<p>I am currently a senior, and will graduate this year. For years now I have been planning a cross country roadtrip with a friend. I plan to travel the following year of highschool, leaving in early July of my senior summer, and returning early May of next year. After the trip I hope to enroll in college for fall semester, so basically i will be a year behind.</p>
<p>One HUGE question I have is when should I apply(this year or next year, or both), and will my trip and the time off from school affect college acceptance decisions?</p>
<p>My guidance councelor suggests that I begin to contact my prospective schools and ask about their opinions on the subject.</p>
<p>Any other suggestions???</p>
<p>most of the schools i’ve looked at say that you apply your senior year, like you normally would. Then, after you’ve been accepted, you ask to defer your enrollment for a year. I hear that colleges are generally pretty acomodating with this sort of thing. good luck</p>
<p>^ Yeah, apply your senior year & defer enrollment.</p>
<p>Not all schools allow you to defer enrollment – so you need to check on that with each individual school.</p>
<p>right, that’s what i figured.</p>
<p>thanks!</p>
<p>one more thing - do colleges generally tend to look down on this sort of decision? (by that i mean taking a year off to travel) does it help? or does it depend on the college?</p>
<p>some of the schools I’m currently looking at include - Rutgers NB, UMass Amherst, Appalachian U, SUNY Stony Brook, Rowen U</p>
<p>I don’t think that it matters for the schools that you have listed. Your list may change after travelling the country. Try to visit some colleges & universities along the way. I can recommend the University of Califonia at Santa Barbara as well as a trip along the Pacific Coast Highway. Also the Univ. of Wisconsin in Madison is worth a visit. Beware, however, that you may be very tempted to stay as both schools are beautiful & full of life. Additionally, try to visit Vancouver, British Columbia & Victoria on Vancouver Island. The Univ. of British Columbia in Vancouver has a fair number of American students.</p>
<p>^ Really interesting points! </p>
<p>I actually plan to do some exploring of British Columbia, traveling north from Montana and Glacier National Park, so I’ll be sure to look into the University of BC in Vancouver.</p>
<p>The Univ. of British Columbia is very well regarded. It will be more difficult for admission than any of your listed schools. Try to visit both Montana State Univ. in Bozeman & the University of Montana in Missoula. Gorgeous settings. Easy admission & outdoorsy types love it. Both UCSB & the Univ. of British Columbia border on the Pacific Ocean. Vancouver rarely gets below 32 degrees F & rarely above 78 degrees F. UCSB actually extends out into the Pacific Ocean. Santa Barbara is one of the most beautiful & elegant cities in America. Both UCSB & the city of Vancouver are well known for beautiful girls/women.</p>
<p>From what I’ve noticed, private colleges tend to be more accommodating than public colleges are about allowing time off after acceptance.</p>
<p>Sounds like some really key points. </p>
<p>I certainly will check them out, but I’m not so sure I want to go to a school so far from the East Coast. Right now, I’m looking to major in philosophy (an impractical major with little application to some, but I have looked into it), and from what I’ve reviewed, Rutgers NB has a great program for that. So right now I’m really leaning towards RU, which is not far from home. Although, there’s always the option of transferring after my first or second year, because I doubt I’ll fully enjoy my experience there.</p>
<p>Looks like I have alot more thinking to do.</p>
<p>Philosophy majors do well in law school. NYU has possibly the best philosophy undergraduate program in the country.</p>
<p>Yeah, philosophy is known to be a great gateway into many graduate schools. </p>
<p>Unfortunately though, I do not plan on getting into law school, nor do I have the money or grades to get into NYU haha.</p>