What is GAP year in CAT? One of the biggest doubts for aspirants who do not have any kind of work experience is that how costly a GAP year can be. And up to some extent, it's a fair and genuine question to have. So let's understand first what this GAP year is - A GAP year typically refers to a break taken by a student or professional before starting their MBA program. This can happen in different ways, for example, preparation for competitive exams, health issues or personal reasons, not getting a job, gaining additional exposure or training through internships and certifications, and many other reasons, depending upon person to person.
GAP year vs Work Ex!
As we all know, there are certain marks that a working professional gets, and that's obviously going to give them an edge as compared to a candidate who's having a GAP year. But that doesn't mean you don't have any chance. There's no where mentioned that you will be getting any kind of penalty for having a GAP year, or it will cancel your candidature. You just have to compensate for this thing through your CAT percentile and interview scores. Yes, the playing field will not be even for you and a GAP year can affect you, but it can be manageable too.
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GAP year as an advantage!
Having a GAP year also comes with certain advantages: you will get more time to focus on your preparation, there will be no extra office work for you, you can be flexible about your schedule, and you can take your day off and relax a bit without any added pressure. These are the luxuries that you can redeem for your own benefit. Above, I talked about the compensation thing, and you have to compensate by scoring higher than others because, unlike working individuals, you will be having an ample amount of time.
How to justify GAP year?
Other than preparation, you will definitely get some free time, and here in this free time, you have to work on yourself and make your case strong. High percentiles will not do the things alone; you should mold yourself or prepare yourself in a better way, or in simpler terms, you have to fill this GAP year hole in order to justify that. There are a few things you can do while preparing for the examination side by side—follow your hobby and make something productive out of it; you can also apply for internships and some certifications and make sure that these things will align with your ultimate goal. You can work on your extracurricular skills. Join any NGO, or you can also volunteer for any event or function. These are some basic ideas that you can follow, but it totally depends on you and your interests what do you actually want. Just don't sit idle and depend on the CAT score.
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Conclusion!
Having a GAP year is not a sin. You can cover up for that by keeping all the things in mind that are stated above. Take it as an opportunity and grab it with both hands. Ignore the negativity and those people who try to demotivate you by stating the negative things about a gap year. A gap year is not necessarily a problem for MBA admissions. If the gap is well explained, productive, and aligns with your goal, in that case it can actually strengthen your application. Admissions committees look for clarity, maturity, and purpose in how you’ve used your time.
Connect with the author on LinkedIn- Swapnil Mishra
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