ENG110Digital Essay

Benefits of a Gap Year


The advantages of a Gap Year–a visual representation.

A gap year is beneficial for students transitioning from high school to college because it better prepares them to succeed in higher education and beyond.

For students graduating from high school, taking a year off before attending college presents an opportunity to refresh and revive before officially entering into university life. During this time, students discover what is important to them, which will assist to intensify their focus on their educational path of choice. Top universities and many cultures around the world fully recognize the relevance of a gap year, and regard those who have taken them as ‘well structured’ with a good sense of direction and maturity (White 7). Taking a year off forces students to gain confidence and take responsibility for themselves and their future in ways that cannot be learned in a classroom.

Although the concept of a gap year is still quite foreign in the United States, the prominent view shared by many countries around the world is that taking time off is constructive and often in the best interest of the student. According to studies by the Nordic Institute for Studies in Innovation Research, more than 50 percent of students from Turkey, Denmark and Norway take a year off before attending college (American Gap Association, 2012). In the UK, over 30,000 secondary students apply for a university course but then defer in favor of a gap year, which is not counting those who choose to apply to university during or after their year off (Bridging a Gap, 2012).

These countries have recognized the benefits of a gap year, and so have many top universities. Among supporters, Harvard is and has been a long-time proponent of taking time off before college. In fact it is written in plain sight, to the lucky few who receive their coveted letter of admission, that deferring a year before attending is highly recommended (White 22). Princeton also jumps on the bandwagon, offering up to 10 percent of their incoming freshmen class a fully funded international volunteer experience, calling it a “Precollegiate enrichment year.” (White 22)

People in the field of education feel excited as the concept of a gap year grows in popularity. Many regard it as the beginning of a movement in education that values experiential learning, global awareness, environmentalism, and a concern for others throughout the world (White 2). Christoph Guttentag, Dean of Admissons at Duke University, praises the idea of a gap year, calling it a “terrific idea.” Jennifer Delahunty, Dean at Kenyon College, presses on the newly found “verve and excitement for learning” students have upon returning to school that can be lost after so many years of forced academia. Charles Monahan–a gap year student–elaborates, “During high school I wasn’t dreaming. I didn’t have many projects going on. I was just all about school. When people asked me what I wanted to do for a career someday, I never could answer them” (White 14).

Like Monahan, most teenagers today report having “little confidence in their ability to make an independent decision,” and say they rarely do anything without input from their parents (White 18). Without the tools to develop self-assurance, the last years of high school leave many students feeling lost and overwhelmed. Instead of jumping into college full of insecurities, taking a gap year allows young adults to refresh and recharge before entering back into the school system. High school students have a lot on their plate as they contemplate the idea of college and beyond. Students are integrated in a constant flow of academia, and many question whether a straight shot through school is the best path to take. A member of the academic team at Harvard asserts, “Let us hope that more of [current high school students] will take some sort of time off before burnout becomes the hallmark of their generation” (White 22).

For Kelsey Phinney, taking a gap year helped boost both her energy and maturity level, making a huge difference in terms of her confidence and preparation for college. She adds that her time abroad helps her gain a deeper understanding for the material learned in the classroom setting, and encourages her to widen her lens of the world to consider many different points of view.

Like Phinney, Whitney Roth, a student at the University of Vermont also attributes her confidence in herself to her time spent abroad, saying, “It gave me a sense of who and what I would like to see myself become” adding, “Had I gone to college straight out of high school I would not have known what to do with my newfound freedom” (White 13).

Safe to say, there are plenty of testimonials in support of the positive changes within an individual that a gap year brings. Top universities in the country stand behind and  encourage their scholars to take time off before attending school, and a handful of countries accept gap years as a commonality. Professors and Deans openly admit that students who take a year off not only come back to school with a new sense of love for learning, but are some of the top performers in the classroom setting (White 31). When students have the opportunity to recollect themselves and set aside the stresses of school to discover themselves and the world they live in, it will inevitably make them more successful, educated adults. From all the successes, it should be an obvious cue to any in doubt, that a gap year is in-fact beneficial for students.

