News Highlights

'Gap year' rare among Mankato high school graduates

Taking a year off between high school and college may be a growing trend national­ly, but in Mankato it's rare indeed.

2007-12-18
By Robb Murray, Free Press Staff Writer [published in The Free Press, Mankato, MN, 12/18/2007]

Taking a year off between high school and college may be a growing trend national­ly, but in education-rich Mankato, the so-called “gap year” is a rare specimen.

Counselors at both Mankato East and West high schools say they’ve encountered few students over the years whose journey included plans for a 12-month break from the rigors of educa­tion.

In fact, only one has counseled a student who thought about doing it. Katie Ojanpa, guidance counselor at East, said 2007 graduate Chris Koski had pon­dered taking a year off to do some volunteer work and build up his resume. Instead he enrolled at Tulane University in New Orleans.

Taking a year can be a good thing, experts say, provided the student has goals and a plan in place. But with so many options locally for higher education, it’s just as easy for graduating sen­iors to find what they need close to home.

“We’re seeing that maybe even more now with South Central College becoming a community college,” Ojanpa said.

When South Central College expanded its mission it brought a much-needed option to the local higher education mix. South Central is a place where students can take general education class­es that will transfer to any other school in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. Apprehensive students can get a taste be ready for.

Bill Frederickson, a guid­ance counselor at Mankato West, said having so much higher education choice close allows students to avoid “going away” to college if they’re not comfortable with it.

“Our kids don’t even have to go out of town,” Frederickson said. “And many don’t want to; they’ll change what they want to do so they can stay in town ... The activ­ity of leaving town requires another level of planning and, for some, gives them another reason to not go to school.”

Ojanpa said that in most cases where a student takes a year off, it’s a year that wasn’t planned.

Some find out they didn’t get accepted to the only school to which they applied for admission. Others are forced to take a year off when they realize they simply can’t afford it, and they didn’t get enough financial aid to make it work.

Mankato schools, however, have a high percentage of kids who go on to higher edu­cation. Frederickson said last year’s data show that 84 per­cent of its senior class had planned on attending either a two- or four-year school.

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