Hi, I'm near the end of my last year of BSc Biochemistry and thought I wanted to a PhD straight after but now I'm not so sure. Is it frowned upon if you take a year out? What would be the best way of spending a year out? Thanks.

Hi,
I did a BSc in Biochem and took a year out before my Phd. It depends on your state of mind whether you'll benefit from time off. For me, I just needed a break; time away from the lab was good because i spent the year travelling and temping. From part-time teaching to data input- it all helped decide that a Phd was something i definitely had to do and made me more motivated to do it. The experience you gain and wider perspective can impress at an interview, a year on.

Go for it! I think its so important to take some time out and get a bit of a different viewpoint, especially if you didn't take time out before uni. I took last year as a 'development year', and during my interview my supervisor appeared impressed with my initiative and we ended up just chatting about south america. Make sure you do something worthwhile with your time though!

Thanks for your replies guys, that was really helpful! Elle, what did you do in your year out?
I'm not a very confident person so I guess I could benefit from some different experiences - but now I need to decide what to do for a whole year?!

I would recommend to anyone that they take a year out - even if you just spend the year working. You just learn so much, and going into a PhD being that bit more mature and experienced can only be a good thing!

Hi,I think you should take a break but I think that one year is too much..you know,if you loose touch with things,the more difficult it becomes to take the desicion to continue afterwards..good luck

I took a year out and it was the best thing I could have done - it allowed me to gain more lab experience and to travel. It impressed the people who interviewed me that I'd taken time to consider my options. My year out also helped me gain a lot more confidence - something very necessary for PhD study with all those presentations to do!! But you MUST do something worthwhile during the year out - don't just sit in front of the TV!!