By Aryaman My last blog! It’s really long but I go into great detail to provide a complete summary of the whole year. I share why I decided to take a gap year, how the year went, how I felt at every stage and my concluding thoughts. The fact that I am submitting this blog […]
By Christina This month I began work as a lift operator at a ski resort in Utah. I maintain the ramps that you ski on to load or unload the lift; manage the buttons that start, stop, and control the speed of the lift; and bump chairs on fixed-grip lifts, meaning I hold back the […]
By Camille Growing up as a member of Gen Z, I’ve been surrounded by the internet since birth. Unlike my grandparents, and even my parents, I don’t remember a time when I couldn’t just type, click, and be bombarded with a stream of answers. The onset of COVID has made technology and the internet even […]
Dear Future Duke Gap Year Student, First off, I want to congratulate you. You have successfully graduated high school. You have been accepted into college. You’ve completed one of the hardest chapters of your life and now you have so much to look forward to. I know our current climate seems a little daunting, […]
By Olivia I used to be afraid of taking steps forward. I could endlessly perfect something, and still, never truly put myself out there. I felt metaphorically and literally confined by the bounds of my environment, which was founded on school, stress, and overall a narrowness that I was highly aware of due to my […]
By Mackenzie The silver lining I’ve elected to focus on in the midst of this torrential chaos and uncertainty engendered by COVID-19 is the precious, quality time I’ve been able to spend with my family, as the strict quarantine mandate has thrown a monkey wrench in our pre-pandemic, hectic work schedules. Instead of prioritizing getting […]
By Makee At home, I’ve taken to driving around. There’s not much else to do and it’s nice to have some space for myself. I’ve discovered new nooks of neighborhoods I thought I knew and mentally bookmarked interesting houses on street corners. I’ve noticed big changes in myself after my gap year that show in […]
By Anna In my final years of high school, I felt disconnected from the rest of the world, and felt compelled to understand the cultures and traditions of other countries. I wanted to escape my niche and explore the world and see all the beauty that I have been away from. I knew I wanted […]
I had many new experiences during my gap year, I lived on my own for the first time, I took college courses in Spanish, I met new people and tried new things, but the takeaway that I will carry with me for the rest of my life is the importance of taking advantage of […]
By Taddeo One year ago, I was struggling with the decision on what to do with my year after high school. There was the obvious and easy path, simply attend Duke with the rest of the 2019 high school graduating class or push my back arrival at Durham for an extra year. The idea of […]
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