It is reaching the end of the school year and seniors are faced with a big decision about their future. Students have the option of going to college, taking a gap year, or choosing an alternate route.

The decision to pick a path is hard, but with the resources Air Academy provides, it can be an easy fix to the stressful problem. College counselor Eric Beers has some helpful insight.

“Every student is different.  Most (if not all) students are going to need some post-high school training to get a good job,” Beers then stated, “That could be a vocational apprenticeship, or military leadership and career training, or a 2 or 4-year college degree (and/or beyond).”

When choosing the path of college right out of high school students have the option of going into college either this fall, next spring, or next summer. Going into college can be rough due to the change in education students are receiving that are usually based on their future career. 

College is usually expensive, but for students who can’t afford it or are looking for a cheaper option, they can look into a community college and get an education for a fraction of the cost. Another option is for students to get their associate’s at a community college and then move onto a larger university for their bachelor’s.

For those students who don’t choose to go to college other options are available. Signing up for enlistment is a great example of this. There are also trade schools that specialize in welding, carpentry, engineering, and more. The possibilities are endless with this path. 

“For students not going to college, don’t stop learning,” Beers exclaimed, “Still take a class or complete a training, complete a professional development opportunity or a personal interest class…Don’t stop learning.” 

Some opportunities for students who decide not to take college courses is to apply to freelance classes that are interactive such as WorldStrides. WorldStrides is a program surrounded around traveling and learning about different countries around the world.

For the students who are thinking about taking a gap year, it can be tough trying to figure out what to do, but you can explore the world, do research on what you want, and take a breather from school.

Overall these are just a few options and hopefully helped spark ideas on what your future will look like.