Where to now?
You have spent the last few years in a blur
of books and booze but now the end of your
degree is drawing close. It is time to take a
deep breath and consider your next big steps.
Penny Sarchet runs through your options
Get out of here
You will have memorised your
entire subject, pulled numerous
all-nighters, met impossible
deadlines and sat through the
world’s most incomprehensible
lectures. You’ll deserve a year
out, right? Err… not necessarily.
You may feel like you have been working
flat-out but don’t expect any sympathy.
When it comes to seeing the world and
finding yourself, you are not owed
anything (unlike the government, to
which you now owe a chunk of change
for that degree). In tough economic times,
think seriously about whether a gap year
is a luxury you can afford.
If nightmares of unemployment, a stack
of rejections and endless temp work does
make you opt for a gap year, make sure you
do your research first. Planned properly and
executed with the right attitude, a gap year
could improve your employment chances.
“Gap years are generally well-considered,”
says founder of JobMarketSuccess.com,
Clare Whitmell. “Our economies and
corporations are becoming more global.
Prove that you can work and
communicate across different cultures
and generations and you’ll be an asset
to most companies looking to expand.”
When the “Gap Yah” YouTube parody
of upper-middle-class gappers went viral
last year, it exemplified the growing
perception of gap years – an opportunity
for posh young people to get drunk on
holiday under the guise of “charidee”. It
needn’t be like this. “Good planning and
a focus on constructive activities with a
view to personal development rather
2 | NewScientist | 22 October 2011
than aimless backpacking will help to
shake off the gap yah stigma,” says Alice
Baines from gap year company The Leap,
based in Marlborough. “Aim to pick up an
additional qualification, such as a new
language, or experience linked to your
future career.”
Baines says the number of graduates
taking year-long or summer placements
with her company has tripled since 2006.
With so many people having the same
idea, you need to work harder to show
employers how your gap year has made
you an excellent prospective employee.
Whatever you do, don’t let unexplained
gaps sneak onto your CV. “If a student
took a year out somewhere, they should
explain why and what they were doing,”
says Michelle Traynor, head of talent at
Detica, a subsidiary of BAE Systems based
in Guildford. “Taking a gap year is fine as
long as you do something productive.”
When entering the world of work, think
carefully about what you got from your
gap year and how it is relevant to the jobs
you apply for. “Assess what you learned in
terms of skills and personal development,”
says Whitmell. “Responding to the
challenges of living in a different culture,
working and communicating with others,
learning to be resourceful and flexible:
these are valuable, transferable skills.”
Finally, don’t have unrealistic
expectations. Advancing in your chosen
profession abroad will not necessarily
qualify you to enter at a higher level in the
UK. However, if you frame your experiences
well on your CV and at interviews, it could
help you swing that first crucial position.
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