Examentrainers

Now students take gap year at 16

BY JONATHAN THOMPSON

		FIRST THERE was a gap year between graduation
		and work. Then came a break between school and
		university.
		The gap year between school and university
5		has become an accepted and even encouraged
		part of a successful, well-rounded education as
		young adults seek 12 months of experience,
		inspiration, cash and often, adventure. At the
		moment there are roughly 200,000 UK students
10		taking some kind of gap year across the world.
		Now a new phenomenon is emerging among
		British students: the early gap, with more and
		more pupils taking a year off between GCSEs1)
		and A-levels2).
15		Greg Iceton of Thornaby, near Middlesbrough,
		16, is a student taking an early gap before he begins his A-levels. He achieved very
		good results at GCSE, but is glad he did not continue straight on to A-levels. “It is like
		you are dropped into a siphon: school, college, university,” he said. “You are in a
		treadmill. There’s no decision-making. It does not give you any choice. When you are at
20		school, you do not appreciate it for what it is. I was sick of studying and wanted a rest. A
		year out is a really good opportunity to see life for what it is.”
		Greg has just finished five months’ work, raising the £1,000 he needs to travel to
		Ghana with Raleigh International in February. “It is a real sense of achievement, raising
		the money and going on the trip,” he said. “It is one constant confidence boost.
25		Everyone has said I have grown up a lot. Now I am really looking forward to my A-
		levels, I see them as an intellectual challenge. I was sick of school, but now you could
		say that I am ready to face the world.”
		Educational and careers experts were recently keen to emphasise the potential
		benefits of the pre-A-level gap year. “There does seem to be the start of a trend towards
30		people taking an early gap year,” said David Thomas, chief executive of CRAC, the
		Careers Research and Advisory Centre. “At this moment numbers are small, but
		definitely growing. A gap year at this point gives young people an opportunity to find out
		about their own preferences and aptitudes before choosing their A-levels.”
		Taking this year gives young people an invaluable early responsibility for managing
35		their financial affairs. Getting a taste for the real world at 16 is a very good idea. It is an
		opportunity to understand the workplace and yourself. It gives you the ability to focus, to
		find the right path and to understand that the world really is your oyster. People are
		beginning to escape from the hamster wheel of life.

noot 1  GCSE: The exam British pupils take at 16.
noot 2  A-levels: The exam British pupils take at 18 that qualifies them to go to university if they want to.