Image: TopUniversities

“Benefits of a Volunteering Gap Year” TopUniversities. Quacquarelli Symonds Limited, 28 Feb 2013 Web. 23 Nov. 2013.


Research National Centre for Vocational Education, et al. “Bridging The Gap: Who Takes A Gap Year And Why? Longitudinal Surveys Of Australian Youth. Research Report.” National Centre For Vocational Education Research (NCVER) (2012): ERIC. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.

White, Kristin. The Complete Guide to a Gap Year: the Best Things to Do Between High School and College. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009. Print.

American Gap Year Association. American Gap Association, 2012. Web. 24 Oct. 2013.


Thinking Beyond Borders. “Kelsey Phinney—Thinking Beyond Borders.” Online Video Clip. Youtube. Youtube, 3 Nov. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2013.


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Women in the Middle East and Social Media

Women in the Middle East and Social Media

In this Monday, Feb. 13, 2012 file photo, Iranian women use computers at an Internet cafe in central Tehran. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)

Pakistani women in the Middle East using social media in a local internet cafe

Women in the Middle East are using social media like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram to gain rights to increase financial and political independence and make their voices heard.


A young Egyptian man grabs a woman crossing the street with her friends in Cairo. (NPR)

Social media is changing the ability for women to be herd in the Middle East. Countless women are verbally harassed,  groped or worse. Social pressure often means women are not allowed to talk about these instances. This culture of objectifying women was an accepted norm that no one tried to change until now.

Through social media the women who are victims have been given a voice. A popular website launched in 2011 called, “HarassMap”  is a place where women can anonymously report through mobil phones where harassments happen in real time. Watch this video of founder Rebecca Chiao to find out more about why and how HarassMap began. The person reporting the assault can give details of what happened as well as the exact location. An interactive, color coded map shows areas where high amounts of incidents take place, and color code by the type of assault reported.

HarassMap also offers a place for women who are the victims of sexual assault a place to come together and receive professional help, they also offer self defense lessons.  It is important for the women to know that their stories are important and that people want to listen. As well it matters to know that through HarassMap they can make a change. HarassMap is truly the perfect venue of social media for a  social change. HarassMap is allowing women to make their voices heard.

T4Turban Instagram

T4Turban Instagram

To become finically independent as a women living in the Middle East is very difficult. Social norms in some con tires prohibit women from leaving their homes unaccompanied by a male let alone getting a job independently.

Social Media is changing this, now women can created their very own business online and never have to leave their homes.  This explains why 10%  percent of Internet start up companies are run by women worldwide except in  Middle Eastern cities: there that percentage goes up to a staggering 35% (Amman).  Rand Al Bassam, saw $10,000 worth of email orders for her turbans in one month after she launched on Instagram. She’s since established an e-commerce platform for T4Turban (MacBride).

Zaytouneh Cooking Viedo

One women that lived in Jordan,  Fida Taher, launched her own cooking website called Zaytouneh. This is a cooking website where now over 600 recipes are featured it is a big success on YouTube. It is the same format as the video above just giving cooking instructions  while showing the ingredients and hands of the chef. This incredibly successful business could not have been started without social media.

Financial independence can be achievable for women in the Middle East though social media. Many women have turned to social outlets to promote their businesses. Social media is igniting the Arab communities and empowering women to become their own bosses and financial support.

Social media is also making it simple and powerful for women to gain more political freedom. Women in Saudi Arabia recently staged a protest to allow them to drive that they promoted though social media.

The recent protests participants were encouraged to post videos of themselves driving online. They were encouraged to hastage the events as they posted them online so the entire world could see their protest. As well there is a Facebook page, entitled “Support #Women2Drive” has over 18,768 likes (Support #Women2Drive).  It is on this page that support is gathered for protests just like the one that just happened.

Manal al Sharif behind the wheel

Manal al-Sharif behind the wheel

One political activist and one of the first women to get behind the wheel in 2011, Manal al-Sharif has  shown that even with social media it is still a struggle to achieve political change she has been quoted saying,”I measure the impact I make by how harsh the attacks are. The harsher the attacks, the better I am doing” (Johnson). She has used social media to help spread her mission to get women to drive. Here is a video depicting her methods of political activism in Saudi Arabia. Her video really shows how vital social media is to her movement.

