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American Gap Association National Alumni Survey
REPORT
Report Prepared by Nina Hoe, PhD
[email protected] | 215-410-0960
This survey ofAmericangapyearexperienceswasconductedin2014-15andreachedhundredsofgapyearalumni.Whilelimitationsdoexist (seeLimitations),overall,thisstudyrepresentsthemostcomprehensiveexplorationofgapyearexperiencesofAmericanstodate.
HighlightsInclude:Ø 81%ofallsurveyparticipantssaidtheywereverylikelytorecommendtakingagapyearto
someoneconsideringit.Ø Thegeneral experienceof “beinginanewanddifferentenvironment”wasthemostmeaningful
elementoftheoverallgapyear experienceØ HavingawiderangeofexperienceswasalsoimportantØ Gappers experiencedthegreatestimpactsrelatedtotheirpersonalgrowthanddevelopmentØ Thosewho participatedinagapyearhad,onaverage,shortertimesto graduationandhigher
GPAsascomparedtonationalnorms.Ø Gapperscurrentlyexperiencehigherlevelsofjob satisfactionandcivic participationas
compared tonationalnorms.2
TableofContents
Topic Page#
TableofContentsandExecutiveSummary 2
AmericanGapAssociationandResearch 3
TheNationalSurveyofGapYearAlumni 4
ParentalBackgroundsandGapYearTaking 5
WhereTheyWent(PrimaryDestinations)andWhen TheyWent 6
MotivationsfortakingaGapYear 7
GapYearProgramParticipation 8
GapYearNetPromoterScore 9
GapYearExperiences 10
GapYearExperiencesandNPS 11
ReportedGapYearOutcomes 12
GappersinCollege 13
GappersandCollegeOutcomes 14
GappersNow 15
SummaryandConclusions 16-7
Limitations, Recommendations,andMethodologicalNotes 18
ExecutiveSummary
AmericanGapAssociation(AGA)“TheAmericanGapAssociationisa501(c)3nonprofitaccreditationandstandards-settingorganizationforGapYearsthatisrecognizedassuchbytheUSDepartmentofJusticeandtheFederalTradeCommission.WecontinuetoadvancethefieldofGapYearsbycollaborativelypioneeringresearchonitsbenefits,aswellasservingasaninformationandadvocacyhubforuniversityadmissionspersonnelandeducationalcounselors.OurmaingoalistofocusonaccreditationsothateverystudentsigningonwithanAGAaccreditedorganizationwillhavethebestandsafestexperience.Wewillfocusonaccreditingorganizationsratherthanindividualsorindividualprojectsites.”
ResearchCommitteeTheResearchCommitteeoftheAmericanGapAssociation,headedbyKarlHaigler,hasoutlinedthefollowingpurpose,goals,andobjectives:Purposes:
• SupportAGA’sprimarymission--toincreasenumberofstudentstakinggapyears• ServeastheprimaryvehicleforensuringAGAasthecentralhubanddefactovoiceofthegapyearmovementthroughits“accesstoreliabledata”
• ContributetotheAGAStandardsandAccreditationProcesstopromotequalityandstudentsafetyaswellasprovidingaquantifiablefoundationforinstitutionalandgovernmentalsupportofgapyears
• Inform(andbeinformedby/responsiveto)workofotherAGAcommittees• Evaluateorganizationalmodelsthatcanfundongoingresearch
Goals:AGAStrategicPlanactivitiesinclude:• Increasingaccesstocrediblegapyearexperiencesforlow-incomestudentsbyextendingthenumberofaccreditedmemberorganizations,
• ProvidingeducationforallGapYearorganizationsdesignedtoensurestudentshavesafe,challengingandmeaningfulexperiences,
• Promotingthiseducationalmodeltostudents,families,educationalcounselors,anduniversities,andexpandingresearch.
Objectives:• A.StudentSuccess:Validateprogramoutcomes’contributiontostudentsuccessinbothcognitiveand“non-cognitive”evaluations.Theseinclude,forexample,suchcomponentsasGPA,grit,resilience,empathy,andself-awareness.
