Taking a break from college?

billwill

Would love some input from impartial outside observers on this.

I currently live in America. I am in college, about halfway through my degree. I'm not enjoying life right now. I have good friends, a good social life, etcetc, and I'm pretty sure I'm not depressed, but life feels stagnant right now. That's probably the best way to put it. I feel like I'm not going anywhere. On top of that, I live in Las Vegas and I hate it.

I've been wanting to travel for a long time now. I just now realized, though, that I have the financial means to do so. For a college student, I have a pretty nice job (I fuel airplanes part time at the local airport [started July], and since it's union I get paid pretty well). I've managed to save quite a bit of money, and continue to do so. I expect to have maybe five grand saved by next summer.

Two years ago I visited New Zealand, and I fell in love. I was only able to stay for a few weeks, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Basically, I want to take some time off of college to go stay in New Zealand for a bit. I actually applied for a "working holiday" visa a few weeks ago, and the next day it was accepted. So now I have approval to live in New Zealand for a year.

Is this a terrible idea? I plan on finishing college (actually, I'm a year ahead of all of my friends anyway, courtesy of taking college classes in high school, so taking a break would just put me in line with them). Any thoughts or things that I may not have considered would be appreciated.

Thanks.

adytum

It's going to be a lot more difficult to go back to college if you take a year break to go play around.

You'll also enjoy the playing around a lot more when you're two years older, wiser, and finished with your undergraduate education.

LadyM

Have you considered transferring to a college that's not in Vegas?

If you take this route, check on what effect it will have on your financial aid, especially if you have any scholarships.

"Gap years" aren't necessarily a bad idea, but plan carefully and budget very carefully.

billwill

I have considered transferring, but unfortunately if I left Vegas the out-of-state costs would be exorbitant. Right now I am paying my own way through college with no loans, and I would like it to stay that way.

HK5

I think studying abroad would be a better option than taking a year off. You could still work towards your degree while getting to do something completely different. No reason you couldn't do it in New Zealand, and get a part time job while you're there to use that visa.

These guys helped me apply to, and get accepted into, veterinary school in Australia from the U.S and they were pretty helpful. http://www.australearn.org/

ceres

Have you considered studying in New Zealand rather than just taking the year off? What are you actually planning to do while you're there?

Honestly just taking a year off in the middle like this doesn't necessarily sound like the best idea to me for a number of reasons, but if you can actually go to school while you're there then that's a bit different. I can tell you from experience though... if you take a long break from school it can be very difficult to go back.

billwill

I have considered studying in New Zealand, but the costs would unfortunately be too high. And the study abroad program here is too expensive as well.

That_Spoony_Bard

I'd say stick it out and travel when you are done with undergrad. Keep doing what you're doing (saving and keeping up with your schooling), maybe take a small trip or two (keyword being small, if you can afford it) and by the time you graduate, you'll have a nice savings to use to travel.

billwill

I've been under the impression that you're supposed to go from college to job right when you graduate (or at least try). Won't it look bad if I take a long break in between the two?

ceres

Well, you haven't really answered the question of what you're going to DO while you're living there. If you plan to have a job, you can do that just as easily if not more so once you've graduated, and it should take care of that whole gap year thing.

billwill

I really enjoy hiking and kayaking. Anything outdoors, really. I was planning on doing all the "Great Walks of New Zealand", and maybe settling in Wellington for at least a few months, since Abel Tasman (my favorite place in the world) is pretty damn close to it.

NotYou

Alright, first off, how the devil do you plan to survive for an entire year, in any part of the globe, with only 5 grand? That's a 2 month trip tops if you're cheap about it. But I guess your plan is to fly on over, rent an apartment, and land a job right? Are high school educated americans in high demand in new zealand? What's the unemployment rate for them right now?

This link: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Unemployment-Rate.aspx?Symbol=NZD
says it's just under 7 percent, which isn't good, but isn't god awful either. However, for your age group, it's probably well above 10% based on some other links I looked at like this: http://www.emigratenz.org/unemployment-ethnic-regional.html

But alright, let's say you fly on in, crash at a hostel and just stretch your money as far as you can. Your days will be filled with applying to jobs, because looking for work is a full time job in of itself, and you won't be able to do anything extravagant or spend your money having fun out on the town because you'll be worried of running out before you find a job.