Women  in the Middle East will continue to use social media to spread their protests and eventually to achieve their right of driving independently, and they will continue to stage protests and gather support through social media until they have their rights.

The social media revolution is happening all over the Middle East. Social medias has given a voice to the voiceless, an open economy to the otherwise isolated, and a place to gather, protest and collaborate.

Women in the Middle East are using social media to its fullest potential to increase their political and social freedom and to alter the society in which they live.

Works Cited

Amman. “Start-up Spring.” 13 July 2013. The Economist. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. <http://www.economist.com/news/business/21581737-clusters-internet-firms-are-popping-up-all-over-region-start-up-spring>.

Di Giovanni, Janine. “Riding Shotgun With The Woman Driving Change in Saudi Arabia.” Newsweek. Newsweek, 07 Nov. 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. <http://www.newsweek.com/riding-shotgun-woman-driving-change-saudi-arabia-2770>.

Fadel, Leila. “Vigilantes Spray-Paint Sexual Harassers In Cairo.” NPR. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. <http://www.npr.org/2012/11/01/164099058/vigilantes-spray-paint-sexual-harassers-in-cairo>.

Johnson, Bridget. “Manal Al-Sharif.” About World News. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. <http://worldnews.about.com/od/saudiarabia/p/Manal-Al-Sharif.htm>.

“HarassMap | Ending the Social Acceptability of Sexual Harassment and Assault in Egypt.” HarassMap. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. <http://harassmap.org/en/>.

MacBride, Elizabeth. “Arab Spring 2.0: The Rise of Women Entrepreneurs.” CNBC. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. <http://www.cnbc.com/id/101179963>.

“Support #Women2Drive.” Facebook. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. <https://www.facebook.com/Women2Drive>.

“T4Turban | Your One Stop Shop for Turbans.” T4Turban | Your One Stop Shop for Turbans. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. <http://www.t4turban.com/>

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Do You Look Just Right?

thinner Model Banned in Spain









Works Cited





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The Highs and Lows of Collegiate A Cappella


Preparation and performance in collegiate a cappella goes well beyond what audiences see on stage. What used to be known as just an interesting and fun extra curricular activity is now becoming extremely competitive and growing in popularity all over the country.

While television shows, such as Glee, provide exciting and dramatic entertainment dealing with a cappella and the musical world, they don’t portray a cappella groups in a realistic manner. Indeed they are entertaining to watch and people can become deeply involved with songs and storylines, a cappella groups put a lot of effort and dedication into their performances and the process leading up to them. In order to pull a group together it takes auditions, arranging, song selection, learning, and so much more.

Being in an a cappella group is like being in a family. You spend so much time together and all have a passion for singing and performing. In some cases, if more than one group appears on a campus they can become extremely competitive with each other. This competitiveness can amplify when groups decide to compete. Competition is a way to reach out to other groups and see what is going on across the country.

One of the biggest competitions in the a cappella world is SoJam. This specific competition chooses seven groups to compete against each other over the course of a weekend. Along with the concerts there is a professional concert, workshops, and acabombs. It is really helpful to hear different opinions through the workshops and get to know different groups to learn from them.

This year’s SoJam competition was taken over by the Nor’easters from Northeastern University. They did a phenomenal job in the concerts and won over the crowd by a landslide. One of their biggest strengths was their arrangements. They were composed by one of their own members and fit the dynamics of the group well. The emotion they poured into each song also made them really stand out among the other groups.

Most audiences while watching a competition or a performance, doesn’t really understand the effort put behind each song. All they see is the final product. Songs don’t just magically come together into perfect blends of harmonies and sounds. Choreography doesn’t just come naturally and flow all the time. Sounds aren’t produced out of thin air to come together and sound like instruments. All of this takes practice and dedication.

