Some young people look forward to a year of travelling, a ‘gap year’, before they begin work or university and see it as a chance to broaden their horizons. For others this is an expensive waste of time. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of gap-year students who finish high school but

instead

of continuing to higher education levels, they travel for an extensive period. For these young people, it is a valuable opportunity to broaden their understanding and knowledge about the world. There is a common opposing view that states the year is considered wasted in terms of time and money. Even though I sympathize with the latter viewpoint, I would support the former one. There are two main reasons why people are against

this

idea.

Firstly

, when high school graduates take a year off, they are supposedly behind their peers.

This

means by the time they graduate, their former classmates have already had one year of work experience, leaving gap-year takers having less chance of landing a well-paid job.

Secondly

, high schoolers, even if they work, cannot accumulate enough finances to pay for all living and travelling expenditures on their own.

Therefore

, on the one hand, they leave an unnecessary financial burn for their family;

on the other hand

, their trips would rather be short-haul and limited in activities. For these reasons, much of travelling is asserted to be unsensible.

On the contrary

, I would argue that the experiences are beneficial for the young. After twelve years of exhausting academic training, juveniles should be able to see the world on their own terms.

This

helps them develop a more rounded view of life and establish the right attitudes throughout their adulthood. As students travel by themselves, they learn to be independent and take matters into their own hands,

such

as paying some of their travel bills.

Consequently

, they will end up appreciating things and people that they may have taken for granted before. There are reports stating that students who have taken a trip are more determined and driven in their studies and later their work than those who do not. In conclusion, after a long time of being drowned in standardized tests and exams, high school graduates should be given a chance to learn about the world on their own. Despite all the disadvantages discussed, I believe it is still worth taking the trip since the benefits can be felt throughout their lives.