So let's say you find a job in the 8 weeks or so you have until your money runs out (hell, it took some of my college graduate friends over a year to find their first job, but no matter), or maybe you've planned ahead and gotten the job setup in advance, so you have nothing to worry about. What do you think your life will be like? You'll be working 9-5 (or whatever hours your job sets you up with), and since I doubt you'll find a cushy high paying gig, you'll probably be just scraping by. You won't have much to spend on extravagant outings, and even then, you'll only have the weekends. You'll be a working man now.

Secondly, I'm all for someone quitting college for a year to pursue something important to them but you just sound like you wanna goof off.

So, go goof off. But do in for the summer, not a year. You'll have money saved up, so go take a vacation and travel the globe a bit. Or do it after you graduate like most college students.

adytum

To expand on my earlier post..

I took a gap year after college. It was one of the best things I've ever done. I was able to afford it by working full time through college. It did not affect my ability to find work when I came home.

What it did affect was my ability to take the daily grind seriously. I'm glad I did it after college as I was able to appreciate what I was doing and seeing a lot more, and I doubt I would have had the motivation to continue schooling had I done it before I graduated.

As it was, I took a book so I could study for a licensing exam. That got thrown out pretty quickly as it was taking up too much room in my bag.

Deebaser

billwill wrote: »

Would love some input from impartial outside observers on this.

I currently live in America. I am in college, about halfway through my degree. I'm not enjoying life right now. I have good friends, a good social life, etcetc, and I'm pretty sure I'm not depressed, but life feels stagnant right now. That's probably the best way to put it. I feel like I'm not going anywhere. On top of that, I live in Las Vegas and I hate it.

Suck it up and finish your degree. You'll be "going somewhere" in two years.

Hachface

Instead of taking a gap year in the middle of your time at college, why not take two trips in the summers?

finral

Study abroad seems like a great idea, and you could always try and get a scholarship if it is too expensive. If you were willing to look at places other than New Zealand, study abroad in Asian countries can be pretty cheap. Beyond that, a year of travel after college is pretty comon in practically every western country other than the US, and I would think it would open up opportunities rather than limit them.

kaliyama

UNLV looks dirt cheap. I would consider taking on the modest student loan burden for a semester abroad, as it will both recharge you for vegas and be, assuming you get a stafford or similar federal loan, the lowest-interest loan you will ever receive. Does it mean you'll be paying it off in the future? Yes. But the opportunity cost of not going abroad when you are young, don't have a job or any responsibilities, and can enjoy yourself is huge. The odds of you being able to do a similarly structured trip later is much less likely.

Fartacus

Eh, I think it sounds fine except for the logistics of having money for a year in NZ.

I've got ~18 credits to my name (if I were on track it would be more like 60), but I've gotten some amazing jobs in politics, traveled the country, and generally enjoyed myself tremendously.

College is always there. Being at a place in your life where you can just pick up and do new stuff isn't. I say take advantage of your youth and forge some new experiences. Actually, on the topic, my friend who works in health economics recently told me about a bunch of studies she's seen that say that the best way to spend your money such that it directly impacts your happiness quotient/life satisfaction is to spend money on experiences (totally the opposite of what most people would advise you to do). Basically forming new positive memories seems to have a strong long-term impact on happiness, whereas saving or buying things results in rapid acclimation and no real gain in satisfaction.

So go for it, and if anyone questions you, say the OECD told you so.

NailbunnyPD

Don't take a break if you can avoid it. Finish it. If you even return, it will be much more difficult. I speak from experience.

When I took a break from college, I set goals for myself. Pay off most of my student loans and save cash for going back. Go back ASAP. Pay out of pocket when I returned.

I ended up staying out much longer than I had hoped, if only because I was comfortable not attending classes. Don't make that mistake. I also did not have the cash I had hoped for. I got started on life and bought a home, so my finances don't allow me to attend more than one class per semester.

Seriously, don't do it if you can avoid it. Finish now and get it behind you.

Fallingman

Most people that come to NZ work while they are here.
Get a temp office job, or there's a whole economy around outdoorsey work (farm labour etc). The jobs will never pay as well as a full time position, but it allows people to cover some of their costs for a while as they just enjoy living in a new city.

In the short term, if you want to just shake things up a bit... Are you living at home? I didn't enjoy myself at Uni until I went flatting.

EggyToast

Fallingman wrote: »

Most people that come to NZ work while they are here.
Get a temp office job, or there's a whole economy around outdoorsey work (farm labour etc). The jobs will never pay as well as a full time position, but it allows people to cover some of their costs for a while as they just enjoy living in a new city.

