10 15 20 VOLUNTEERING OVERSEAS: TO Gap YEAR oR Not TO Gap YEAR? [A Universities generally consider productive Gap Year students to be valuable members of their college community. As a result of the ‘tremendous formative experiences that have shaped their personalities and interests, such students tend to be more mature, confident, and purposeful about returning to academic life, Universities comment. favourably on students’ greater sense of identity, enhanced inter- personal and communication skills, and on their social skills as both potential team-players, and future leaders and managers. B Universities value all kinds of productive Gap Year activities, including paid or volunteer work, ‘community service, travel, language study, caring for sick family members, taking short-term courses, gaining work experience in a particular field, attempting extreme physical challenges like mountain- ‘climbing, developing skilsin a particular sport, fulfiling National Service obligations - or any combination of these relevant hands-on Gap Year experiences definitely enhance students’ chances of acceptance onto certain desirable caurses, such as medicine, veterinary medicine and law. © The willingness shown by many universities to defer a student's admission offer in order to enable them to take a Gap Year is testament to the high value that they place on the experience. Productive gap year students seem to interview much more successfully for highly selective courses. We have seen several cases of students being unsuccessful when they applied during their final year of High School, but then | being accepted when re-applying during a Gap Year, with considerably more relevant experience and purpose. D Apointto note, however, is that universities take really note of what candidates have actually achieved ‘during their Gap Year. So it doesn’t particularly enhance a student's chances of being accepted if they simply declare their intention to undertake great things. Anyone can intend anything. However if students are able to draw on their actual Gap Year experiences in their application essays or personal 25 statements, they are seen as bringing real-world experiences and sills to the table. E_ Some universities have even created their own bridging programs for students they have admitted. For example, Princeton and Tufts Universities are so supportive of Gap Years that they recently announced the launch of in-house programs that will provide financial assistance to students who would otherwise be unable to afford a Gap Year. 30F My final note on the value of a Gap Year is on the value to future employers, Anecdotally, we have heard from both our alumni and employers that a student’s Gap Year experiences are often an eagerly pursued topic during job interviews. Many employers want hard evidence of teamwork, communication and tanguage skills, leadership, innovation, or problem solving; A Gap Year can teach practical skills better than any academic course. And in today’s global, mobile world, these are the qualities that can make a 35 _ prospective employee stand out in interview. Mallika Ramdas Head of University Advising UWCSEA Dover |Ee Reading comprehension Thetextyouhavejustreadisan ‘In the essay above the paragraph headings A to F are missing. ‘essay. Reflect onthisintroduction Choose the correct heading from the list below for each paragraph. to essay writing before you answer the questions below. el Whatisanargumentativeessay? Te ening of ® Eas all Anessay is a piece of writing Sapte =a that analyses atopic o issue. Fundamentally, an essay allows ‘the writer to defend an opinion Ths salen.of EF what you can do ona particular matter. This € Postponing your ‘opinions called a thesis, se mppleaten Asuccessful argumentative ‘essay must achieve four things: 6 Onty acu 1 Anessay must address a “OPerience counts, Hi Learning Wife's 1 pisadvantages topic. An essay should be aa about “something” such ‘asvolunteering, taking ‘gap year, finding the right college course, peer 2 Anessay answers a question, for example, "What are the benefits of volunteering?” ‘or “What is the point of {going to university?” Answer the following questions. 3 “ Ae os 6. Which phrase in paragraph A explains why universities think gap form of an argument. yout students tay have great potential? Very broadly, an essay can " eer cReare Un eel 7. Which phrase in paragraph B explains why gap year students may Muara hecey ean ‘have greater chances of getting a place on very popular college courses? take abalanced view reflecting _. What two qualities allow previous applicants to successfully reapply ‘on both sides of an argument. for a course after a gap year? SB etree) 9. Which schemes show that certain universities have adopted the conclusion. concept of the gap year? teen ee ofthe essay 10. Which phrase in paragraph F suggests that some skills learned on . dtl ty oe eons a gap year are more useful than those acquired at college? ‘aclear topic? + Does the essay answer Eeetsictl Mu a question? ‘The essay writer wants to be even-handed in her assessment of gap year + Does the essay follow programmes. She mentions the advantages and a few ofthe drawbacks logical argument? for students. Go through the essay again and make lists ofthe five best + Does the essay havea arguments in favour of taking a gap year. Find evidence from the text for clear conclusion? each argument.