Those ‘Gap Years’ Aren’t Just for Students
New York Times, By TANYA MOHN, Published: January 10, 2009
DENNIS R. SINAR, 61, a doctor from Washington, N.C., is quick to explain why he took a yearlong break from his job.
“I was pretty burned out after practicing medicine for 26 years,” said Dr. Sinar, a gastroenterologist and professor of medicine at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. “I needed a recharge.”
So he took a “gap year,” from July 2007 to June 2008, to explore things like stone masonry, antique restoration, archaeology and traditional Eastern medicine, in locations spanning from Alaska to Nepal to Romania. “I think everyone in his heart of hearts has some things they have always wanted to do but for one reason or other never does,” Dr. Sinar said.
Taking a break from work is an excellent way for adults to segue into a new career or invigorate an old one, said Holly Bull, president of the Center for Interim Programs in Princeton, N.J., which sets up gap-year programs. The group works mainly with college-age students, but it has also served older adults since it was formed 28 years ago, Ms. Bull said. In recent years, midcareer breaks have been garnering more interest, she said.
A report on adult gap years released in July 2008 by Mintel International, a market research company, described the potential American market for gap years as a “sleeping giant.” And now, with job cuts on the rise, the newly unemployed may find the timing for a gap year to be ideal.
Planning a gap year “takes a little more preparation for adults,” Ms. Bull said. Concerns about finances and job prospects are more common, she said.
Costs range widely, depending in part on location and the types of programs. Ms. Bull estimates that an average gap year runs $6,000 to $15,000, or less “if you keep travel down and do low-cost programs.” Of course, that does not include financial obligations like a mortgage, although some people can rent out their homes to finance their year away.
You don’t have to be wealthy to finance a gap year, said Susan Griffith, author of “Gap Years for Grown-Ups.” If a schoolteacher were to rent out his or her home for six months, “the rent would go a long way to paying their daily expenses in a developing country like Cambodia or Bolivia,” she said.
Dr. Sinar limited expenses by working for room and board on some programs. In Nepal, home stays with local families were arranged, which helped to lower costs.
The entire year does not have to be spent away from home, either. Dr. Sinar was away about seven months during his year off, which included extended stays at home between programs. That schedule made the experience easier for his partner, Kathryn, who also visited him on location several times.
“A gap year is a challenge for the older individual to step out of a comfort zone and take a risk; I enjoyed that side most,” said Dr. Sinar, who kept a daily blog about his experience. His time studying Eastern medicine “reaffirmed the reasons I went into health care” said Dr. Sinar, who returned to practice medicine at his old job, although he works fewer days. “I use those experiences to provide more compassionate care,” he added. “And I listen better than I did before.”
By contrast, Lee Attix of South Portland, Me., 52, used skills gained during a gap year more than 10 years ago to switch careers from sales and marketing into work focused on wildlife. “I wanted more than just a paycheck and doing a job,” he said.
His gap-year volunteer experiences included trail maintenance in Vermont, a stint at a farm in Arkansas devoted to ending world hunger, and study of endangered hawks in Utah. It paid off. He was offered paid seasonal work in loon conservation. Today he is a manager for BioDiversity Research Institute, a small nonprofit in Gorham, Me. Taking a gap year “was the best thing I ever did career-wise,” he said.
Tari Marcou, 54, of Hamilton, Ohio, was working as a program coordinator for an adult leadership program at Ohio State University several years ago when she realized she needed a midcareer break. Her children were grown, and she was able to sell her house for a profit. She gave her dog and her furniture to her daughter for safe-keeping and started a gap year that included time at a meditation retreat in France, organic farms in Italy and a wildlife awareness center in South Africa.
After returning to the United States, she was approached about a new job at Ohio State “for a sizable increase in salary” she said. Instead of pursuing the job, she parlayed her passion for travel into a new career by becoming a certified tour director. “I feel like I finally found where I need to be,” she said.
Dennis J. Garritan, chairman of the department of leadership and human capital management at New York University, said a gap-year experience could be worthwhile for employees and companies.
For employees, “investing in themselves and enhancing skill set is a strategic move that will pay dividends throughout their career,” Dr. Garritan said. He added that returning employees feel refreshed and have given thought to their careers.
For companies, offering unpaid leaves makes good sense for recruitment and retention of talented employees, and is a more creative long-term way to weather the economic downturn than layoffs.
BUT Dr. Garritan cautions that those returning from a gap year and looking for a new job could run into problems. Some companies may perceive these prospective hires as turnover risks. He also suggests that gap-year workers who intend to switch careers keep the door open to returning to the same profession: if an accountant hoping to become a chef goes to Paris to study culinary arts, he should plan to devote a little time to learning the European accounting system or to doing accounting work for a nonprofit.
“But my hope is that this takes off,” Dr. Garritan said. “We’re all thinking, ‘What’s my next act?’ ”
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/11/jobs/11gapyear.html
Session One
1. Did you or your friends ever take a “gap year” when they were students? What did they do during the gap year? Working holidays or volunteering? What are the benefits?
2. What are the things that you always dream to do but never does? Have you ever thought about taking one year break to accomplish your dream when you are really burn out after many years of working?
3. If you are not able to take a career break, is there any other way to fulfill your dream or recharge your batteries?
Session Two
Sharing photos taken in India.
Ten Quotes about Travel
1. The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page. – St. Augustine
2. Not all those who wander are lost” – J. R. R. Tolkien
3. Half the fun of the travel is the esthetic of lostness.” ~Ray Bradbury
4. If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home.” ~James Michener
5. “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” – Lao Tzu
6. To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries.” – Aldous Huxley
7. A good traveler is one who does not know where he is going to and a perfect traveler does not know where he came from.” – Lin Yutang
8. Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.
9. Don’t worry about the world ending today, it’s already tomorrow in Australia. –Unknown
10. A journey is best measured in friends, not in miles. ― Tim Cahill
Session Three
If there is enough time, we will play some games and have fun.
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Agenda:
3:45 ~ 4:00pm Greetings & Free Talk / Ordering Beverage or Meal / Getting Newcomer’s Information
4:00 ~ 4:10pm Opening Remarks / Newcomer’s Self-introduction / Grouping
(Session I)
4:10 ~ 4:50pm Discussion Session (40 mins)
4:50 ~ 5:10pm Summarization (20 mins)
5:10 ~ 5:20pm Regrouping / Instruction Giving / Taking a 10 Minutes Break (Intermission)
(Session II)
5:30 ~ 6:0pm Photo Sharing
(Session III)
6:00 ~ 6:20pm Time for games (20 mins)
6:20 ~ 6:30pm Concluding Remarks / Announcements
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聚會日期:列於該貼文主題內
聚會時間:請準時 4:00 pm 到 ~ 約 6:30 pm 左右結束
星期六聚會地點:丹堤濟南店
地址、電話:台北市濟南路三段25號 地圖 (02) 2740-2350
捷運站:板南線 忠孝新生站 3 號出口
走法:出忠孝新生站 3 號出口後,沿著巷子(忠孝東路三段10巷)走約 2 分鐘,到了濟南路口,左轉走約 2 分鐘即可看到。
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注意事項:
1. 文章是否需要列印請自行斟酌,但與會者請務必自行列印 Questions for discussion。
2. 與會者請先閱讀過文章,並仔細想過所有的問題,謝謝合作!
給新朋友的話:
1. 請事先準備2~3分鐘的英語自我介紹;會議結束前可能會請你發表1~2分鐘的感想。
2. 請事先閱讀文章以及主持人所提的討論問題,並事先寫下自己所欲發表意見的英文。
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