Our Mission: Providing an impactful program to guide recent high school graduates through personal discovery, professional development, and community connection during a “gap” year and to prepare them to develop a detailed and fully resourced plan in preparation for personal growth, future education, career, and life.
Map the Gap Program
Description of the video:
[GRAPHIC: MAP THE GAP LOGO, AN INDIANA UNIVERSITY SOUTH BEND PROGRAM][GRACE GUARD/MAP THE GAP PARTICIPANT ON CAMERA WITH WHITE BACKGROUND] "I DIDN'T WANT TO GO TO COLLEGE RIGHT AWAY. I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW WHAT I WANTED TO DO. WHEN, WHERE, WHAT, WHY. SO I TOOK A GAP BETWEEN MY HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE YEARS TO KIND OF FIGURE THAT OUT."
[VIDEO OF MAN AND WOMAN SITTING AT TABLE SMILING]
GUARD VOICE OVER: "I WAS FILLED WITH SO MUCH ANXIETY AND I REALLY DIDN'T DO A WHOLE LOT BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO START."
[VIDEO OF WOMAN PUTTING CAST ON MAN WHILE MAP THE GAP PARTICIPANTS WATCH IN CLASSROOM]
GUARD VOICE OVER: "NOW I'M DOING SO MUCH, I'VE MADE SO MUCH PROGRESS."
[NIKIYA HENDERSON/MAP THE GAP PARTICIPANT ON CAMERA WITH WHITE BACKGROUND] "SOMETHING I'VE REALIZED ABOUT MYSELF AFTER STARTING MAP THE GAP IS THAT I WASN'T REALLY PUSHING MYSELF AS HARD AS I SHOULD AND TRYING TO FIND MY CAREER."
[VIDEO OF MAN FLIPPING THROUGH BOOK WITH TWO YOUNG MEN, MAN IN MAP THE GAP JACKET COUNTING ON HIS FINGERS, GROUP OF STDUENTS WATCHING AS MAN WITH MEDICAL EQUIPMENT DEMONSTRATES HOW IT WORKS.]
HENDERSON VOICE OVER: "I WASN'T PUSHING MYSELF TO MY FULL POTENTIAL. I COULD HAVE BEEN RESEARCHING MORE, BUT I REALLY WASN'T. SO I FEEL LIKE JOINING THIS PROGRAM MADE ME MORE SERIOUS ABOUT IT."
GUARD ON CAMERA: "IT WAS SO COMFORTING TO KNOW THAT THERE WERE OTHER PEOPLE MY EXACT AGE THAT JUST GRADUATED WHO ARE ALSO DOING THIS."
[VIDEO OF MAP THE GAP PARTICIPANTS AND MENTORS STANDING IN GROUP TALKING, THREE PARTICIPANTS CHATTING WITH A MENTOR, PARTICIPANT OPERATING A PIECE OF MEDICAL EQUIPMENT]
GUARD VOICE OVER: "I FELT VERY UNCOMFORTABLE MY SENIOR YEAR. THEY HAD ALL THESE MEETINGS ABOUT – IF YOU'RE GOING TO COLLEGE DO THIS, IF YOU'RE GOING TO TRADE SCHOOL DO THIS. BUT NOBODY TALKED ABOUT IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING."
GUARD ON CAMERA: "I'VE DEFINITELY BEEN MORE MOTIVATED AND I FEEL A LOT MORE SELF CONFIDENCE. AND I FEEL MORE LIKE I CAN DO THIS BECAUSE OF THIS PROGRAM."
[VIDEO OF TWO PARTICIPANTS SITTING IN CHAIRS TALKING TO MENTOR JUDGE SPATARO, PARTICIPANTS LOOKING AT MEDICAL EQUIPMENT, GROUP SITTING AT A TABLE TALKING, PARTICIP[ANTS TALKING WITH MENTORS IN FRONT OF WHITE BOARD]
GUARD VOICE OVER: "MY FAMILY LOVES THAT I'M IN MAP THE GAP. THEY LOVE HEARING ABOUT EVERYTHING I'VE DONE AFTER EVERY MEETING SO THEY REALLY LIKE IT AND THINK IT'S GREAT."
GUARD ON CAMERA: "I DON'T KNOW WHY YOU WOULDN'T DO IT. IT'S SUCH A GOOD IDEA."
[GRAPHIC OF MAP THE GAP LOGO FULL SCREEN. AN INDIANA UNVERSITY SOUTH BEND PROGRAM, VIDEO FADES TO BLACK]
IU South Bend is currently accepting interest forms for young adults ages 18-21 who graduated in the last 3 years. Upon receipt, the Map the Gap staff will contact the applicant to schedule a personal interview to ensure the program is the right fit.
Interviews will be held between March 1, 2024, and June 15, 2024.
Accepted applicants will be notified within 10 days of their interview. Once accepted, each Gapper will receive the program calendar outlining mandatory and optional events, activities, and workshops.
The program will officially kick-off in late summer with an in person and energizing retreat.
The date for the retreat is tentatively set for August 3, 2024.
Prior to the retreat, there will be plenty to keep the Gappers busy during the summer including,
- Submitting their personal bios and life goals (templates provided)
- Being paired with a local mentor
- Meeting their mentor
- Completing an aptitude and interest assessment (not a test) which will provide the foundation for job shadowing experiences. This is a strength profile.
The program runs for 9 months, from September through May. During this time, the group will meet twice a month. Group sessions will provide training to help build professional skills, financial acumen, and networking strategies. Monthly workshops will focus on each Gapper’s personal career suggestions based on their individual assessment.
There will be plenty of time to do research on the suggested career paths, including future demand, pay and the higher education requirements for those positions. On-site job shadowing will be offered tailored to each Gapper’s choices.
Other opportunities include behind the scenes on-site tours to many local employers in a variety of industries, a day on IU South Bend’s campus experience, professional networking event, etiquette dinner, community volunteering opportunities, and much more!
Graduation from the program will be May 2025.
Gappers transform from being unsure of their next step in life to having a clear path, full of local resources to get them there. They finish with a 1 and 5-year plan outlined and a mentor for life.
Mentorship is a 1:1 relationship that is one to be trusted and respected. Map the Gap has hundreds of local professionals ready to guide a Gapper through the program. They are confidants that provide valuable guidance along the way. The Mentors give their time, talent, and treasures to their mentee, so they get the most out of the Map the Gap program.
Mentorship is a critical piece to the Map the Gap program. It is truly life-changing and can be a relationship built for life.
Thanks to supporters of the Map the Gap program, there is no financial cost to the Gapper. The expectation is the Gapper’s commitment to themselves and the program for the full 9 months.
IU South Bend is now accepting interest forms for the 2024-2025 Map the Gap Program!
If you are interested in participating in the program as a Gapper, Mentor or Industry Partner, please complete the interest form below and you will be contacted as soon as possible.