• B.MarketDevelopment:(1)Providemacro-dataonthegrowthofGapYeartobenchmarkdevelopmentandhelpmakethecasetothepublic.TheseincludedatafromAGAAccreditedPrograms,non-AGAPrograms,andbroadertrendsfromsurveysandpublicdatabases(e.g.Google,NACAC,NCES,etc.)aswellasongoingannualsurveysofGapYearorganizations(thatcurrentlyaskforenrollmenttrends,charitablegivingactivities,andstudentsatisfactionthroughtheuseoftheNetPromoterScore).(2)SupportandexpandpioneeringresearchinGapYearoutcomesinpartnershipwithfieldresearchersaswellasacademicresearcherssuchasTempleUniversity(InstituteforSurveyResearch),theSocietyfortheStudyofEmergingAdulthood,etc..“e.g.TheNationalAlumniSurveydatawillallowustocompareallvarietiesofGapYear(structuredvs.unstructured,post-graduatevs.post-secondary,etc.)aswellasexploredetailssuchasdebt-to-incomeratioascomparedtothenationalaverageandemploymentoutcomesversusnon-Gappers.”(3)Supportthegrowthofthefieldbydevelopingresearchtosupportthe“caseforaGapYear”forparenteducation,highschoolcollegecounseloreducation,andthebroaderpromotiontoeducationmarkets.
• C.ProgramIntegrity:Serveastherepositoryof“bestpractice”informationfromgapyearprogramsinvolvingprogramevaluationstrategies,staffdevelopment,studentdevelopmentmethods,educationalscaffolding(suchascurricula,pedagogicalmodels,etc.)andresourcestosupportthese.
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AmericanGapAssociationandResearch
Background:OnAugust28th,2014,theAmericanGapAssociationlaunchedthefirstever,nation-widecomprehensivestudyontheeffectsofGap/BridgeYearexperiences.ThesurveywasdesignedandhostedbyNinaHoe,PhDattheInstituteforSurveyResearchatTempleUniversity.Itwasdistributedthroughsocialmedia,programleadersandworthofmouth,andremainedopenfor11months.Ittookapproximately15minutestocompleteandparticipantswereenteredintoaraffletowin1of20$50AmazonGiftCards.TheSample:Thesurveyallowedrespondentstoanswerwhicheverquestionstheychoseanddidnotforceresponses.Asaresult,thetotalsamplesizeforeachquestionvaries.Overall,1,002peopleclickedonthelinkforthesurvey.Ofthem,863wereeligibletotakethesurvey–meaningthattheygaveconsenttobeapartofthestudyofgapyearalumni,hadparticipatedinagapyearaccordingtothedefinitionoutlinedinthesurveyintroduction,werecitizensoftheUSorCanada,andwereovertheageof18.Intotal,558peoplecompletedtheentiresurvey.Asageneralnote,inthisreportallfindingsapplyonlytothegroupofgapperswhorespondedtothissurveyandcannotbegeneralizedtoallAmericangappers. Aspreviouslydescribed,participatinginthesurveywascompletelyvoluntary. Thedemographicandbackgroundinformationofthesurveyparticipantsisreportedbelow.
TheNationalSurveyofGapYearAlumni
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ParentalBackgroundsandGapYearTaking
EstimatedParentalIncome
Freq. %%Parental
Contribution*Lessthan$25,000 24 3% 38%$25,000- $49,999 43 6% 46%$50,000- $74,999 75 10% 53%$75,000- $99,999 65 9% 55%$100,000- $124,999 78 11% 51%$125,000- $149,999 47 7% 57%$150,000- $174,999 36 5% 68%$175,000- $199,999 37 5% 60%$200,000+ 131 18% 71%Notsure 187 26% 63%Total 723 100% 59%
Thetabletotheleftshowstheestimatedlevelofparentalincomeatthetimeofthegapyear,andthenthepercentageofgapperswithinthoseincomecategorieswhoseparentscontributedfinanciallytotheirgapyear.• Forexample,18%ofgappersestimatedthattheirparentsincomewasmorethan$200K.Andofthe,71%saidtheirparentscontributedfinanciallytotheirgapyear.
Ø Thereisasignificantpositiverelationshipbetweenestimatedparentalincomeandparentalcontribution.
