<p>I don’t think this will disadvantage you at all, it might even show greater maturity on your part. I know someone who applied to colleges during her gap year, she didn’t apply to any super-selective schools but got into nearly everywhere she applied and got significant merit aid at a lot of places. This wasn’t necessarily because of the gap year, though it does show initiative on the part of the student, it was probably also because of good grades and scores in high school. Still, I really doubt it’ll hurt you in anyway.</p>