By Anathi Nompondo
For many matriculants, a gap year isn’t just about catching a breath after 12 years of school. Some use the time to gain work experience, explore career paths, learn new skills, or save up for their studies. Others use the time to pursue a new life path. But for some, the gap year isn’t actually a choice. It’s a reality shaped by financial pressures, social challenges or limited opportunities after matric.
19-year-old Tselane Mothupi’s gap year was unplanned. She had hoped to study nursing at the University of the Western Cape, but was rejected. She used her gap year to look for work and reflect on her career prospects.
“I had an opportunity to think about the career choice I want to pursue, as I have been researching it, and I think I am ready for university. Hopefully, I get accepted this time around”.
Gap years can also be a time of discovery outside the classroom, and an opportunity to grow in more ways than books can offer. The time away and break from academic pressure can help one to reflect on their identity and explore more career opportunities.
21-year-old Sonelisiwe Ntshaba from Sterkspruit, a small town on the Eastern Cape-Lesotho border, matriculated in 2023 and has been on a two-year gap. Sonelisiwe wanted to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy at the University of Witwatersrand; however, she was rejected due to her low Mathematics and Physical Sciences marks. Instead, she opted to use the downtime to upgrade her marks. Matriculants who want to improve their matric results can visit the Department of Basic Education’s Second Chance Programme.
“I am working hard, studying every day so I can pass and meet the requirements for my dream course”.
Sonelisiwe struggled to find work while she upgraded her results. Youth unemployment in the Eastern Cape in 2025 touched 54%. Instead, she took to volunteering programmes and internships.
Taking time off after matric can delay one’s entry into the workforce. While a gap year can be a welcome break from assignments and quizzes, getting back into routines and deadlines can seem quite exhausting, especially if the gap is extended.
Lethuxolo Ndaba, 22, waited three years to get to university. Ndaba hails from Pongola in the KwaLubisi area in KwaZulu-Natal. Exiting matric with a 72% bachelor pass and three distinctions in 2021, he still struggled to find offers from universities. He used his gap years to look for work and learn to be independent.
In 2025, Lethuxolo began his first year of the Bachelor of Arts in Media, Communication and Culture at Nelson Mandela University. But that was not always the plan, as he had initially eyed a Bachelor of Science in Geology at the University of Johannesburg.
In the three-year gap, he had to leave home to look for a job and eventually relocated to KwaNongoma after landing a construction job at a local company. He built RDP houses, which taught him valuable skills about raft foundations. He also worked at Pongola Shoprite for 3 months as a packer.
“I didn’t have many problems with finances. My parents helped me out at first, but I eventually stood on my own two feet. Making friends and maintaining relationships was not that hard because I can communicate well with people, and I can adapt easily to a new environment,” he said.
Living away from home and fending for himself taught him to become independent. While Lethuxolo took matters into his own hands and switched gears when his initial plans didn’t work out, experiences with gap years vary and affect people differently.
People may react differently, with some associating laziness with gap years. 19-year-old Amahle Zethu described the external judgment that came with taking a gap year as very stressful, as is the need to constantly explain herself to people, especially those less familiar with the idea of a gap year.
So, a successful gap year will look different to different people. Answering the question of whether you should take one is not as straightforward as one may think.
But seriously, should you take one?
That will depend on you, your circumstances, and the reason why. Taking some time off after school to look for small work opportunities may be a valid reason for some, just as wanting to take a break from studies and recuperate may be for others. It will depend on what you want and what makes the most sense for your circumstances.
Unathi Zantsi, Student Success Coach at Nelson Mandela University, agrees that the reasons students take gap years vary. Some take gaps due to having no funds to study further. But some intentionally decide to sit out the year after matric. In such cases, individuals afford themselves the time to reflect on their available career opportunities.
And since it’s not always a choice, there are things one can do to still get the most out of a gap year.
Learning some new skills is a good place to start. You can also look for volunteering projects, and this one would be even more beneficial if it aligned with future career plans, although that won’t always be the case.
Volunteering, learnerships, and pursuing other opportunities, even those outside of your primary field of interest, can benefit one in the long run. Zantsi encourages individuals to consider government programmes such as assistant teaching or the YES Programme.
“There is plenty to do in a structured gap year. Being active in your gap year rather than sitting at home may open up opportunities for you in the job market and could potentially help with university admission,” advises Zantsi.
So, set goals and explore the world during that time away from your desk. You just never know what you might find.
Article provided courtesy of the Khulani! Youth Journalism project
Image: SABC