Being in an a cappella group myself I get to see first hand the work that is put into the songs and the focus everyone has to have to pull them off. The first time I heard about a cappella was when my stepdad played a CD of my stepbrother’s a cappella group. My first impression was that it was kind of funny and didn’t really sound like a great way to spend time. My stepdad then encouraged me to go see one of my brother’s concerts in Chapel Hill. I was truly amazed by the performance! It was completely not what I had expected. The way a group of sixteen people could work together to form sounds the imitated instrument noises was incredible.

Soon after this concert, a new show called Glee aired on Fox Network. Glee was a show about a group of high school misfits who came together in a glee club and shared in a world of singing. This really jumpstarted everyone’s new obsession with a cappella and arrangements. The Glee cast was dominating ITunes and YouTube and the show’s arrangements were even available in sheet music so groups could perform them. In the show, the characters can just suddenly burst into musical perfection and sing their worries away through fantastic arrangements. Realistically this is not how songs are created and arranged for groups.

Some a cappella groups across the country use a tool called Finale. Instead of plucking away notes on a keyboard, you can just plug them into Finale and play it back to hear how everything sounds. This is also how some groups learn and teach the finished products. By playing the arrangement back, each voice part can hear what it sounds like separately and learn to sing their notes.

While the world of a cappella is a wonderful place to live throughout college, it seems a bit unrealistic to continue on with it as a career. Shows like The Sing Off, however, have created wonderful opportunities for people to come together and compete in a professional setting. They are designed to entertain as well as give groups the opportunity to show that they can handle the pressures of being professional. One of the biggest groups to come off and win the show is Pentatonix. Made up of only five vocalists, they ended up winning the third season of The Sing Off and continue to perform today.

The world of a cappella can be confusing and competitive, but that is what keeps it interesting and entertaining. There is more to performances than what audiences see. They look at it and see a group of people making instrument noises and blending well together. The time and effort put into each song and set can also be projected depending on how the group performs. From a somewhat nerdy way to spend free time, a cappella has certainly become a popular thing to be involved in. There are hundreds of collegiate a cappella groups across the country and they all demonstrate a passion for what they do and are proud to be in an a cappella family.


 “Give Me Love”-Nor’easters (Northeastern University)-SoJam 2012 Competition. 2012. Web. 11 Dec 2012. “Give Me Love”

“Competition.” SoJam A Cappella Festival. Living Fiction Media, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. SoJam

“Pentatonix Official Website.” Pentatonix. Section 101, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. Pentatonix

“From the Finale Blog.” Finale Music Composing & Notation Software. MakeMusic, Inc., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. Finale


 Nor’easters SoJam Win. Digital image. CASA. The Contemporary A Cappella Society, n.d. Web. Nor’easters SoJam Win

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Internships: Today’s Slave Work?


image from BunkerLawGroup

Internship programs are not adequately preparing their interns with the necessary skills required to thrive in a career. Many work tirelessly and are not properly compensated. The focus is no longer on the intern, but the employers finding free labor within a difficult job market.

Internship programs were established to give people an opportunity to be part of the workforce and gain vital experience. It is also a time to make essential connections with future employers. They have been considered excellent resume builders that increase the marketability of an individual. In an article by Jennifer Bay she describes her idea of an internship’s purpose by saying “Internships or experiential learning situations are popular ways for universities to address student desire for career preparation”. She also suggests that all the work must be relevant to what the rest of the workplace is doing.  Sadly, her view is overly idealistic and does not align with the true nature of these practices.

One of the main issues is the lack of payment interns receive. Compensation is not required for an individual’s efforts if the employers stay within the Labor Department’s guidelines. According to an article from The New York Times, “The Labor Department says that if employers do not want to pay their interns, the internships must resemble vocational education… cannot not be of immediate benefit to the employer” (Greenhouse). Specific boundaries have been set, yet little is stopping employers from exploiting their interns. In an article from TIME , Diana Wang recounts her experience interning and how the company took advantage of her. Like many others, she too was given jobs that make the intern feel that they are not contributing to the progression of the business. This has become one of the largest stigmas associated with interning. The coffee mug above gives a comedic example of a ‘job’ an intern might be given. It shows a green coffee mug that reads “Fill This, Intern.” This shows how widespread the belief is that interns are forced to do tasks that waste their talents, and provides no educational experience. It makes an individual seem inconsequential and worthless.


