in some countries young people are encouraged to work or travel for a year between finishing high school and starting university studies.
discuss the advantages and disadvantages for young people who decide to do this.
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It has been increasingly common nowadaysfor high school graduates to take a year off for working and travelling before enteringcollege. This phenomenon has gained its popularity in rich students as well aspoorer ones, and has become a heatedly-debated topic which received virtuallyas much applause as criticism.
A variety of factors may account for thepopularity of taking a gap year, the realization of the limitation of schooleducation being the most significant one. It has been universally acknowledgedthat proper education is essential for one’s success, but it must also be notedthat schools and universities can provide one with no more than professionalknowledge and skills, and only by merging into society can one be fullydeveloped. Through a year of working and travelling, a student can not only broadenhis horizon and enrich his life experience, but also be more maturepsychologically and cope more proficiently with the various situations about to be encountered inuniversity.
However fascinating it sounds, it is undeniablethat it can be dangerous for a fledging freshman to face the social junglealone. Also there is misgiving that once well adapted into a workingenvironment, one may no longer be able to focus on non-profiting academicissues.
These considerations are by no meansgroundless, but I do hold the opinion that its advantages overweight thedisadvantages. The gap year provides students with an opportunity to learn whatcannot be taught by teachers and professors. Just like the birds which mustlearn flying by practicing, a student cannot be fully prepared for a career unlesshe spends some time experiencing it.