Originally Posted by backofbeyond

I think you'll get a similar response pretty much everywhere. Most people have a linear approach to life, particularly at the younger end where you're told endlessly that it goes school, uni / apprenticeship, a job based on your qualifications and settle down. Any deviation from that is frowned upon. We encouraged both our kids to take a gap year between school and uni. Take some time out, get some experience of the wider world and then you'll have a better idea of what you want to do. I lost count of the number of people - including their school tutors - who told us they really shouldn't do it, it was indulgent and they'd never catch up.

Out of my daughter's peer group she was the only one to take the year out. And the result - they both came back much the better for what they did, with better formed ideas of what was possible /what they wanted to do and far more drive to go and do it. 6/10yrs on what they're doing now comes far more from their gap year knowledge than their (somewhat naive) school ideas. You need to look closely at 'don't do it advice' and see if it comes from experience or simply fear of the unknown.

Having said that I don't want to bias you one way or the other - it's your life and go or stay has to be your decision. The only thing I would say is that if you have the sort of personality that'll take on a year of solo travel you'll probably not be fazed by the job market when you get back. You might want to consider though (you probably have already) how you're going to sell that time to prospective employers when they ask you what you've been doing.