I don't know NOLS, but my oldest was so sick of school when she graduated high school, I was worried she was never going to go back. She took a year to work, save money and then travel in SE Asia. We were very worried about this plan, but knew we couldn't force her to choose a school or career path when she was feeling so negative about school. Supporting her in this gap year was a good decision for us. She matured so much, met like-minded friends, came to appreciate home and the value of education. She's just finishing her first year at a university program that she excelled at and loved.

I hope you get more info on this particular program and I know every child is different, but in our experience, a gap year was the right decision.

I’ve never heard of it but looked at the link and I think it sounds great. If he’s not yet had experiences where he built self confidence by overcoming adversity it would be good to have some. I also think it’s good that he’s not rushing into college if it’s not right for him. It seems like a good number of kids do and then end up with debt and no skills to get a decent job. Let him get away from home, gain some life experiences and discover what he wants to do next. Some go to college to do that but it’s not the right path for everyone.

I think a gap year is a great way to give your son some breathing room. I am not sure how a rugged back packing trip will direct him to a vocation. Yes I understand the maturity factor. Is he experienced and love all these activities?

When my oldest was scheduled for a GS backpacking trip they had to train for it. They had to carry heavy backpacks for certain lengths of time and they had to also practice rugged hiking etc. They didn't just go. So, my question is how physically fit and ready is your son to do this?

Only one of my youngest DD's friends took a gap year. Her mom insisted that she have a college acceptance in place before agreeing to this plan. She saved money during the senior year so she could travel and work in various programs all over the country. She might have gone abroad as well.

Now is the time to explore various vocational programs. Not everyone is a fit for college.

Although, I have always felt and still do that sometimes the college years are what molds us for what will come next. I know this is what happened with me and also my youngest daughter.

First off, KUDOS to you for being open to options and paths that do not follow the traditional trajectory of hs--> college. This is NOT a path for everyone-- some require a side path in order to be most successful in college and some just do not need or want college as part of their future.

Personally, I think recognizing that you are not ready for college is one big step towards knowing yourself-- and to me that is a big step towards maturity. I don't know this particular program but I had friends who did Outward Bound between hs and college and just loved it.

My bff's son also struggled.. he was young for his class (Nov bday) and opted to delay college for six months-- and then enrolled in the winter session. It was a huge failure for him. He wasn't engaged, wasn't organized and was pretty miserable all around (and parents were miserable with his performance). They pulled him out of school and gave him a set amount of time to make some decisions and basically get his cr*p together. It went on longer than planned. Frustrations grew.

He decided last spring/summer that he needed some time away from his failures and the complacency of home and decided to do a solo trip on the Appalachian Trail.. his plan was to go from PA to Maine. He took full responsibility for the trip planning and organizing -- his parents supported him but did not DO for him. He set out and though was in phone contact with mom/dad, was completely on his own-- he made friends, budgeted provisions between trail towns, and had a LOT of time on his own to think about what was important to him and what he wanted. The first week was tough-- but things started to turn around for him in the middle of the second week. He did not finish the trail (a mistake in my book-- but no one asked me) but he spent about 48 days on the trail and then returned home with much great clarity and confidence -- and most importantly, he had a plan for his next steps towards a career and a future.

I think there are a LOT of ways to gain maturity, self-knowledge and skills-- but IMO what matters most is to choose a path that reflects the individual's natural skills/abilities/interests. This is what builds confidence and allows the individual to continue to grow in maturity, self knowledge, etc.

Wish you all the best-- especially your son!

My friends have experience with NOLS for their kids and it was a terrific experience. They cannot say enough good about it and it really, really was a confidence booster and life changer. One friend's son wasn't troubled but did want a gap year, so he did NOLS. He then went to college and did well, but was a little unfocused about his future, so he took another year off and did NOLS again - a full year in Patagonia. Went back to college and graduated and now is living in New Zealand for a couple of years.

My former boss (a VERY accomplished woman, a leader in the community and in every one of her endeavors) did NOLS back in the 1970's and also said it was one of the best experiences of her life.

I have a dear friend who did NOLS in the 80s and she often says how amazing it was.

Funkyart, He did not finish the trail (a mistake in my book-- but no one asked me) Why do you think so? Just curious.

A couple of years ago I learned about Bridgeport Academy. It's in Maine, and is limited to boys, who have graduated from high school. It is a one-year program. Maybe a bit like Grade 13 that Canada used to have, or cejap (did I spell that right?) in Montreal. I don't know too much about it, but that my nephew went there and an acquaintance's son was due to go, but changed his mind at the last minute. I've heard it is to serve young men who need a little more maturity, or improve their academics (especially if your scholarship depends on it), or support with executive function skills, or transition to the American college environment for international students, or physical maturity/growth for athletes (especially, apparently, hockey players). I talked about it with DS, but as soon as he heard the word "athlete" he was not interested. Looking at their course offerings, little would serve him, anyway, having taken so many APs in high school.

