Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Learning Environments Gap year?

If it were me, I would apply and then try to defer; at worst, they'll say no, reapply, and at best, they'll say okay and you won't have to worry about applying during the gap year. I also think all this planning is wonderful and may itself have a helpful effect of not rushing in blindly to something you're not sure about. Certainly a much better approach than my blind stumbling into college without a clue how it would be or whether I even wanted to go, then having a disastrous first year and almost withdrawing. I muddled through, but it was not fun, and I was not a pleasant person to be around.

Also, for your viewing pleasure, a video with my favorite piece of music featuring an accordion (the laser dance from Ocean's Twelve):


I got a kid-sized one for DD when she was way too young for it, but I think they're pretty cool--maybe she'll take an interest some day and we'll dust it off.

I haven't read all of the posts yet so someone may have already mentioned this. Davidson has a good article on gap years here:

http://print.ditd.org/young_scholars/Guidebooks/Gap_Year_Guidebook.pdf

Sorry I don't know how to make it a blue link. Hope it helps.

I agree with Dbat - apply, then defer. Schools grant deferrals because their policy is to allow deferrals - they don't ask what you're going to do with that time.

I applied to college during my junior year, intending to enroll the following fall without having graduated high school, as a 16-year-old who would turn 17 in the first month or so of the fall semester. I was accepted everywhere except my first choice, who wait-listed me (but was notorious for never taking anyone from the wait list).

I sent deferred enrollment to my second choice school, and spent a gap year doing basically nothing but getting older, and reapplied early decision to my first choice, who took me.

IMHO, my gap year doing nothing was really less than ideal educationally. It doesn't sound like your DD will have the same problem.


Tangent: if the business model here is, "I'll sell stuff and donate the profits to charity / use it to fund my charitable purpose," be aware that the IRS will not approve NPO status for that. Income from selling stuff that's not specifically in furtherance of the charitable purpose is UBTI (that is to say, completely taxable) to tax-exempt entities, so getting a charitable umbrella will just create heartache and aggravation for the charity.

WoW and Minecraft... hmm... a one year major in those could up the nerd-creds... I'd say a year of gathering interesting skills would be cool. Write her first(?) fanfic novel. Learn seamstressing, hacker electronic skills, cartography, definitely the bagpipes (bonus if Carnegie Mellon is in the possible schools), and some random certifications in various computer areas for the grad school side job.

I don't know if you're familiar with the forum College Confidential (http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/pre-college-issues/) but there are a lot of these issues being discussed there for gifted kids - gap yr, applying or deferring, etc. Might be worth exploring.

I love all of the great ideas; thank you so much!

I spend way too much time on College Confidential, but there is some good advice on CC.

I know that your DD took the PSAT, but has she taken the SAT, ACT and SAT Subject Tests? If she plans to apply to schools next fall, she should have taken (or be scheduled to take) the standardized tests.

My eldest objected when I signed her up for the ACT (since those of us on the coasts still view the SAT as the "superior" test), but she was very happy with her score. Make sure she takes the ACT with Writing, as some schools won't accept with ACT w/o Writing.

Additionally, the more selective schools "recommend" two or three SAT Subject Tests. I think that the SAT Subject Tests may also help a kiddo who has skipped a few grades to demonstrate that she knows specific material (and not just that she can ace a general standardized test). AP tests may also help demonstrate mastery of material, but those scores are typically self reported on college applications, so they are not official.

Good luck with the college application process...my eldest is waiting for acceptances/rejections from the regular decision applications.

College Confidential is like crack for parents of college bound kids.

Yes. it. is.