Gap Year: Taking time off from formal post secondary education to travel, volunteer, explore a particular vocation or a combination of all of these.  

Post Secondary Planning: Developing a comprehensive Post Secondary / College education plan that addresses career ambitions, financial costs and needs as well as a timeline for completion.

There are a number of different steps to go through to begin developing a strong Gap Year and Post Secondary plan.

1.  It begins with both students and parent(s) filling out a 35 question survey.  They are separate for each but ask somewhat similar questions.
2. After the survey is completed a two hour meeting is scheduled between the Student, Parents(s)/guardian and Chris Brown from BWE. The meeting is broken down as follows:
   1. Meet together with family to go over process and expectations. (15 minutes)
   2. Meet with parent(s) alone and go over survey results for clarification and deeper input. (30 Minutes) 
   3. Meet with student and go over survey results for clarification and deeper input (30 Minutes)
   4. Meet with parents and student to discuss results and next steps.
3. We will return with a packet that includes the following: 
   1. a list of five or six Post Secondary Institutions/ Colleges that fit the criteria of both Student and Parents.the Pros and cons of each institution will be discussed between the family and the BWE consultant. 
   2. potential organizations to volunteer, intern for or travel with.  This includes the costs, contacts, logistics, Pros and cons and how they may fit into different higher education institutions
   3. a detailed plan that includes goals, objectives, completion timeline checklist, resource directory and Scholarship information
   4. Check in with student and family 4 times during year 1 (2 face to face and 2 on line)