u/MelonsUNITE

I vividly remember where I was and what I was doing. I was in year 12 (11th grade for you Americans) sitting in my school library revising with my headphones on, and Spotify’s random shuffle feature puts on Something To Rap About. Holy shit, that was incredible, let me play the whole Alfredo album. Couldn’t believe what I was hearing, banger after banger, not one miss. Been a fan since, he was my top artist in 2024.

Hi everyone, sorry in advance for this being a long read.

I’m currently on a gap year with an unconditional offer but I’m considering another gap.

The reason I’ve taken this gap year and thinking of another is purely cause of financial reasons. Right now I’m classed as an overseas student despite living here since 2017 (don’t ask) and will only gain home status in 2027. I’ll have to pay one year of international fees which is coming out to be over 55k.

My parents have said they are fine with covering this instead of waiting another year. Their reasoning is that it’ll be difficult for me to get into the flow of uni work if I’ve been out of a learning routine for too long, and I’ll be almost 21 when I start (November birthday lol).

Earlier on, I was too excited by the prospect of becoming a doctor that I didn’t consider the fees aspect of it. Now that I think of it, it seems like such a waste to put in the amount a home student pays for the whole course, for just one year. In my opinion I’d much rather my parents save this money for the future. We’re not wealthy people so it’s not like this isn’t a major sum to pay.

Also, I’d have to commute ~90mins each way by train for first and potentially second year because we can’t afford student accommodation (can’t apply for loans cause I’m classed as an overseas student). I personally know a couple of people that have similar commutes to mine and say it’s fine but I’ve also heard horror stories of burnout and loneliness so I don’t know what to expect.

Another problem though is that I can’t defer the offer I already have because the university won’t allow it. Taking another gap year would mean I have to do the UCAT and interview process again which would be a bit of a pain but I’m confident that I can get another offer. My A-Level and GCSE grades are solid and I’ve done the UCAT twice already and have achieved scores in the top decile both times.

I would be working in this second gap year so it wouldn’t be time wasted. Plus I’m not fussed about the idea of being older than the rest of my cohort as I don’t think it particularly matters, especially for the career I’ve chosen.

I’ve tentatively brought up this idea to my parents but they’re against it because a) they don’t want me putting my life on hold for any longer and b) there’s always the possibility that if I could end up with no med offers if I reapply if I have bad interview performances. They’re very understanding people though so I’m sure I could convince them to support me in taking another gap if I told them that I really wanted to.

What do you guys think I should do? Suck it up and take the offer I have just to be safe + graduate earlier or wait a year and save 50k?

Hi. my name is Tom Pearl and I’m gonna eat my diarrhea for ya! Finally, I get some diarrhea, been looking forward to doing this for a long time. First I’m gonna piss… so I don’t piss all over the floor. And now, for the diarrhea. See, lookit… diarrhea! I gotta get- ooh, stinks! I’m gonna get me a spoon so I can get it. I may only be able to eat two or three spoonfuls cause, well, it really stinks, but I’ve never had diarrhea and I’ve really wanted to try to eat it, cause I so badly wanna say I’ve eaten diarrhea.

I had my first driving lesson today, first time ever behind the wheel, absolutely loved it. I want to do a bit of private practice with my dad, I was wondering if anyone here knew a nice quiet spot for beginner drivers?