Bpath, I would have liked to see him finish the trail because he had a long history of issues with setting goals and then abandoning them. He definitely gained confidence with his experience but I think it would have been an even greater achievement to have met his goal.

Sure, as adults, we often need to reevaluate our goals -- but he was more than 1/2 way towards his goal and it would have been his first major goal achieved as an adult.

I understand that many people complete the trail over time. It's pretty grueling. I personally am doing the trail 100 yards at a time lol, started in about 1979. Seriously, on driving vacations, if we see a section of trail, we stop and I take a little walk. Of course, I'll never get to the remote sections, but it's fun nonetheless.

While I haven't heard of the NOLS program, I do support the concept of the gap year. In a perfect world, your DS would have a college acceptance in hand and have arranged for a one year deferral. Since that isn't the case, you might want to explain your expectations for when he returns home (school, work, etc). Good luck.

Thank you for your thoughts & experiences:). We have discussed our expectations &responsibilities with him.

Olychick &localeater-the fact that you know ppl that have experienced the NOLS programs is very helpful. And found it to be an incredible experience--just warms my heart:). My DH wishes he could do the year in Patagonia!! And that may be an option for DS if he loves this. They also have a programs where you can become a wilderness EMT.

We had discussed him moving to CO to find work in small college town where DH attended. I just felt like he'd get lost & have no support system many, many miles from home.

Funky, I was so unsure what I wanted to do post HS, too. I did a bicycle tour with a friend starting in Toronto. I was in shape, but not a cyclist -at all!! Youth!! I knew I wouldn't make it all the way to Tennessee. But, it was an amazing experience & I will always remember it fondly. It taught me so much about people--the good. Of course, my mother was terrified of me being on side of the road on a bike &camping outdoors. But, it was the couple that stopped us to tell us of an upcoming storm &coffered for us to stay at their home. And we did!! They ordered us pizza &I we got a wonderful hot shower. And many more examples like that. I hope your bff's son will see that just taking the risk is a huge step & life changing!

Fingers crossed for an amazing experience for him!! He's a good kid-just a little lost.

School can suck the joy out learning. A break is a good thing. College is so much easier than HS for some children. Some time off to reenergize and build some self-confidence sounds perfect.

Peppa, I forgot, my friend's son also did the Medical/Wilderness EMT...I'm seeing his mother this week and will refresh my memory on it, I'm thinking he went to Mongolia? Maybe he's done 3 of their programs? I can't recall, but will update after I talk to his mom. He also is a great kid and was a little lost. NOLS helped put him on the right path for him.

If my daughter hadn't taken a gap year and gone to Kenya and served there she might still have no clue as to what she wanted to do. Sometimes if you spend a year looking for yourself you do find yourself.

My kids would have done a course like that in a heartbeat and we would have allowed it. It looks like they get some course credits as well - is that right?

At our suggestion, my DS1 took a year off after second year and he jumped at the chance . He was just spinning his wheels at school and we were paying for it. Although he was working hard he had no direction. He wound up working at a ski resort about 6 hours away from us as a liftee for the ski season. so he was away from home for 5 months and came home twice.. When he came home at the end of the season he knew that he didn't want to be working minimum wages his entire life and actually had a decision as to a direction for a career and schooling.

Best thing he ever did and I'm so glad that we suggested it and supported him in his choices.

Maybe this is just me but a backpacking and rafting trip does not seem like something that would help with building job career skills. Fun, yes! , but a service type gap year would look far more impressive on a resume. This sounds like a long vacation In the land of legal marijuana. Is he paying for it himself?

If if I was an employer or college admissions person, this would not impress me. Please correct me if I’m wrong about a trip like this.

Four years ago my then 66 y.o. DH attended the NOLS intensive one-month wilderness EMT course. He felt the course was extremely well presented and the program was excellent. Many of the students in that course were wild land firefighters, park rangers, and similar careers who needed the certification for their jobs. The average age in that group was around 25. NOLS has been around for decades and has an excellent reputation.

I suspect that on a 69 day course such as this you begin to learn resiliency, to rely on others, others relying on you. teamwork and team building, decision making.

You could probably write a college admissions essay based on your experiences and what you learned on a trip such as this.

Not all kids go to college or are destined to do so.

I remember NOLS being a big deal in the late seventies and eighties. Glad to hear the program is still around, and growing and changing.

IIRC, JFK Jr. and Sebastian Junger, who wrote "The Perfect Storm", went through the program.

And here's to not living a cookie cutter life : ) .

but a service type gap year would look far more impressive on a resume

I don't agree.

One of my kids is in 11th grade at a very rigorous and well regarded bs. We attended a session on gap years. They run the gamut. They are, i would say, usually not about building job skills. There are 3 types I would say. One for athletes who want a year to beef up their skills before college. That is historically the most common here. Two, the European style, a year of self discovery doing anything you fancy (but really DOING something, NOT vacation). This kind is very, very popular and schools believe it is good for college students (tho oddly, don't ever tell an elite college you plan to do this until you are admitted ... it messes up their precious yield calculations.) Three, a year of working on poor academics to improve them.

