By Jarrod Thacker

Taking time in between graduation and graduate school may be a good option for students.

UK students learned about the positive benefits of a gap year Monday, at the James W. Stuckert Career Center presentation on gap years.

A gap year refers to the period of time in between the completion of secondary education and higher education or professional development, said Theresa Mickelwait, the Career Center senior assistant director.

During the presentation, Mickelwait discussed with students the various reasons one would need a gap year. Attendees talked about many examples, which involved gaining versatile types of experience and clarifying life objectives.

Reasons that Mickelwait provided included: establishing residency in another state for tuition savings, becoming more fiscally secure, preparing for graduate school entrance exams, volunteering locally and internationally, and simply having fun.

Ashlei Hardin, a nursing senior, reflected on the gap year concept before the presentation began.

“I just want to work for a year,” Hardin said. “I can use that time to study for the GRE, take the GRE and then apply. I feel like it’s really difficult to do all that your senior year and still worry about taking your own tests.”

Other students voiced their opinions about taking a gap year.

“I just want to just see the options that are available,” Corinne Price, an international studies senior, said. “Because now all I’ve really thought of is grad school, working or teaching abroad … so I just want to see if there is anything else I haven’t thought of.”

Business management senior Lee Hundley’s words resonated the same idea.

“I want to take some time off,” he said. “I want to exhaust all of my options before I make my decision. I just want to make sure I’m doing the right thing.”

UK students also considered the Catch-22 logic paradox of going straight from the undergraduate level to the graduate or professional level.

“What I’ve noticed about some grad school applications is that some of them want you to have two to three years’ experience, but the jobs that give you the experience want you to have the degree,” Price said. “It’s like being stuck in the middle.”

Callie Thomas, an accounting and Spanish junior, added to that saying she wants to learn about her options because law schools prefer students with more than just undergraduate experience.

The group closed on the topic of issues that would prevent students from doing a gap year and the fears associated with it. They also discussed ways to prepare that would avoid the problems.

Mickelwait suggested techniques that deal with summarizing goals into an action plan, one in which one could control the important variables at work, like housing, transportation and budget.

Above all else, students should be deliberate in their actions in regards to their academic or career plans, regardless of their plans, said Lenroy Jones, the Career Center associate director for employers/corporate relations.

UK Students interested in career consultations can visit the James W. Stuckert Career Center on Rose Street for assistance or go to uky.edu/careercenter.