Paths less traveled

The long winding road that stands in front of graduating seniors has many forks and bumps along the way to their future. These new adults must find their own place in the world and choose their own method of attacking the many choices that lay before them. These options include four-year schools, community colleges, trade schools, taking a gap-year, joining the military or going to work as an intern or in other fields.

“By far, most Chantilly students end up at four-year schools,” Career Center Specialist Alice Robertson said.

Four-year schools, like Virginia Tech or James Madison, are schools where students stay, live, work and learn on campus. They also tend to have a better reputation than the smaller community colleges.

“I want to go to a four-year college because it provides more opportunities for education and you can get a better level of education,” senior Neel Kowdley said.

Community colleges are also good options according to Robertson and counselor Megan Broadbent.

“It really depends on the individual student,” Broadbent said. “They have to assess how they’ve done the last four years.”

Students go to a community college to take two years and improve their chances of getting into a good four-year school. They then have the option to transfer to one of the four-year colleges if they want. It is also a better option for those with strained financial situations and cannot afford a four-year college.

“I’m going to go to NOVA, and then transfer to Virginia Tech,” junior Ahad Pathan said. “It’s just cheaper, and it’s in reach.”

Some students opt for a gap year, which is a relatively new idea in America according to Robertson.

“For a gap year, you’re applying to colleges, but deferring enrollment for a year,” Robertson said. “You have to do something, though; it’s not a gap year if you decide to hang out for a year.”

During this gap year, students can work, intern at a business, go on a mission trip or do something they feel is beneficial to them.

“I think it’s a good learning experience,” senior Stephanie Ospino, who is going to a gap year program in Miami, said. “You learn things you wouldn’t learn in a classroom and college.”

Other students choose to go directly into the military after they graduate high school. By doing this, and serving for a specified amount of time, they earn tuition assistance and financial help to pay for their college education when they get home.

“I mainly want to go to the Marines for the family tradition,” senior Chris Crowley said. “I also want to feel like I’m helping and doing something important.”

If they are looking to go into an officer position in the military, a student can go to any of the three military colleges: West Point, United States Naval Academy or the United States Air Force Academy. The education is free, but they must serve for eight years in total after they graduate.

College, options Academics, Issue 4, Print