The 10 Year Gap Year

Going into her second and final year of the English and Cultural Studies Master’s program, Natalie Baker is eager for the school year to start but knows that, as with every other school year, it will be a roller coaster. 

Before enrolling in her current program at Lakehead University’s Orillia campus, Baker holds two previous post-secondary accreditations, one being an Honours Bachelor of Arts and Science from Lakehead in English and Geography from 2013, and a Diploma in Creative Photography from Humber College, which she graduated from in 2017. 

“I’m going to be so real and say I don’t remember how I felt about it. I imagine it’s similar to see now, though: definitely bittersweet. I don’t want it to end, but at the same time I’m ready to keep going. I’m sure that come winter — when I’m writing my research project — I’m going to be screaming, crying, throwing up while managing everything. For now, though, I’m excited to start the new school year.” 

Between the years of her diploma and her Master’s, Baker became a dabbler of many pursuits, which included taking the odd creative writing or geography class. It was through these courses that she started to question whether her post-secondary journey was truly over. Baker credits Dr Pendea from Lakehead’s Geography department with being the final push to apply to the Master’s program. 

“I often joke that it was because I felt my brain atrophying in real time, which certainly was a big factor. Frankly, I was also bored and needed a change. Initially, I was taking single classes. I took a creative writing class with Dr. Olutola and Conservation Geography with Dr. Pendea, which was really fun, but I never intended to go beyond that. It wasn’t until a conversation with Dr. Pendea, who asked me if I felt my academic journey was over, that I realized I wanted to formally pursue my Master’s degree.” 

Without Pendea’s guidance and ultimate push, Baker is unsure where she would be in her life and is grateful to be where she is. 

Within the twelve years between Undergraduate versus Graduate, Baker takes note of the student she has become since her first round at Lakehead. The immense confidence she now has in herself brings completely different experiences into her student and personal life. 

“You wouldn’t have known it at the time, at least I don’t think so, but I was pretty anxious for the first bit. It helps, too, being in my thirties, because I find a lot of the stuff I used to stress about is inconsequential now.” 

With her confidence and some life experience under her belt, she often wonders if there is such a thing as throwing too much caution to the wind. 

“I’m a lot more confident. Sometimes I worry I’m bordering on wild, mindless, and reckless hubris, but so far I haven’t become a super-villain, so it’s probably okay. Overall, the switch was painless. I love school, and all my new classmates are super cool, intelligent, and interesting people who were immediately supportive and kind. It felt a lot like coming home.” 

Though no super-villain tendencies have come to light as of yet, Baker’s thesis project centres around the literary genre known as “Romantasy.” The Oxford English Dictionary describes the genre as “a subgenre of fiction that combines elements of both the romance and fantasy genres, typically focused on a romantic narrative that takes place in a fantasy setting.” Popular titles include Sarah J Mass’ A Court of Thorns and Roses series or Rebecca Yarros’ The Empyrean series.

Although Baker did not go into detail on her thesis project, she explained the process as a quest for answers in a never-ending field of answers. 

“So, part of the reason I felt like my brain was atrophying [during her academic hiatus] was because of how much Romantasy I had been reading. Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s fine to read whatever you enjoy! And I was enjoying it. It’s fun. But the more I read, the more I noticed. A growing list of questions sprouted in the back of my head (envision mushrooms on a log), until I decided to formally explore said questions. 

Baker’s time to write her thesis project, the countdown has officially begun. Her proposal is done, research is well underway, the only things that are left are the last semester of classes and to write her project in its entirety come winter semester. After this, Baker hopes to continue into a PhD program, but has yet to settle on a single focus. Much like mushrooms on a log, her topics of interest vary while remaining connected to the Humanities field. 

On her last note to readers, she encourages others to go bigger than their imagination and to try everything that comes their way. 

“Listen, I’m just a human-sized weird changeling person wandering through life and trying to figure out what the hell is going on. I have a lot of rocks. I play a lot of horror video games. I excel at doing absolutely nothing. I deal with an ever-present yearning to eat sea glass. I am not listening to music. And yet, I’m in a Master’s program. If I can do it, so can you!”