Deferral and Gap Year

Sometimes a Dickinson education may not begin immediately after high school. Unprecedented opportunities or challenging situations prompt some students to defer or take a gap year. 

What's a deferral? A deferral is when a student decides to delay the start of college by a semester or two. This is often requested for medical reasons.

How is that different from a gap year? A gap year is taken when a student enrolls in an enrichment, fellowship or other such program. Some students invent their own experiences and engage in several different activities. Others find a full-time internship, work experience or service opportunity connected to a third-party organization, such as the Global Citizen Year. 

Deferral and gap year requests are not granted automatically. A written plan must be approved by the Dean of Admissions in order to approve a request to defer or take a gap year. Deferral and gap year requests are typically 300-500 words in length and provide details on what the student expects to do during the deferral or gap year, detailing the structure of the semester or year.

If you decide to push back your start at Dickinson for a semester or a year, there are a few simple steps you must take:

1. Submit your enrollment deposit. 
2. Request the deferral or gap year, including details of your plans, via the online form (accessible in the Applicant Portal).

With receipt of the enrollment deposit and approval of the deferral or gap year request, Dickinson will guarantee your place for the following semester or academic year as a full-time, first-year student.There are several requirements for students who defer the start of their Dickinson career:

1. Students may not enroll in a degree-granting program at another institution or apply to other colleges during your time off. Doing so would lead to a forfeit of admission to Dickinson. Should a student pursue academic courses at a university without enrolling in a degree program during their gap year, final grades must be submitted to the Office of Admissions. Academic performance that is not consistent with previous performance achieved at the time of admission may result in a review of the student's offer of admission.

2. The student must reconfirm their intention to enroll by the date noted in the Deferral Agreement Form through their Applicant Portal. An email will be sent to the student to reconfirm enrollment. Upon receipt of this, entry in the class will be confirmed.

3. Finally, we know sometimes plans change during a gap year. When unexpected issues arise, it is expected that students will find solutions and consult the Office of Admissions to ensure new/altered plans align with Dickinson's expectations of deferral or gap-year students. Flexibility and grace will guide the approval of new plans when things fall through, but it is expected that students will follow up and consult the Office of Admissions as soon as possible should plans change.

Financial Aid

If you are deferring for one semester, you will not have to file for need-based aid for that semester. The second half of your need-based aid package will be applied to the spring semester.

If you have received a financial-aid offer from Dickinson as part of your acceptance and are deferring for a full year, you will need to resubmit the forms for the next year. But unless your family's financial circumstances change significantly in the meantime, it is unlikely that your financial-aid package will change.

Scholarships

Also note that students who deposit and have an approved deferral of their enrollment will keep their merit scholarships.

Questions? 

Please contact gapyear@dickinson.edu. 

We look forward to welcoming you to the Dickinson community!