• Thehighertheparentalincome,themorelikelyparentsweretocontributefinanciallytothegapyear.
Parents’Highest LevelofEducationMother Father
Freq. % Freq. %Donotknowparent'seducationlevel 16 2% 44 6%Didnotcompletehighschool 10 1% 12 2%Highschooldiplomaorequivalent 39 6% 35 5%Vocationalortechnicaltraining 19 3% 16 2%Lessthantwoyearsofcollege 26 4% 27 4%Associate'sdegree 25 4% 0%Bachelor'sdegree 238 34% 195 28%Somegraduateschoolcoursesbutnodegree 26 4% 28 4%Master'sdegreeorequivalent 201 28% 184 26%Professionaldegree(M.D.,D.O.,D.D.S, 81 11% 111 16%Doctoraldegreeorequivalent(Ph.D) 27 4% 56 8%
• Thereisasignificantrelationshipbetweenparents’levelofeducationandwhetherornotgapperswereinfluencedbytheirparentsorpeerstotakeagapyear.
o Agreaterproportionofgapperswhoseparentshadhigherlevelsofeducationwerealsoinfluencedbytheirparentsandpeersintheirdecisiontotakeagapyear.
Ø Forgapperswhosebothparentshadlessthanabachelor’sdegree,only10% reportedbeinginfluencedbyparentsandpeersintheirdecisiontotakeagapyear.
Ø Forgappersforwhomatleastoneparenthadabachelor’sdegree,18% reportedbeinginfluencedbyparentsandpeersintheirdecisiontotakeagapyear.
Ø Forgappersforwhomatleastoneparenthadagraduatedegree,30% reportedbeinginfluencedbyparentsandpeersintheirdecisiontotakeagapyear.
Parental EducationandGapYearInfluenceχ2(2,N=708)=22.308,p=.000
NeitherhasBachelor’s
AtLeast1Bachelor’s
At least1GradDegree Total
Parental EducationLevel 13% 25% 62%
Parent/PeerDidNot InfluenceDecision 90% 82% 70% 76%Parent/PeerDid InfluenceDecision 10% 18% 30% 24%
24%ofallgapperssaidtheirparentsorpeersinfluencedtheirdecisiontotakeagapyear– butparents’educationmatters!
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[*=χ2(9,N=716)=20.362,p=.016]
Thetabletotherightshowseducationalbackgroundsofgappers’parents.ParentsofgappersarehighlyeducatedØ Ofgappers,81%
hadmothersand82%hadfatherswithabachelor’sdegreeorhigher
• (Censusshows~30%ofAmericanshaveabachelor’s)
Wheredidtheyspedthemosttime?Where TheyWent(PrimaryDestinations)
When TheyWent
• 77%tooktheirgapyearbetweenhighschoolandcollege
• TheU.S.,Ecuador,Israel, India,andAustraliawerethemostcommondestinations reportedamongstgappers
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MotivationsfortakingaGapYear
Ofthegapperssurveyed…ü 92%wantedtogainlifeexperiences andexperiencepersonal
growthü 85%wantedtotravel,seetheworld,andexperience other
culturesü 81%wantedabreakfromthetraditional academic track
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GapYearProgramParticipation63%ofrespondents(n=455)hadparticipatedinatleastonecommercialgapyearprogram,leaving37%whodesignedanindependentgapyear.Alsoseveralgappersparticipatedinmultipleprograms,soatotalof546programexperienceswerereported:
SESandProgram-TypeSelection
• GapYearprogramswereclassifiedintofivecategories:ü Individualü Teamü Domesticü Internationalü Accredited
EstimatedParentalIncome
ProgramType Lessthan$100K
$100-200K
Morethan$200K
Notsure
Overall
InternationalNo 52% 43% 32% 39% 42%
Yes 48% 57% 68% 61% 58%
AccreditedNo 78% 68% 50% 59% 65%
Yes 22% 32% 50% 41% 35%
Estimatedparentalincomewasrelatedtogappersselectinginternational andaccreditedprograms.
