School is starting soon and i found my old thread so i figured that i would let you guys know how the year off went...
1. I got engaged to my girlfriend.
2. I made a ton of money at a restaurant waiting tables at 50 hours a week
3. I got a job working as a psychiatric technician in a hospital (i got a lot of great experience).
4. I read through my entire undergraduate psychology curriculum again.
5. I traveled across the country(14 states) i saw Rushmore, Bryce canyon, Las Vegas, Rockies, Salt lake and a few more sites..
6. I am in the process of reading through all of my first semester textbooks.
I accomplished a lot of personal growth and self discovery over the year. Someone told me to relax and take it easy before the intense course load but i couldn't the whole time at home i was still eager to get to school and try a new tier of schooling. Taking the year off was worth it for me personally i was not ready to start grad school. My relationship could not of handled the stress then however, now i am more confident in my self as a student and my fiancee is a lot more supportive. My time as a psych tech helped too, it fueled my passion even more than i thought possible. If your going into advanced counseling and you've never seen the inside of psych ward or seen developmental problems up close you should. An abnormal textbook does it no justice.
Should someone take a year off after undergraduate school my answer: depends, it depends on your situation. BUT FOR ME IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST DECISIONS I HAVE EVER MADE.