There are signs that the gap year has fallen out of favor as new students realize that with rising rents and an uncertain financial future, they and their parents can no longer afford a year abroad.

Both Cambridge and Oxford have reported a striking increase in university admissions this year – up 12% year on year, a phenomenon they believe is linked to students cutting their gap year to a summer of liberty before starting their degree.

Travel firms that specialize in year-off and round-the-world trips acknowledged a slowdown in the student market. Instead, the growth flows from an older demographic: workers who have been made redundant are taking the opportunity to forget their woes with an extended trip, while school-leavers are opting for shorter breaks that fit into the summer holidays. A once lucrative market – worth £2.5bn in 2005 – appears to be shrinking.

Andy Woods-Ballard, director of operations for the gap year firm Global Vision International, said: “With the current economic climate people are more worried about taking time [out] and the costs associated with traveling.”

The industry confirms gap years are getting shorter. A spokeswoman for Real Gap Experience said: “It’s more popular to take eight to 12 weeks off the summer before starting university rather than taking a full year out.”

In response to this demand, more than 80% of the firm’s programmes run for between two and 12 weeks. GVI said its main growth area was in shorter placements of two to four weeks between finishing school and starting university. Parents have made it clear they could not afford to support their children on both a gap year and through university, the firm said.

Launder, from Wandsworth, south London, who went on a placement to Zimbabwe on her gap year, said: “I only went away for two months because it was so expensive. The placement and my travel costs were over £4,500. The rest of the time I worked like a madwoman in two shops – a toy shop and a food shop – six days a week.

“I’m working part-time in a toy shop in Oxford now and the paid work I did on my gap year helped me get that job. So much money is coming out of my account I need to work.”

Related Posts

• England Universities getting a blow from foreign rival institutions
• Obama wins could hit the ability of UK universities to recruit overseas students
• International Students Fees increasing faster than Inflation
• UK Graduates should study abroad to get High Paid Jobs
• Students owe an average of £20,000 once they complete their graduation
• UK Universities are the top spot for Bulgarians Students