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Focus only on your own growth.
GapYear is a time for growth and happiness.
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I first came across the term "gap year" in early 2013 when I was serving as a member of the youth special committee of the 18th Presidential Transition Committee. Park Kal-lin, the music director who served on the committee with me, raised this unfamiliar term one day. She described various experiences from her school days and emphasized that young people should take time to pursue diverse activities to discover their dreams and talents before becoming adults. After meeting Ahn Si-jun, the director of Korea Gap Year, I came to fully appreciate its necessity.
In many developed countries, including the United Kingdom, a significant number of students do not go straight to university after graduating from high school. They take a gap year to gain various experiences for about a year. Actress Emma Watson and even princes of the British royal family have taken gap years. Emma Watson, the lead actress in the Harry Potter films, announced a gap year before beginning studies at the prestigious Ivy League Brown University.
She chose to work as an intern at a fair-trade clothing company. This social enterprise, which uses organic fabrics and recycled materials to make clothing in order to help developing countries, works to create employment opportunities in those nations. Watson took part not only in unpaid photo shoots but also in costume design. She visited Bangladesh, where the production facilities are located, to promote fair trade. She evaluated this distinctive period of experience as follows.
"I discovered that I could help alleviate poverty through the fashion I love. It made young people, who are accustomed to fast fashion, aware of ethics and environmental responsibility. It was the best project for learning a great deal before starting university."
Prince William, second in line to the British throne, underwent ten weeks of military training during his gap year. He also taught students in Chile from time to time. Living with other young teachers, he did not shy away from doing the same tasks as they did, including cleaning toilets.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry experienced life as a cattle-herding cowboy in Australia during his 2004 gap year. In keeping with the legacy of his mother, Princess Diana, who championed the fight against AIDS, he also volunteered to serve AIDS patients in Lesotho, Africa.
Those who experience a gap year step away from parental care and experience living in a shared community.In the process of finding their own solutions to the problems they encounter, they can determine what to study and which skills to acquire, thereby forming their life plans. It is an experience of throwing oneself into the world and becoming an adult.
One of the greatest frustrations with young students today is hearing their answers about their dreams. Typically, when students discuss their future aspirations, they give brief, one-word responses limited to 'common nouns' like 'doctor' or 'teacher.' 'Adjectives and verbs' that could concretely explain why they have such aspirations rarely appear.
For example, I believe there should be a concrete goal such as "I want to be an internist who eliminates AIDS in Africa," rather than simply saying, "I want to be a doctor." Don't you think the one-word answer "I want to be a teacher" is insufficient to explain a dream? Gap year activities are desperately needed for adjectives and verbs to be attached concretely to one's dream. Finally, I have organized my own tips for successfully completing a gap year as follows.
Conduct systematic research.
Meet people who have experience with gap years to seek advice and gather various information through online meetings and similar channels.
Devote time and effort.
Plan and save money at least one year before taking a gap year.
Don't consider it a break in your career path.
Focus on accumulating skills and experience as an extension of your resume and career.
Meet a variety of people.
Meet people who can be useful in developing your future career and spend time building relationships with them.
Strive to develop your skills.
Depending on your career path, language skills are fundamental; hone related skills and competencies such as sports, mentoring, and various certifications.
It is important to reflect deeply on yourself through various experiences and challenges.
Based on that, you need to look deeply into yourself. So who you are and what you want to do,
You must find the passion that makes your blood boil when you do something. The process of finding work where you can pour all your passion
is the process of finding such work, which is exactlya gap year, it's a period of wandering.
- From music director Park Kal-lin's book 'Introduction to Youth Studies'.
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Lee Jong-sik
Author of the book 'Introduction to Youth Studies'