are gap years good ideas

Oldernotwiser

jayme1 wrote: »

if you have no money and he has no money then how is he going to pay for uni? sure the tuition feee will be a loan and you may get a grant, most of which will go on accomodation, so how will he pay for food and the other university pleasures? perhaps a gap year to make the money needed is a good idea.

If he's from a low income family he'll receive a the tuition fee loan, the maintenance loan, the maintenance grant and the university bursary. Many people manage perfectly well on these and he will presumably get a job if he can't.

Mrs_Money

I teach in FE with this age group and have heard about and seen many gap year plans.
The student must be very focussed to get the most out of a gap year, it must have some relevance to their future aims (both at uni and beyond).
It doesn't sound like your son is focussed and I agree with other posters here - if he and you have no money and he has no job - he won't be going anywhere. Talking of jobs - he may find it quite hard at the moment to get anything - where I live even supermarket jobs are difficult to get - especially for youngsters with little or no experience.
IMHO he needs to go straight to uni - but, actually, is that really what he wants? Some students opt for deferral and a gap year because they actually don't really want to study any more, or they don't feel passionately enough about a particular subject to study it for 3 years. I have 3 sons, (all now in their 20s) so I know a little of what the OP is going through!
I know the alternatives are not good in this economic climate, but I think the education system is guilty of a relentless conveyer belt attitude to our children - GCSEs, A levels, then University - just like a sausage machine where they are spat out at the end, still not quite sure what they are going to do!
Anyway, if he just sist down and thinks about the practicalities of all this - he may change his mind!

JAYk_2

If your son spent the year working be it part or full time or set up his own business that would be better. As you've stated already, no money to travel, not that committed.

gentlepurr

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

I don't think that he should make a decision about this until it's clearer what's happening with raising fees otherwise it could be quite an expensive gap year!

I was at a University talk last Sunday and the speaker said that any increase in tuition fees wouldnt come into force until Sept 2012, so if your son goes straight to Uni he will be on, and stay on, the old Uni fee's, wheras if he has a gap year he will come under the new ones.

Thats what i was told on Sunday anyway, dont know if it has changed since

gp xx

adelight

Does he want a gap year or does he just not know if/what he wants to do at uni? It's probably the latter!
If he doesn't know what he wants to do then a "gap year"(aka, getting a job/training and trying out the real world of work NOT going on holidays) is a good idea, provided he's not thinking about a maths-related degree. I have friends doing psychology and english who regret taking a year out to work and travel because they forgot a lot, forgot how to study and it's taking them a long time to get back into learning.

7891368

As highlighted by the above poster, it can be other disciplines that suffer.

The whole concept of having to study when you've able to do what you want for 12 months is phenomenal.

The 4 month holidays are more than enough for me