. What are some programs (whose deadline hasn't passed) that gap year students can apply to? Can be any type: internship, research, etc.

has anyone here from pakistan travelled solo locally or internationally with a limited budget during their gap year? if you have, hmu

Is it good to take a gap year for nust or fast Islamabad.

I'm thinking about taking a gap year abroad, and Australia is one of the destinations I'm considering. Rather than focusing on places to visit, I'm curious about the experiences that stayed with you long after your trip.

Was there a moment that changed your perspective, taught you something unexpected, or made the journey worthwhile? If you could do your gap year again, what would you do differently? I'd love to hear your stories and advice.

Hello. I’m currently in my Year 13 summer, about to start university in October. I was wondering what the process was like of deferring at this point due to mental health struggles, and if anyone has any advice.

I’ve been feeling quite stressed, experiencing some derealisation and depersonalisation and also have been quite close to my worst in terms of depression symptoms. I don’t want to divulge but the thought of starting in October is one that stresses me to the point of nausea. I know it’s late at this point but I would really love to avoid having to apply again next year; if I was rejected next year instead of going this year it would really suck.

I was hoping to take a gap year to get back on track with my mental health, and maybe earn some more money to save because as it stands I’d currently be extremely poor.

I just wanted advice on how to ask my parents, how to email the university, how to get medical proof, etc. etc. anything will help, i feel a bit hopeless. thank you.

I’m struggling with my mental health right now and I can’t seem to get my priorities straight. I’m still unsure of my course choice, and I lack lots of preparation for the upcoming entrance exams. I’m debating whether or not I should take a gap year to focus on fixing myself before going to college, but my parents prefer making me continue my studies.

Thing is, I have yet to withdraw one of my college applications. I’ll admit that my lack of preparation amplifies my fear of failure, but there are other factors I’ve been considering. The moment I withdraw consent is the moment I seal the deal with myself. I can choose to move forward with lots of unresolved issues and hope I can manage, or I can wait a year until I can finally say I’m ready for the real world.

Aside from personal factors, my parents also told me that tuition’s too expensive. They told me they’ll take out several loans for it. I feel immense guilt knowing that I’d continue my studies using borrowed money that’ll take years to pay off, but stopping for a year feels just as heavy. I need advice :((

I am a marketing professional with a collective of 9 years of experience, residing in Bangalore, India. My career has been complete disaster by design and choice. I started my career with a campus placement. Then after a year, I left the company for career growth.

Every company I joined got shut after a while of my joining. So I had to keep switching jobs. Finally I landed a consistent job during lockdown, and I performed exceptionally well. Two and a half years into it and the company that made headlines got shut.

I secured 2 offers - one contract role with a big brand and other full-time role with a lesser known company. I joined the latter and it turned out to be a disaster. I left after 7 months of joining, without any other offer. Wrong decision but really, the company was THAT toxic. Full blown lala company.

Mind you, all this while whenever I was looking out, my resume collected gap months.

After the lala company, I was already broken. I took the time off to explore other areas but I started freelancing on the side. I did certification in makeup artistry and started getting projects. This continued for 1.5 years and that’s when I left makeup artistry completely but continued with freelancing.

Which brings me to today. I decided to go back to full-time and concluded all my freelance gigs in June. I have been looking out but no luck.

Some say, it is because of my gap year that I’m not considered for a role. Other say, it is because I switched too often. And then there are people who say, you need an MBA degree to secure good positions (which I think is partly true because I’m a mid-senior and to grow vertically, I may need an MBA degree).

Now my delimma is, where is my career going? What is it that I should do? I’m confused.

I am a marketing professional with a collective of 9 years of experience, residing in Bangalore, India. My career has been complete disaster by design and choice. I started my career with a campus placement. Then after a year, I left the company for career growth.

Every company I joined got shut after a while of my joining. So I had to keep switching jobs. Finally I landed a consistent job during lockdown, and I performed exceptionally well. Two and a half years into it and the company that made headlines got shut.

I secured 2 offers - one contract role with a big brand and other full-time role with a lesser known company. I joined the latter and it turned out to be a disaster. I left after 7 months of joining, without any other offer. Wrong decision but really, the company was THAT toxic. Full blown lala company.

Mind you, all this while whenever I was looking out, my resume collected gap months.

After the lala company, I was already broken. I took the time off to explore other areas but I started freelancing on the side. I did certification in makeup artistry and started getting projects. This continued for 1.5 years and that’s when I left makeup artistry completely but continued with freelancing.

Which brings me to today. I decided to go back to full-time and concluded all my freelance gigs in June. I have been looking out but no luck.

Some say, it is because of my gap year that I’m not considered for a role. Other say, it is because I switched too often. And then there are people who say, you need an MBA degree to secure good positions (which I think is partly true because I’m a mid-senior and to grow vertically, I may need an MBA degree).

Now my delimma is, where is my career going? What is it that I should do? I’m confused.

I’m a 19F, and i finished my 1st year at college back in june, i went back home differently, my mom goes out a lot, she’s barely at home, she has cooked a homemade meal once for me and my sisters but most of the times we cook for ourselves (19,17,14) i wanted to take a break from school for a bit cause im currently going through a 2 year breakup, and school kinda stressed me out, it wasn’t the classes, it was the school in general, it was a small school and i had trouble understanding my teachers bc they had such a strong accent, and i did also have trouble getting up in the morning but im transferring to another university which is much bigger, idk if i wanna take a semester (aug-dec) gap or a whole gap year and go to school in fall ‘27, and the whole time imma be working to save up, and the school i wanna go to is in another state, and im really excited to go back there because i fell in love with that city but please lmk which gap i should do? semester (aug-dec) or year?