If you’re like majority of high school students, you go to college a few months after you graduate. Some students want to save up money, or do whatever they need to do before they go to college. After I graduated high school I went to college for one semester. My father got very sick during my first semester so I took time off after I finished my first semester to help him and be there for him. I’m enrolled at Mercy College of Ohio now as a 23 year old, and here are my pros and cons of going to college a few years after high school.

Cons:

1. If you’re out of high school for even a year, you won’t remember as much. I didn’t think it was going to be a big deal, but holy shit I forgot nearly everything!

2. Most of the time if you choose to take a year off, you’ll keep putting it off. It was a little different for me because obviously taking care of my father was more important than school at the time. Unfortunately, my father passed away at the end of 2014. Even after he was gone, it took me a little over two years to go back to school.

3. Seeing fellow classmates getting degrees and being almost done with college, will sting a little. Okay, it’ll sting a lot. You’ll tell yourself that that was supposed to be you, but it isn’t. That’s okay. If anything, it’ll motivate you more to go to college.

4. Some scholarships you would have had right after high school, you aren’t eligible to get anymore. I kick myself in the ass when I see scholarships worth a ton of money if I would have kept going after my first semester. That’s okay too. There will still be some out there for you.

Pros:

1. You’ll have time to grow and mature. Being mature will benefit you a lot. Fresh out of high school, students will try and pull stunts they could have gotten away with in high school, but won’t at college. It’s easier knowing you’re mature enough for college.

2. You’ll actually have a good idea of what you want your degree to be in. I know some people that have switched their major three times because they had no clue what they wanted to do. It’s actually worth it.

3. If you’re working while you’re taking time off from school, tuition will be a lot more affordable. If you’re one of those people that will avoid loans at all costs you might want to look into working and saving up money before you go to college.

4. You will go through some things that will make you into a stronger person and student. I’ll use myself as an example. I lost my father and emotionally, I thought I was going to die of heartache. This past summer I tore my ACL, medial and lateral menisci, and fractured my tibia. Physically, I thought I would never overcome that. Here I am 4 months after major knee surgery and recovery, and kicking ass every day. Of course, not everyone will go through those exact situation, but something will come along that will challenge you and make you stronger.

Overall, life is what you make it. Whether you want to go to college or don’t, these are my experiences from being the college student straight out of high school, and being the college student who took a few years off.