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GapYearNetPromoterScore
WhatisNPS?TheNetPromoterScore,orNPS®,ismetricusedintoassesscustomerloyaltyandsatisfaction.Howlikelyisitthatyouwouldrecommend[company,organization,experienceX]toafriendorcolleague? AppliedtoGapYearExperiences, surveytakerswereaskedthefollowingversionoftheNPSquestion:
“Basedonyourownexperiences,howlikelywouldyoubetorecommendtakingagapyeartosomeonewhohasexpressedinterest?”
Inthecontextofthissurveyforgapyearalumni:• Promoters(score9-10)aregapperswhoareavidsupportersandpromotersofgapyear
experiences,andarehighlylikelytoencourageotherstotakeagapyear.Theiradvocacycouldservetofuelthemovementthroughtheirpromotionandsupport.
• Passives(score7-8)aregapperswhoweresatisfiedwiththeirgapyearexperiences,butmaybemoreunenthusiastic,andnotfullysupportthemovementorrecommendgapyearexperiencestoothers.
• Detractors(score0-6)arethosegapperswhowereunhappyandmayimpedegrowththroughnegativeword-of-mouth.
NPSiscalculatedbytakingthepercentageofpeoplewhoarePromotersandsubtractingthepercentageofpeoplewhoareDetractors.
Promoters,85%
Passive,11%
Detractors,4%
Overall,theaveragescoregivenwasa9.43outofapossible10.
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“Ascoreof75%ormoreisconsideredtoberelativelyhigh.:-http://www.marketresearchworld.net/content/view/3674/78/
SurveyRespondentNPS
AmericangapperssurveyedherereportedanNPSof81%!Freq. %
Promoters 478 85%Passives 62 11%Detractors 20 4%NPS 81%
GapYearExperiences%ofGappersWhoReportedHavingtheFollowingExperiences
SeemethodologicalnotesonCorrelation:*p<.05,**p<.01,***p<.001
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Correlation(strengthofrelationship)betweenExperiencesandNetPromoterScore(NPS)
Strongpositiverelationshipbetweengap
yearexperienceandNPS
Positiverelationshipbetween
experienceandNPS
Norelationshipbetween
experienceandNPS
Negativerelationshipbetweenexperience
andNPS
GapYearExperiencesandNPSNumberofActivitiesMatters!• Thenumberofactivitiesgappersparticipatedinwaspositivelyassociatedwiththeirgiven
NPS.Eachadditionalactivityparticipatedinwasassociatedwitha0.06-pointhigherNPS.GoingAbroadisPowerful!• Spendingtimeabroadwasassociatedwitha0.93-pointhigherNPS.• Inaddition,therewasapositivecorrelationbetweenthenumberofmonthsspentabroad
andtheNPSscoregiven(r=0.12**).• Forthosewhoparticipatedinaprogram(n=455),havingparticipatedinaninternational
programwasassociatedwith0.25-pointhigherNPS,whilehavingparticipatedinadomesticprogramwasassociatedwitha0.33-pointlowerNPS.
However,therewasalsoarelationshipbetweenhavingspenttimeabroadandthenumberofgapyearactivitiesoneparticipatedin.Onaverage,gapperswhospenttimeoutsideoftheUSparticipatedin15activities, whilethosewhodidnotleavetheirhomecountryduringtheirgapyearparticipatedinanaverageof9activities.Whencontrollingforthenumberofactivitiesparticipatedin,theeffectofaninternationalprogrambecameinsignificant.
