For the past 10 years, Julia Rogers has been assisting students who decide to forego their first year of college in favor of a gap year, a growing trend that allows adolescents the opportunity to experience the world outside the classroom before beginning higher education. Last week Rogers was informed that she had achieved accreditation by the Gap Year Association as a professional gap year counselor. She is the first and currently only accredited gap year counselor in the United States.
“We are thrilled to welcome Julia Rogers and EnRoute Consulting as our first accredited professional gap year counselor,” said Dianna Hahn, associate director of the Gap Year Association, an Oregon-based nonprofit standards-setting organization for gap years. “We appreciate Julia's excellent work with her clients, her colleagues, and all that she has done to further the gap year movement.”
Unlike independent college admission consultants, of which there are approximately 5,000 in the US, there are only a handful of counselors dedicated to guiding students through the gap year planning process. But with the gap year rapidly growing in popularity, more people are seeking professional help in structuring gap time.
“I am a true believer in the power of a gap year,” explains Julia Rogers, who herself took a gap year to Tanzania in 2007. “My mission in advising students is to help them have incredible, life-changing experiences that give them direction and purpose as they move into adulthood. This can include everything from volunteering with Americorps in storm-ravaged Texas to interning with a tech start-up in South Africa to gaining a yoga certification in Bali.”
Since founding her business in 2008, Rogers has become an expert in her field by advising hundreds of students, as well as personally visiting gap year programs in over twenty-five countries. She works with high schools, colleges, service-learning organizations, nonprofits, government entities and families to further experiential education and ethical travel.
“From spearheading Gap Year Decision Day to continuing contact with her alumni, we are always impressed with Julia's passion and vigor for this work,” said Hahn. “In 2017, Julia received the Award of Excellence in Innovation from the Gap Year Association, recognizing her significant innovation in advancing the Gap Year movement. She is a superb resource for students and families looking for direction and support when planning a gap year.”