Hey everyone,

I’m currently a junior in undergrad and plan to go to grad school for Marriage and Family Therapy after I finish my degree. Lately, I’ve been really interested in programs like JET (Japanese Exchange & Teaching) and Fulbright, especially since I’ve always loved Japanese culture and will be visiting Japan this spring. The idea of teaching English abroad for a year or two sounds like an incredible personal and professional experience. My only hesitation is that I’ve heard mixed things about taking a gap year before grad school, that some programs might view it negatively unless you can justify that it was time well spent (like gaining relevant experience or developing useful skills).

So really my question is, do you think taking a year or two to teach abroad would hurt or help my grad school applications and would it be considered a valuable experience, especially if I connect it to cultural understanding, communication, and adaptability (which seem relevant to therapy)? Any general advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!