Thetablebelowshowstheproportionofgapperswhoparticipatedinactivities overall,ininternationalandindomesticprograms,alongwiththecorrelationofthoseactivitieswithNPS
Gap YearActivity%
OverallCorrelationwithNPS
%IntlPrograms
%Domestic
Beinginanewanddifferentenvironment 95% 0.18*** 97% 81%FormingrelationshipswithothersintheplacesIvisited(localfamilies,children,newfriends)
89% 0.10** 93% 63%
Formingrelationshipswithmypeers(alsoonagapyear) 86% 0.20*** 89% 66%Participatinginadventureactivities 81% 0.18*** 85% 50%Havingunstructured/down-time 81% 0.05 84% 58%Travelingstructured,withagroupand/orleader 78% 0.22*** 84% 34%Formingrelationshipswithstafffrommyprogram 80% 0.13** 83% 58%Volunteering/doingservicework 76% 0.14** 80% 55%Journaling 69% 0.17*** 78% 44%Managingmyownbudget 73% 0.20*** 76% 60%Travelingindependently 69% 0.08 74% 35%Keepingintouchwithfriendsandfamilyusingsocialmedia 65% 0.03 69% 44%Participatinginculturaltrainingorcourses 63% 0.11** 68% 26%LivinginaHomestay 58% 0.20*** 65% 8%Meditating,doingyoga,orexploringspirituality 61% 0.07 64% 47%Participatinginenvironmentalactivities 58% 0.19*** 61% 44%Takinglanguagecoursesortraining 55% 0.11** 61% 2%Supportingacause 44% 0.11** 40% 34%Partying 38% -0.02 40% 27%Takingcoursesnotforcredit 35% 0.02 38% 10%Interning 33% 0.07 37% 10%Takingcoursesforacademic credit 28% 0.03 29% 21%Working(forpay) 24% -0.10* 21% 47%
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SeemethodologicalnotesonCorrelation:*p<.05,**p<.01,***p<.001
TheImpactsAhigherproportionofgappersreportedimpactsfallingintothe”personal”category,followedby“Career”and“Citizenship.”Fewergappersreported“Academic”impacts.Thisfindingisnotsurprisinggiventhethatthemostcommonlyreportedreasonsfortakingagapyearweretogainexperiences,personalgrowth,andtotakeabreakfromthetraditionalacademictrack.
OverallGapYearImpactScoreAn“overallgapyearimpactscore”wascreatedforeachgapper.Thescorewascalculatedasthemeanofalloftheratingsonthe23items.Mean=4.06 (scalefrom1– 5where1=stronglydisagreewithimpactand5=stronglyagreewithimpact.)
Highlights• EstimatedparentalincomewasNOTrelatedtotheimpactsgappersexperienced.• Higheroverall‘GapYearImpact”scoreswerepositivelyassociatedwith:
• ParticipationinInternationalProgramsandTeam-BasedProgramsØ Gapperswhoparticipatedininternationaland/orteam-basedprogramsexperienced
higherimpacts.• NumberofmonthsspentonGapYear
Ø ThelongertheGapYear,themoreimpactwasexperienced.• NumberofmonthsspentoutsideoftheU.S.duringtheGapYear
Ø ThelongertheamountoftimespentoutsideoftheU.S.duringtheGapYear,themoreimpactwasexperienced.
• Numberofweeksspentdoingmorethan30hoursofcommunityserviceØ Themoretimespentparticipatingincommunityservice,thegreatertheimpact.
ReportedGapYearOutcomes
Thesurveyaskedgapperstoindicatehowmuchtheyagreedordisagreedwithaseriesofstatements.Allstatementsbeganwith,“MyGapYear…”The23statementsfellinto4categoriespertainingto4areasofGapYearImpactonone’slife:Personal,Career,Citizenship, andAcademic.
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GappersinCollege
Betweenhighschoolandcareer(nocollege),2%
Duringcollege/postsecondaryeducation(tookaleaveofabsence),
16%
Aftercollege/postsecond
aryeducation(beforestarting
graduateschoolorcareer),5%
Plannedtoattendaparticular
college/university,52%
PlannedtouseGapYeartoapplytoandfigureoutcollege
plans,25%
Betweenhighschoolandcollege/postsecondaryeducation,77%
GapYearTimingandPlans
Ofthe16%whotooktheirgapyearduringcollege,• 52%returnedtothesameinstitution• 37%transferredtoadifferentinstitution• 11%decidednottocontinuetheirpostsecondaryeducation
InstitutionTypesandAttendance
Full-Time Part-Time Total
4-year 93% 45% 90%
2-year 7% 39% 9%
Less-than-2-year 0% 15% 1%
21%reportedhavingstudiedabroad,whileanadditional 49%reportedplanning tostudyabroad!
