Taking a Gap Year Journalist Lucy T

Taking a Gap Year
Journalist Lucy Tobin considers whether taking time out before university makes sense in the current economic climate.
Once upon a time the gap year was the preserve of rucksack-schlepping, sandal-wearing teenagers who would doss around South America or Asia for a few months before university. No longer. Today's competitive job market means gappers must ensure that a year out will leave behind a sprinkling of CV fairy dust.
That doesn't mean it has to be boring. Whether you're considering a gap year before or after university, or much later on in life, there are plenty of ways to make it boost your employability while having fun. Spend a few months doing work experience and making contacts in a field that interests you before jumping on that plane to Thailand. Test out different industries. Turn that business idea you've been talking about into reality. If it takes off, it could lower your student loan, or save you the need to find a "real job". If not, it will show future employers your initiative.
Don't be put off if you haven't been incubating a gap-year dream since birth: there's still time to arrange a year out at very little notice. My gap year, for example, was a last-minute rush. I had applied for politics at university, decided very late on that I wanted to change to English, and when I called up the university to enquire about this, I was told I'd have to take a gap year.
I'd spent the summer celebrating finishing school with friends, so when September rolled around, I had no plan or job, or, consequently, any cash to travel with. Eventually, after a month sending a blitz of ignored emails, I managed to wangle a job in publishing, then a journalism position at a prominent daily newspaper. It was there I decided on my future career - all because I'd suddenly had to take a gap year. Ask people about their year-out experiences and it will become clear how many options there are (although don't ask too many questions: gappers tend to go on a bit). While I was commuting into London every day, my friends were doing radically diverse things. One sold make-up at Harrods before saving vultures in Africa; another promoted classical music to kids, yet another was an intern in parliament, and two travelled around Asia for a year.
But - as your family and friends will undoubtedly remind you when you mention a gap year - these are tough economic times. Graduate employment is down: a quarter of graduate job vacancies have disappeared and the competition for each job has grown, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters. The job market doesn't look like it will improve overnight, so use a gap year to help yourself stand out.
You don't need to give up ideas of travelling - a year is a long time, and you might not have the chance to go away for that long again. But think about combining a trip with six months' work - or study. If there's something you've always wanted to do but been held back by a lack of time, a gap year is the time to do it. Learn to drive, type or cook. Go to hairdressing school and build up a side business in cutting friends' hair. Or take a distance-learning course in your spare time.
Voluntary work abroad will benefit you and your CV, as well as the community or project you're helping. You may well be able to improve your language skills too - employers love linguists. Make sure you choose a reputable company; do plenty of research, and ask any friends for personal recommendations. A good starting point is the Year Out Group, whose members sign up to a code of practice. It lists gap-year companies and the locations of gap-year fairs, which many firms attend. If you're staying at home, there are lots of rewarding and enjoyable charity work options.
It's worth thinking about what you want to get out of your gap year. At the start of mine, a fellow gapper and I listed things we wanted to do: big plans, like achieving at least three months' relevant work experience, but also things like making our way through a list of 50 films to see before you die, and partying with friends at local universities to make sure we had the chance to meet lots of new people. Try to have fun on your gap year, whatever you do. It's an incredible opportunity to see the world, work out what you want to do with your life, and help you on your way to achieving it. Good luck - and have a great time.

Kết quả (Việt) 1:

Tham gia một năm khoảng cách Nhà báo Lucy Tobin sẽ xem xét cho dù dùng thời gian ra trước khi đại học ý nghĩa trong khí hậu kinh tế hiện nay. Một lần khi một thời gian năm khoảng cách là khu bảo tồn rucksack schlepping, dép-mặc thanh thiếu niên những người nào doss xung quanh thành phố Nam Mỹ hay á cho một vài tháng trước khi trường đại học. Không còn. Thị trường việc làm cạnh tranh ngày nay có nghĩa là gappers phải đảm bảo rằng một năm ra sẽ để lại đằng sau một sprinkling CV cổ tích bụi. Mà không có nghĩa là nó đã được nhàm chán. Cho dù bạn đang xem xét một năm khoảng cách trước hoặc sau đại học, hoặc nhiều sau này trong cuộc sống, có rất nhiều cách để làm cho nó thúc đẩy việc làm của bạn trong khi có vui vẻ. Chi tiêu một vài tháng làm kinh nghiệm làm việc và bạn làm cho địa chỉ liên lạc trong một lĩnh vực quan tâm trước khi nhảy trên máy bay đến Thái Lan. Thử nghiệm trên ngành công nghiệp khác nhau. Bật ý tưởng kinh doanh đó bạn đã nói về thành hiện thực. Nếu nó cất cánh, nó có thể thấp hơn cho vay học sinh của bạn, hoặc lưu bạn cần phải tìm một công việc"thực sự". Nếu không, nó sẽ hiển thị sử dụng lao động trong tương lai của bạn sáng kiến. Không được đặt ra nếu bạn đã không ấp một giấc mơ khoảng cách năm kể từ khi sinh: vẫn còn thời gian để sắp xếp một năm trong thời gian rất ít. Năm khoảng cách của tôi, ví dụ, là một cơn sốt phút cuối. Tôi đã áp dụng cho các chính trị tại Đại học, đã quyết định rất muộn vào mà tôi muốn thay đổi sang tiếng Anh, và khi tôi gọi lên các trường đại học để hỏi thăm về việc này, tôi đã nói với tôi sẽ phải mất một năm khoảng cách. I'd spent the summer celebrating finishing school with friends, so when September rolled around, I had no plan or job, or, consequently, any cash to travel with. Eventually, after a month sending a blitz of ignored emails, I managed to wangle a job in publishing, then a journalism position at a prominent daily newspaper. It was there I decided on my future career - all because I'd suddenly had to take a gap year. Ask people about their year-out experiences and it will become clear how many options there are (although don't ask too many questions: gappers tend to go on a bit). While I was commuting into London every day, my friends were doing radically diverse things. One sold make-up at Harrods before saving vultures in Africa; another promoted classical music to kids, yet another was an intern in parliament, and two travelled around Asia for a year. But - as your family and friends will undoubtedly remind you when you mention a gap year - these are tough economic times. Graduate employment is down: a quarter of graduate job vacancies have disappeared and the competition for each job has grown, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters. The job market doesn't look like it will improve overnight, so use a gap year to help yourself stand out. You don't need to give up ideas of travelling - a year is a long time, and you might not have the chance to go away for that long again. But think about combining a trip with six months' work - or study. If there's something you've always wanted to do but been held back by a lack of time, a gap year is the time to do it. Learn to drive, type or cook. Go to hairdressing school and build up a side business in cutting friends' hair. Or take a distance-learning course in your spare time. Voluntary work abroad will benefit you and your CV, as well as the community or project you're helping. You may well be able to improve your language skills too - employers love linguists. Make sure you choose a reputable company; do plenty of research, and ask any friends for personal recommendations. A good starting point is the Year Out Group, whose members sign up to a code of practice. It lists gap-year companies and the locations of gap-year fairs, which many firms attend. If you're staying at home, there are lots of rewarding and enjoyable charity work options. It's worth thinking about what you want to get out of your gap year. At the start of mine, a fellow gapper and I listed things we wanted to do: big plans, like achieving at least three months' relevant work experience, but also things like making our way through a list of 50 films to see before you die, and partying with friends at local universities to make sure we had the chance to meet lots of new people. Try to have fun on your gap year, whatever you do. It's an incredible opportunity to see the world, work out what you want to do with your life, and help you on your way to achieving it. Good luck - and have a great time.