The following blog post was written by Bridge Year Fellow, Anais Delgado.
As the days come closer to my departure date, I have a million things to do. Finishing two proposals, signing documents, opening a debit card with no international fees, getting vaccines, securing international insurance, finalizing future placements, and sending many emails. Nevertheless, I keep telling myself that I shouldn’t rush the process. Good things take time. And this gap year will be great!
I don’t think I ever truly understood the meaning of Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) until now. I don’t leave for my placement until September, and watching everyone go to school has been so difficult. I’ve had to stay off of social media and keep reminding myself that I am going to have a fun, productive, and meaningful year.
It’s hard to not care what others think. But, this process has taught me not to compare myself to others. I am exactly where I am supposed to be right now. For the first time in my life, I’m on my own timing. I’ve been making my own schedule and to-do lists.
I chose to take a gap year to learn more about myself, my interests, and my culture. I hope to learn and understand who I am outside of academics. In high school, my whole life revolved around school, grades, and studying. I aspire to learn more about my values, goals, and morals.
I would also like to understand my academic interests outside of school. In high school, I always took the classes that would look best on college applications and that would boost my GPA. During my gap year, I hope to explore my different academic interests to figure out what I am really passionate about. I also hope to volunteer in different fields to learn more about potential majors and career choices.
I’m excited to look back at this blog and see how my goals changed or stayed the same.