TransferringinCollege
Trans-fered
Aftercollege(beforestartinggraduateschoolorcareer)
Betweenhighschool&college
Duringcollege(tookaleaveofabsence)
All
Yes 30% 16% 45% 22%
No 70% 84% 55% 78%
• Thereweresignificantdifferencesrelatedtoundergraduatetransferstatusdependingonwhenstudentstooktheirgapyear.Thosewhotookagapyearbetweenhighandcollege/postsecondaryeducationhadthelowesttransferrate(16%),whilethosewhotookaleaveofabsencehadthehighesttransferrate(30%).
• 34%ofalltransferstudentshadtransferredmorethanonce
Ofthe52%whoplannedtoattendaparticularcollege/university:• 12%reportedthattheydid
somethingdifferent
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SelectedCollegeMajors CollegeGPAsFreq. %
Biology, PhysicalScience,Math,ScienceTechnology 55 11%Business 29 6%Computer,InformationSciences 8 2%Education 13 2%Engineering,Technology 14 3%GeneralStudies&Other 8 2%HealthCareFields 22 4%Humanities 71 14%OtherApplied 79 15%SocialSciences 119 23%Undecided 104 20%
Freq. %A(4.0) 56 13%A- (3.7) 182 42%B+(3.3) 89 7%B(3.0) 30 21%B- (2.7) 23 5%C(2.0) 1 0%C+(2.3) 5 1%C- (1.7) 2 0%D(1.0) 2 0%D+(1.3) 2 0%F(below0.7) 1 0%Cannotremember 22 5%Collegedidnotawardgrades 17 4%
GappersandCollegeOutcomes
TimetoGraduation
Overall,105surveyrespondentsgavesufficientinformationabouttheirdatesofbeginningandgraduatingfromcollege.Anadditional72participantshadnotyetgraduatedbutprovided“expectedgraduationdates.”• Themediantimetograduationforgapperswas3.75years,withanaverageof4.07years
(forthe105college-graduated).• Themedianexpectedtimetograduationwasalsoexactly3.75years,withanaverageof
3.95years(forthe72gapperswhohadnotyetgraduated).Note:The20136-yeargraduationrateforfirst-time,full-timeundergraduatestudentswhobegantheirpursuitofabachelor'sdegreeata4-yeardegree-grantinginstitutioninfall2007was59percent.Thatis,59percentoffirst-time,full-timestudentswhobeganseekingabachelor'sdegreeata4-yearinstitutioninfall2007completedthedegreeatthatinstitutionby2013.(NCES,http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cva.asp)
Theaveragetimetograduationforgappers is4years!
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JobSatisfaction CivicEngagement
Freq. %VeryDissatisfied 12 4%Dissatisfied 30 10%Satisfied 177 60%VerySatisfied 76 26%Total 295 100%
86%weresatisfiedorverysatisfiedwiththeirjob!
“AccordingtothecurrenteditionofTheConferenceBoardJobSatisfactionsurvey,andfor
theeighthstraightyear,lessthanhalfofUSworkersaresatisfiedwiththeirjobs.”
63%reportedvotinginthe2014Novemberelections!Accordingtoanarticle intheWashingtonPost,
“just36.4percentofthevoting-eligiblepopulationcastballots”intheNovember2014
election.
89%reportedparticipatingincommunityserviceinthelastmonth!AccordingtotheBureauofLaborStatistics(BLS),“Thevolunteerratewaslittlechangedat25.3percentfortheyearendinginSeptember2014
GappersNow
(n= 309) Full-time
Part-time
Total
Lessthan$25,000 31% 85% 66%$25,000- $49,999 30% 2% 12%$50,000- $74,999 10% 1% 4%$75,000- $99,999 7% 0% 3%$100,000- $124,999 8% 0% 3%$125,000- $149,999 2% 0% 1%$150,000- $174,999 1% 0% 0%$175,000- $199,999 2% 0% 1%$200,000+ 2% 0% 1%Notsure/Prefernottosay 7% 12% 10%
EarningsBasedonEmploymentStatus
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309gapperswereemployed(eitherfull-timeorpart-time)
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SummaryandConclusions
Area1:BackgroundFactorsØ Gapperswhotookthesurveyweremajorityfemale,White,nativeEnglishspeakers,andfrom
familieswheretheestimatedhouseholdincomewasover$100,000peryear.Inaddition,whereasapproximately10%ofAmericanhighschoolersattendprivateschools,35%ofgappersdid.ThesurveyedgapperswerealsomajorityA-studentsinhighschoolandhadhigherhighschooltestscores(SATandACT)thannationalaverages.
