tical analyses were performed . The Institutional Review Board of the WVU SoM approved of this project ( Protocol Number 2112491909 ). The frequency of all applicants to WVU SoM who indicated that they took a gap year was determined . The number of years between applicants ’ college graduation dates and medical school application dates were extracted from the application of every applicant who ultimately matriculated at WVU SoM . The types of experiences in which the matriculated applicants partook during the gap year were identified . Each experience was classified as belonging to one of six categories : education , research , medically related employment , non-medically related employment , volunteerism , and US military service . The percentage of students who took a gap year in each WVU SoM class was calculated , along with the range , mean , median , and mode of the length of the gap year for each of the three study cycles . The frequency of experiences from each of the six categories , which occurred during the gap year , was also determined .
RESULTS
The number of applications reviewed for the study period were as follows : 5,559 in 2019 , 5,053 in 2020 , and 5,064 in 2021 . The frequency of applicants who indicated that they took a gap year prior to applying to WVU SoM was 65 % ( N = 3644 ), 66 % ( N = 3365 ), and 69 % ( N = 3485 ) for application years 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 , respectively . In the matriculating class size of 112 per year at WVU SoM , the frequency of students who took a gap year was 42 % ( N = 50 ), 45 % ( N = 51 ), and 54 % ( N = 60 ) for application years 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 , respectively . There was a statistical difference in the percent of in-state versus outof-state applicants who took a gap year in 2019 and 2020 ( 33 % versus 62 % and 33 % versus 61 %, respectively ; p < 0.05 ). There was no statistical difference in the percentage of in-state versus out-of-state applicants who took a gap year in 2021 ( 50 % versus 58 %, respectively ). Although one year was the most common length of time for a gap year in all three study years , there were differences in the ranges , means , and medians . The ranges for the length of gap years were 1 to 9 years for 2019 , and 1 to 13 years for 2020 and 2021 . The means for the length of gap years were 2.3 years , 2.8
years , and 2.6 years for 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 , respectively ; and the medians for the length of gap years were 1.8 years , 2.0 years , and 1.5 years , respectively .
Gap year experiences could be classified as belonging to one of the six categories of education , research , medically related employment , non-medically related employment , volunteerism , and US military service ( Figure 1 ). The most common type of experience for all three application years was medically related employment , in which nearly 50 % of matriculants participated ; such employment included roles as a scribe , emergency medical technician , and others ( Table 1 ). The position of scribe was the most common medically related employment in which matriculants participated . During 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 , the frequency of educational experiences was 33.3 %, 40.4 %, and 24.4 %, respectively . Educational experiences included post-baccalaureate programs or classes , graduate studies ( individual courses , Doctor of Philosophy degree , and most commonly , a Master of Science degree ), and other endeavors ( Rhodes and Fulbright Scholarship programs , dental school , and US military coursework ). Nearly one-third of all matriculants for the three years participated in research . As for non-medically related employment , the frequencies were 17 %, 12.2 %, and 14 %, for years 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 , respectively . Employment consisted of an array of positions such as chemist , teacher , engineer , business owner , choreographer , and bartender ; AmeriCorps and Peace Corp experiences were included in this category . The frequency of serving in the US military was 2.1 %, 4 %, and 7 % for 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 , respectively , while the frequency of participating in unpaid volunteerism without stipends was 8.5 %, 4 %, and 12.3 %, respectively . Volunteerism activities included providing service in hospitals , hospice care , a substance use treatment program , and other community programs . In the three study years , one matriculated student ( 1 / 161 or < 1 %) listed travel for leisure and need for time away from studies as the reason for the gap year .
DISCUSSION
Limited information is available about gap years before medical school . 2-7 The six broad categories of the types of experiences that occur during gap years and examples about those experiences add new detail to this fund of knowledge . Advisors now have a list of experiences which can be shared with applicants but must counsel that a specific gap year experience that is beneficial to one applicant may not necessarily be beneficial to another . Recommendations about which experiences to pursue will be individualized depending upon deficits in advisees ’ applications at the time of considering a gap . For example , if an applicant has academic deficits ( such as earning a grade of “ C ” or less in multiple medically relevant undergraduate courses ), then pursuit of post-baccalaureate or graduate courses may be recommended ; however , if an applicant has minimal patient care experiences , then pursuit of physician shadowing and / or employment as a scribe may be recommended .
The data revealed a previously unreported finding that it is rare for a matriculated student to list travel for leisure as the reason for taking a gap year in their AMCAS applications . Although our study did not examine the reasons for a gap year , other researchers have already addressed this issue . 4 Limited reasons exist as to why one takes gap years , and it may not be by choice in all circumstances , such as times of financial hardship or illness , or not having a successful application cycle in the previous year . Common reasons also include needing more time to correct academic deficits in undergraduate studies and experiential deficits in patient care , leadership , research , and volunteerism . The results also include data about medical students who had previous careers , and working in their previous careers was the reason for their gap time ( such as serving in the US military ); these instances accounted for the longest gap times .
The variety of experiences in which applicants engage during gap years provides opportunities for the strengthening of the AAMC ’ s pre-professional core competencies of inter- and intrapersonal skills , thinking and reasoning capabilities , and fund of knowledge in the sciences . A particularly crucial strength that may be enhanced from gap year experiences is heightened cultural awareness and hu-
West Virginia Medical Journal • March 2025 • 21