HMI Gap Semester ‘25

Having had an older sister who enrolled in an HMI Gap Semester four years prior to my doing so, I thought I had a relatively strong idea of what I was walking myself into upon arriving at the Denver International Airport. In some ways, my presumptions held true: I learned a lot about living in the outdoors, and far, far more about myself in the process. However, the ways in which I’ve grown from doing HMI feel distinct from the ways in which my sister grew from doing it — and they certainly feel different from the ways in which other kids on my own program have grown, too. I think one of the most beautiful things about an experience like HMI is that, on one hand, each group gets to reap the benefits of bonding to each other and to past groups through some sort of shared experience, and yet, each individual who passes through it will have an experience that’s still special to themselves. What I’d tell someone applying to HMI is this: you may be enticed by this experience because you think it will help you grow, and you’re almost certainly correct in that assumption. But you may end up growing in a lot of ways you didn’t expect to, especially if you free yourself of your preconceived notions about changed that SHOULD occur. Just sign up, pack your things, and let some HMI magic happen to you. You won’t regret it!