Ø 24%ofallgapperssaidtheirparentshadinfluencedtheirdecisiontotakeaGapYear- butparents’highestlevelofeducationwasrelatedtowhetherornottheyinfluencedtheirgappers.Whereasonly10%ofgappersforwhomneitherparenthadearnedabachelorsdegreewereinfluencedbytheirparents,18%ofthosewithat leastoneparentwithabachelor ’sdegreeand30%ofthosewithatleastoneparentwithagraduatedegreewereinfluencedbytheirparents.
Ø Also,asignificantlyhigherproportionofgappersfromhigherincomebackgroundsreceivedfinancialsupportfromtheirparentsduringtheirgapyear.
Conclusion1:BecausethisreportoutlinesthepositiveeffectsassociatedwithtakingaGapYear,thesedemographicfindingshighlighttheimportanceof:Ø Recruitingmoremale,non-Whiteandlower-incomestudentstoparticipateinGapYears.Ø Providingparentsfromallbackgroundswithadequateinformationtosupporttheirpotential
gappers.Thisstudyhasshownthatparentswithlowerlevelsofeducationareless likelytoinfluenceastudentsdecisiontotakeagapyear.Becauseoftheknownbenefits,theseparentsmaybespecificallytargeted.
Area2:GapYearExperiencesØ ThethreemostcommonlyreportedreasonsforwantingtotakeaGapYearwere(1)wantingtogain
lifeexperiencesandexperiencepersonalgrowth;(2)wantingtotravel,seetheworldandexperienceothercultures;and(3)wantingabreakfromthetraditionalacademic track.
Ø Forgapperswhoparticipatedincommercializedprograms,estimatedlevelofparentalincomewasrelatedtothetypesofprogramstheyselected. Specifically,ahigherproportionofgappersfromfamilieswithanestimatedincomeofmorethan$200,000peryearparticipatedininternationalprograms,andprogramsthathadbeenaccreditedbyAGA.
Ø Overall,theNPSofthe surveytakerswas81%- andwaspositivelycorrelatedwiththenumberofGapYearactivitiesparticipatedin,aswellasspendingtimeabroadandhavingparticipatedinaninternationalprogram.
Conclusion2:Ø GapYearprograms,orsupporters/facilitators(suchasparentsorcounselors- forthosestudentsnot
participatinginaprogram)shouldaimtooffergappersawiderangeofexperiencesandactivities.Whengoingabroadisnotfeasible,programsshouldattempttofosterexperiencesthatallowgappersto“beinanewanddifferentenvironment”- whichiscorrelatedwithNPS.Inaddition,programsorfacilitatorsshouldprioritizecreatingenvironmentswheregapperscanformmeaningfulrelationshipswithbothpeersaswellasthosedifferentfromthem.
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SummaryandConclusionsArea3:ImpactsØ Ahigherproportionofgappersreportedimpactsfallingintothe”Personal”category,followedby
“Career”and“Citizenship.”Fewergappersreported“Academic”impacts.Thisfindingisnotsurprisinggiventhethatthemostcommonlyreportedreasonsfortakingagapyearweretogainexperiencesandpersonalgrowthandtotakeabreakfromthetraditionalacademic track.
Ø Thereweresignificantdifferencesrelatedtoundergraduatetransferstatusdependingonwhenstudentstooktheirgapyear.Thosewhotookagapyearbetweenhighandcollege/postsecondaryeducationhadthelowesttransferrate(16%),whilethosewhotookaleaveofabsencehadthehighesttransferrate(30%).
Ø Comparedtonationalaverages,gappershadloweraveragetimetograduation(4yearsorless,comparednationallytoonly59%graduatingwithin6years).
Ø Ahigherproportionofgappersreportedmajoringinthesocialsciencesandhumanitiesascomparedtoscienceandtechnology-related(STEM)fields.
