Help Your Teen Plan a Rewarding Gap Year

Many teens, especially those with ADHD, benefit from an academic break and successfully transition to college following their gap year. A gap year can provide additional time for emotional maturity, hands-on experience in a field of interest, and space to slowly master living on their own and caring for themselves.

The key to a successful gap year experience is ensuring that your young adult has something to do during this time—whether that includes working, volunteering, traveling, or enrolling in a transition program.

Gap year opportunities

Some teens prefer to spend their gap year working or volunteering in their field of interest. Others may look for opportunities that combine work or volunteering and travel. Skills gained from a gap year can help ease the transition to college and help a teen better handle living on their own.

Arlyn Roffman, PhD, suggests that teens who intend to pursue a gap year have a plan for what they will do during that year. Dr. Roffman is professor emerita at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and founder of Threshold, a transition program for teens and young adults with learning, developmental, and intellectual disabilities.

“A year ‘off’ holds little advantage for someone who needs structure in his or her life,” says Dr. Roffman. “But a year doing something purposeful, where he or she can build confidence and learn lessons about the ways of the world, can be highly beneficial.”

Threshold is one option among several such programs for those taking a gap year; many are based on college campuses. There are many different forms of transition programs, including those that focus on executive function skills, life skills, and helping teens find a career based on their interests.

Closer to home

Not all gap year experiences require international travel; there are many options available closer to home. SOAR, a nonprofit organization, provides unique experiences for teens and young adults with ADHD and learning disabilities through their gap year programs in Wyoming and North Carolina.

According to its promotional information, SOAR created their gap year programs especially for individuals with ADHD: “From learning to prepare healthy meals, to budgeting, to keeping personal spaces clean and organized, to learning to develop positive relationships, gappers are able to learn and grow through real life experiences.” Specialized programs like SOAR help teens with ADHD build social, executive function, and life skills which are usually not taught on college campuses.

You will want to discuss with your teen how the family will pay for a gap year. If a low-cost option is needed, your teen can ask their school counselor about internships or job opportunities, especially ones that are local to your family. Internships can give teens an idea of what working in a particular field is like, which can help them decide on a field of study or future career.

Help in creating a gap year plan

Most teens and young adults need help creating a gap year plan. Often, their high school guidance counselor can provide information about different options. They can also reach out to a gap year specialist, a professional who can help them explore opportunities.

While a gap year may not be suitable for everyone, the experience and skills learned can be valuable and help a teen with ADHD to better transition to college.

Excerpted from “Help Your Teen Plan a Rewarding Gap Year” published in Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD)’s weekly newsletter. Read the full article online for more details.

Source: CHADD | Help Your Teen Plan a Rewarding Gap Year, https://chadd.org/adhd-weekly/help-your-teen-plan-a-rewarding-gap-year | © 2024 CHADD

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