Everyone follows a different path in life. Some may choose to move from one level of education to another, while others may decide to take a gap year before starting university. Taking a gap year is a “growing trend” and it is important that young people understand the pros and cons. Lynch (2020) estimates that in the UK, on ​​average 200,000 to 250,000 young people take a gap year each year – there was an increase of 9.4% between 2019 and 2020. This could be due to a variety of reasons . to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay It is common for young people to take a gap year in order to find a job. They can work as many hours as they want, without the stress of studying, in order to earn money. It also gives them the opportunity to add value to their CV with skills that can only be learned in the working world. Research by McWhirter (2016) shows that 80% of young people work in the UK at some point during their gap year. She also specifies that “it allows young people to raise funds and it also gives them the opportunity to learn how to budget.” On top of that, they will gain experience in a work environment and learn practical skills that university cannot teach. They will also practice and improve existing skills such as time management and teamwork. Additionally, they will be more comfortable with more independence and “enter college with more responsibility and maturity,” as a Fresh Student Living (ND) article identifies. All of these skills can be used to help them when they decide to pursue college. However, one of the downsides of taking a gap year is that it can be very expensive and, without proper planning, the costs can quickly add up. As The Leap (2018) found, this means that only 10% of young people are able to fully fund their own gap year and research by Lynch (2020) found that “1 in 5 young people rely on “ bank of mom and dad' to be able to finance their gap year". For those who finance their own gap year, Knoll (2012) argues that this can leave them with even greater student debt, which could add to their stress related to the payment of their university studies In addition, for the 20% of young people whose year is financed by their parents, this means that they risk lacking responsibility, independence and maturity. parents, this may affect their ability to achieve things through their own hard work. If this is the case, at the end of the gap year, these young people will lack motivation. funding their child's gap year, this prevents them from wasting the year and instead allows them to participate in valuable experiences. Alternatively, another benefit of taking a gap year is that it gives young people the chance to travel and, as Direct Travel Insurance (2016) states, experience new cultures and broaden their cultural perspectives by living the life of a local in a different country. Lynch (2020) finds that 140,000 young people spend their year traveling. This gives them the opportunity to learn, explore the world and meet new people. These experiences play an important role in helping young people grow and find themselves and it is a key time to discover their individuality. He teaches.