Image from PBS

These recognized issues are not stopping many students. With the unemployment rate at an all time high, students with little to no resume continue to flock towards these “opportunities”. However, the demanding schedule leaves no room for one to find a second, paid job. While some are completing meaningless tasks, others are operating on the same caliber as the rest of the employees. With the majority of their time spent slaving away, while trying to sustain themselves, it can be very easy for one to quickly fall into debt.  This image shows just how terrifying debt is and how it can easily creep on one if they are not careful. Juggling all the responsibilities of work and home life, especially if one is newly independent, can quickly becoming overwhelming. Having no source of income only adds to the anxiety.

Employers do not have free reign over how they treat their interns. Intern Nation by Ross Perlin lists the required criteria that must be met.  The rules are meant to ensure that the employer and employee have a clear understanding of the extent of their duties and give fair compensation for these efforts. Perlin says, “…but if even one of the six criteria is not met, the internship is legally considered a job, bringing the benefits of the minimum wage, overtime pay, and associated rights.”. The same article from Time shares the story of Eric Glatt , who worked on set for the film Black Swan. His job was not even listed as an intern. He was listed as an accounting clerk. He was working full days in a position that is normally paid. It resulted in Glatt filing a lawsuit against Fox Searchlight. People, such as him, are bravely leading the charge toward fair treatment.

Interning is not an unsalvageable practice. Many programs that run through universities are highly structured and provide educational experiences. Internships can often build into the curriculum and work toward better understanding of a concept. A scholarly article that came out of Wayne State University  shows us how a highly structured internship that’s organized by the school can be a worthy time investment. Three examples are given of students who attended the University. All of the internships directly aligned with their respective majors. These interns were also paid. “This position is taken for a sound sociological reason: it teaches the intern and the sponsor that sociological skills deserve and require compensation” (Kelly). It teaches the students what to expect when working and sets a standard so they accept no less than they deserve.  This scholarly article is a perfect example of how an internship program can run at the optimal efficiency.

Internship programs have the potential to be the perfect transition between school and full- time employment. However, The system is still imperfect and people have been allowed to slip by without facing the consequences. Not all internship programs are corrupt or unfair, but enough evidence is present to support the claim that interning is not always the best course of action and may not be the best place to invest one’s time and energy.

Works Cited

The Uneven Playing Field of Unpaid Internships.” Cartoon. PBS. PBS, 09 May 2012. Web. 25 Oct. 2012. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/opinion/the-uneven-playing-field-of-unpaid-internships/13785/

Unpaid Internships and Small Businesses. N.d. Photograph. Unpaid Internships. Web. 30 Oct. 2012. http://bunkerlawgroup.com/2011/09/06/unpaid-internships-and-small-businesses/

Perlin, Ross. Intern Nation: How to Earn Nothing and Learn Little in the Brave New Economy. London: Verso, 2011. Print

Greenhouse, Steven. “Jobs Few, Grads Flock to Unpaid Internships.” 6 May 2012: n. pag. The New York Times. The New York Times, 05 May 2012. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/business/unpaid-internships-dont-always-deliver.html?pagewanted=all

Sanburn, Josh. “The Beginning of the End of the Unpaid Internship.” TIME.com. N.p., 2 May 2012. Web. 30 Oct. 2012. http://business.time.com/2012/05/02/the-beginning-of-the-end-of-the-unpaid-internship-as-we-know-it

Bay, Jennifer. Preparing Undergraduates for Careers: An Argument for the Internship Practicum. N.p., Nov. 2006. Web. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25472198

Kelly, Robert F. Teaching Graduate Applied Sociology Through Internships: Program Development, Management, and Problems. N.p., n.d. Web. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1318380

Loretto, Penny. “New Department of Labor Guidelines on Internships.” About.com Internships. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.
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