And in this case in particular, I don't think this is about building a resume at all. It is about true self-development, not what "looks good" on paper.

Harvard strongly encourages gap year taking for its admits.

https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/preparing-college/should-i-take-time

My daughter took a gap year to decide what she wanted to study for post-secondary and where she wanted to go; she figured if she was going to devote all that time, and she and we were going to devote all that money, she wanted to be more sure of her choice. In that year, she worked at home on the farm and for a local business doing event management where she'd worked for the previous four or five summers, and also did a lot of photography and took some photography courses. She ended up studying event management and graphic design and got her dream job in agricultural event management where she's able to use her graphic design and photography skills.

In high school she'd been leaning toward studying ornithology and biology in university, and for several years had taken part in various programs, internships, and volunteer work at bird observatories locally and across the country. So at the end of high school we were happy that she felt comfortable expressing her uncertainty and wanted some more time to come to a decision she felt positive about, and a direction she was interested in.

Well, I know a few who have gone through NOLS courses and I can only say this, if the kid doesn't really want to be in an outdoors type environment, they may not enjoy the challenge or get anything from it. The people I know who did it ranged from loving it to having endured it, but none of them found it to be life-changing. It has to be the right person and the right experience. Me on the other hand, had my life changed by taking a three week field ecology/biology course in the Canadian Rockies while in school, with no more motivation other than I thought it would be an interesting way to get my science requirement out of the way and I might meet some cute guys. It turned out not to have been much good for either of those, because after the course I got so inspired by the experience I changed my major to field ecology and had to pretty much start all my college coursework over again since the dramatically different major had dramatically different requirements. So in essence, my sophomore year in college before I changed majors was my "gap" year as I experimented until I found the thing that rang my bell. Of course this was 40 years ago and college was not so expensive. Theoretically an outdoor wilderness experience can show you how you can get beyond difficulties by perseverance, and that can transfer into other areas of your life. But if that's not your problem, if your problem is not knowing what you like and are good at, then unless you are really thinking about an outdoor career, you might consider other options that could be just as good. Another option is the Student Conservation Association. That is more skills/work oriented but they also cover leadership and other career related experiences. This is not a dis of NOLS, I love the program, but it's just to say that there are lots of options out there and I think a gap year is a FANTASTIC idea for a student who hasn't yet found their passion, particularly when you consider how expensive higher education is now. Another option is the Corporation for National and Community Service. Tons of options there too. Learn and Serve, Americorps, etc.

Teaching English as a second language is another program. My friend's son is in Hong Kong. He did graduate from a prestigious college but decided that this was not the field he wanted to work in.

I spoke to my friend and her son did two NOLS sessions, one when he was 16, the Wind River Wilderness 30 day program and the Patagonia program, but he did the 3month, not the year program I thought. He later did a wilderness EMT training in Mongolia; it was not through NOLS but a volunteer program where he also got training.

Curious about what you mean by hoping it prepares him for a job working in a resort-do you mean as a college side job or as a career?

I think any program that helps a kid learn responsibility is a good one. While this sounds like it's all fun & games, it really does teach skills that translate into real world skills. It's not all about white water rafting, it's about learning to work as a team and knowing what your skills can bring to the successful outcome of the trip.

There are many careers that focus on outdoor adventures, and not everything requires a college degree. I know of many successful people who didn't go the education path, instead went the technical/vocational path and are making 6 figure incomes without any college debt. On the other hand, my kids who went into social sciences (social worker and early education instructor) needed the minimum of their BS and still only make $40K/yr. But my son who is a self taught chef makes more than his social worker sister.

In light of the recent scandal of the parents paying for their kids to get into school by faking it, it goes to show that not all kids are college material. I didn't push my kids to go, but helped those that did (I was not able to fully fund my daughters education so she had to get loans-oddly I made too much for her to qualify for grants, but not enough to fund her schooling and scholarships were out of the question even though she tried hard to get them). The other two who didn't go, and who also struggled with HS, ended up doing well on their own. They're smart and learned a lot of life experience working for DH and I that helped them to succeed without college.

I wish the best for your son. I think this NOLS program sounds like something he could get something out of. Might wake him up and realize he's going to have to actually WORK to make his way in the world. I'm afraid too many kids think they're just going to be able to go out and land a job and make $80K/yr with no problem. I know of kids who went to college who think that way and the reality of the situation was that since they just got liberal arts degrees didn't guarantee them a job.

I personally did an Outward Bound program in Minnesota in the 1970's when I was finishing high school. We camped and canoed the Boundary Waters between the US & Canada for 30 days. I will never forget the hard work, and the fun. It made a huge difference on my outlook and my ability to meet new people and interact with them. I would highly recommend something like Outward Bound, and from the little I saw, NOLS looks similar.