Should High School Graduates Take A Year Off Before Starting College

Graduating from high school and starting college is a stepping stone in anyone’s life. Some people consider taking a break in between the two phases. I for one think that one should definitely take a break after graduating from high school. Education up to the high school level is generalized and before starting college one needs to decide the major course of study for their higher education and that is not an easy task, one should definitely take a year off in order to decide.
With college, starts a new chapter of a person’s life and once college life starts one cannot spare themselves for anything else until it is over. This period of time between high school graduation and joining college, can be utilized in doing recreational activities e.g. traveling or taking a job, that one couldn’t do otherwise because of continuous pressure of studies. 
The gap between high school and college is the only major break that one gets in their life time, before retirement of course, after 12 years of continuous schooling it is the first time that one gets time off before starting another 6 years of specialized education. “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” this saying fits perfectly in this situation, taking a break once in while is necessary for leading a healthy and productive life.
One can arguably say that taking a year off before college is not at all important and one should start college immediately as it is a complete waste of time to take a year off. Because taking a break may distract one from studies and result in an even longer delay or maybe even permanently suspend ones plans of joining college.
However, the importance of taking a break cannot be ignored, in order to clear one’s head and plan one’s future, it is extremely important as it is not something you get to do every day. Getting into college requires selecting a specialized field of study which you have to major in and pursue for the rest of your academic life and then employ it for the rest of your professional life. So it is a really critical choice and can certainly not be made overnight. In order to make the right decision, one needs to carefully explore their options, evaluate their outcomes, weigh the possibilities and then finally formulate a plan for their future.
In conclusion, one can say that taking a year off after high school is beyond doubt a reasonable and valid option and should be seriously considered.

By Robaid Malik