Ø Gappergradesareskewedtowardshighergrades.Ø Beyondacademics, 86%ofgapperssurveyedweresatisfiedorverysatisfiedwiththeirjobs,63%
reportedvotinginthe2014Novemberelections,and89%reportedparticipatingincommunityserviceinthelastmonth.
Conclusion3:Ø Somegraduatingseniorsneed achancetodeveloppersonally,andneedabreakfromthe
traditionalacademictrack!Ø GapYearstakenbeforecollegemayhelpstudentstobemorefocusedandmorecloselyselect
collegestudyplans,reducingthelikelihoodoftransferringwhileincollege.Ø TakingaGapYearmayhelpstudentsbemoredeliberateincollege,stayingontrackandcompleting
studiesfasterthantheyotherwisemighthave,butitmaybelessacceptableinSTEMfieldsØ Basedonthefactthatthissurveyfoundanassociationbetweenjobsatisfactionandcivic
engagement,andtakingaGapYear,participatinginaGapYearmayhaveimplicationsbeyondimmediatepersonalandcollege/academic outcomes.
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Limitations
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Thestudyofgapyearparticipantsischallenginginmanyways– butinparticularbecausethereisnowaytoaccuratelyaccountforandreachall(orarepresentativesample)ofthosewhohavetakenagapyearintheUS.Thus,thisstudyissignificantlylimitedbythemethodsusedtorecruitsurveyparticipants.Mainly,participantswererecruitedthroughwordofmouthandbytheprogramsinwhichtheyparticipated.Thus,thereislikelyanoverrepresentationofcommercialgapyearparticipantsinthissample,whichcouldskewdata.ThegroupofsurveytakersdescribedherearenotrepresentativeofAmericangappers,andatbest,canonlyprovideinsightintothebackgroundandexperiencesofAmericangappers.ThefactthatparticipationinthissurveywascompletelyvoluntarymayhaveskewedresultstowardsthosewhofeltstronglyabouttheirGapYear(eitherpositivelyornegatively).
Ø Thislimitationpointstotheneedfordevelopingmethodsnationallyforidentifyingandtrackinggapyearparticipations,sothattheirexperiencescanbeunderstoodmorescientificallyandmeaningfulcomparisonsbetweengappersandnon-gapperscanbemade.
Ø ThisstudystronglyrecommendsthatfuturestudiesconductedbytheNationalCenterforEducationStatistics(NCES)specificallydefine“takingagapyear”andaskstudentstoreportwhetherornottheyparticipatedinagapyear.
Ø Inordertounderstandthetrueeffectsandimpactsoftakingagapyear,anaccurateandrepresentativegroupofgappers,andanappropriatecomparisongroup,mustbeidentified.
Findingsfromthisstudyhighlighttheimportanceofongoingresearchrelatedtogapyeartakers,theirbackgrounds,experienceshad,andtheimpactsoftheirgapyears.Specifically,apre- andpost-gapyearexperiencesurveywouldhelptobetterisolatetheoutputsandoutcomesrelatedtoparticularexperiencesaswellastheirrelationshipstogappers’backgroundcharacteristics.Inaddition,anareaofimportanceforAmericanGapAssociationisfacilitatingandprovidingopportunitiesforstudentsfromallbackgroundstoparticipateingapyears.Usefulfutureresearchmayincludecasestudiesofbothlow-costgapyearprogramsoritinerariesaswellastheGapYearexperiencesoflow-incomeindividuals.Findingsfromthesecasestudiesmaybeusedtobetterdesignandsupportmoreaccessible(low-cost)GapYearprograms,andbetterunderstandhowlow-incomegapperscanbesupportedtohavethemostfruitfulgapyearexperiences.
Inaddition,casestudiesofcollege-sponsoredgapyearprograms,suchasthoseatPrincetonandTufts,mayalsobeimportantininformingandsupportingthisgrowingtrend.
RecommendationsforFutureResearch
MethodologicalNotes
Correlation:“Thecorrelationisoneofthemostcommonandmostusefulstatistics.Acorrelationisasinglenumberthatdescribesthedegreeofrelationshipbetweentwovariables.Let'sworkthroughanexampletoshowyouhowthisstatistic iscomputed.”Readmore:http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/statcorr.php