Susan,
I am not really highly qualified to respond. But, I am very interested in careers, employment etc. in Chemistry. Our daughter, after college, worked for a major chemical company for a year or two, following her degreee in molecular biology. She went back to graduate school and got a Ph.D. So, she did go on after a break. Her work was very much related to her before and after degree and she improved her network. I guess my input would be related to what you would be doing that year off? Maybe do the freshman, possibly the sophmore year and get something highly related to your interests and degree. You could make connections at college that would assist with that year off. Also, with the economy in its current state, what opportunities do you have to do something of interest? If funds are important, the year off might be unrelated to the degree and possibly a distraction. For what it is worth, here's my two cents. I am retired and am beginning to examine the education, jobs, careers etc. as available for an A.C.S. member. Good Luck.
