<p>One person who took four years off between high school and college told me, “College is wasted on the young.” In some instances, I would agree with her; some HS grads aren’t ready to take full advantage of the college environment while others are. Another person took ten years to go through the Canadian higher ed system by alternately working in foreign countries for a year and then using that money to pay for a semester/year of college. She had such a broad range of experiences by the time she graduated and got a lot out of college as a result.</p>
<p>Personally, I was much more motivated during grad school having worked for three years exploring various careers. Once I identified what I wanted to do, I really focused on learning as much as possible about the field.</p>