In the short term, if you want to just shake things up a bit... Are you living at home? I didn't enjoy myself at Uni until I went flatting.

Is that still the case? I had a friend who spent 3 months earlier this spring in NZ and AU, with the plan to get one of those working visas. She read that they were much easier to get for Europeans, though, and that there was a glut of them — so she just went for vacation. And when she got there (and did most of the same things she would've done otherwise, minus working) the other people she bumped into who were there on those "young people working visas" said that there weren't really any jobs because the economy was bad, so they moved around a lot trying to find a place to work as much as possible.

NZ is great but just up & going in the middle of college with no real plans for working or living make me think this is more a "I hate my life and am depressed and in a rut" post rather than trying to really figure out the logistics. Just flying down to NZ is going to cost the OP over $2k, I believe.

Fallingman

Hmmm. Well, to be fair, I've been out of the loop for a wee while. I assume that there's still a fair bit of temp work...? Visa's tend to be a "tit-for-tat" deal. i.e We can roam through the commonwealth pretty easily, so we are fairly liberal with the working holiday Visas. I have no idea about coming from the states.

Also, it depends on the experience that the OP wants. There are pretty cheap ways to get around. There's also setups where you can go and do some labour on a farm for free room and board. Some peple are into that sort of thing. But if you want to rent a flat, buy a vehicle etc - then it can get a little more costly.

Honestly though - the number of people that do this in NZ, there are whole communities of people you could ask. I just don't knwo where they are any more.

LadyM

billwill wrote: »

I've been under the impression that you're supposed to go from college to job right when you graduate (or at least try). Won't it look bad if I take a long break in between the two?

I don't think it's that unusual for college graduates to go hiking through Europe, live in Australia, spend a year in a hippie commune, etc. I don't think potential employers would frown on it or whatnot.

adytum

LadyM wrote: »

billwill wrote: »

I've been under the impression that you're supposed to go from college to job right when you graduate (or at least try). Won't it look bad if I take a long break in between the two?

I don't think it's that unusual for college graduates to go hiking through Europe, live in Australia, spend a year in a hippie commune, etc. I don't think potential employers would frown on it or whatnot.

It's extremely unusual in the US, but as I said I haven't had any problems.

I work in a field with a lot of demand, though.

Demerdar

billwill wrote: »

Would love some input from impartial outside observers on this.

I currently live in America. I am in college, about halfway through my degree. I'm not enjoying life right now. I have good friends, a good social life, etcetc, and I'm pretty sure I'm not depressed, but life feels stagnant right now. That's probably the best way to put it. I feel like I'm not going anywhere. On top of that, I live in Las Vegas and I hate it.

I've been wanting to travel for a long time now. I just now realized, though, that I have the financial means to do so. For a college student, I have a pretty nice job (I fuel airplanes part time at the local airport [started July], and since it's union I get paid pretty well). I've managed to save quite a bit of money, and continue to do so. I expect to have maybe five grand saved by next summer.

Two years ago I visited New Zealand, and I fell in love. I was only able to stay for a few weeks, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Basically, I want to take some time off of college to go stay in New Zealand for a bit. I actually applied for a "working holiday" visa a few weeks ago, and the next day it was accepted. So now I have approval to live in New Zealand for a year.

Is this a terrible idea? I plan on finishing college (actually, I'm a year ahead of all of my friends anyway, courtesy of taking college classes in high school, so taking a break would just put me in line with them). Any thoughts or things that I may not have considered would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Get out of Las Vegas. Go on this trip. I lived and grew up in Las Vegas and left as soon as I went to college. It was the best thing I ever did. All of the friends I had in high-school who stayed there have just.. stagnated. Go. Get out and experience living in a new place. You'll probably never want to come back to Las Vegas.

At least, that's how it went for me.

Note that this is just general advice about leaving Las Vegas (no pun). As far as your trip goes, you might want to consider what everyone above has said. It's not cheap and quitting school for a year is hard to do, as it is really easy to never come back. I would consider transferring to another school, unless you are on that Nevada scholarship thingy where tuition is paid for if you had a good GPA in highschool (which is probably the case). Look into some Western State exchanges, it's called WOUIE. Essentially a whole bunch of states on the West Coast swap students and only pay 1.5 times the in state tuition. It's an option.