Ellie Lieberman ’17, Aaron Lee ’17, Samantha Frenkel-Popell ’16, and Rory Plewman ’16 (left to right) returned to Menlo on January 9 for a panel on their experiences taking a gap year after graduation.

A major theme the panel appeared to agree upon was the importance of preparation. Each panelist urged any students considering a gap year to put in the work beforehand to make sure they will get the most out of the experience and to ensure they don’t rush any part of the process.

Frenkel-Popell was featured in the last Menlo Magazine, and she said then that she wasn’t interested in joining a gap-year program because she wanted to get out of her comfort zone and test herself. In her remarks on the panel, she touched on the preparation issuing, explaining that at first, “I had a lot of unstructured time, which wasn’t necessarily the best. I wish I’d spent more time planning.”

The panelists also appeared to agree that while the concept of a gap year has the connotation of extreme wealth and privilege, it doesn’t have to be an expensive undertaking.

Lieberman said, “Gap years can be really meaningful no matter how much money you put into it,” noting that she raised all the money she needed for her program herself. She added that one’s goals for a gap year don’t have to involve spending an exorbitant amount of money, saying, “Just to get off the treadmill of academia was beneficial for me.”

Plewman echoed those points, describing his experience traveling, but also getting a job. He said, “I recommend a period of working,” since his time holding down employment, alone, gave him a chance to budget and find a balance that he wouldn’t necessarily have had to do as a regular college student.

Finally, Plewman told interested students to leverage the connections they have through Menlo, saying, “The Menlo alumni network is a great resource; that’s how I learned about some of my programs.”

Are you a Menlo alum with news to share? Tell us through our Class Notes form!