College Plans and Deferrals: Fitting the Year in Israel Around College

Two routes, and how to pick

You have two ways to line up college with a year in Israel.

• Apply in 12th grade and defer. You apply with your class, get accepted, and ask the college to hold your place for a year. You go to Israel knowing where you'll be afterward, and your teachers and counselor are on hand for recommendations.
• Apply from Israel. You apply during your year away, for entry the following fall. This gives you another year of maturity and maybe a clearer idea of what you want to study. You'll also be writing essays and chasing transcripts from another time zone.

For most students, applying in 12th grade is simpler. Applying from Israel can make sense if you're unsure where you want to go or think your application will be stronger in a year. If you choose that route, ask your high school counselor before graduation how documents will be sent next year.

How a deferral request generally works

A deferral means the college agrees to hold your place for a year. Colleges often call it a gap year request. There is no single rule, so read your college's own policy. The usual pattern looks like this.

1. 1Get accepted and confirm your place. Many US colleges want your confirmation and enrollment deposit by May 1.
2. 2Submit the college's deferral or gap year form by its deadline, and say what you'll be doing. The deadline is not the same everywhere. The University of Wisconsin-Madison sets it at May 1 for fall first-year students. Occidental College's falls in the summer.
3. 3Wait for written approval. Deferral is a request, not a right, and some colleges limit it to certain students or programs.
4. 4Follow the conditions during the year: an extra deposit at some colleges, a date by which you reconfirm, and a new financial aid application.

Three conditions catch families out.

• Credit during the year. Some colleges won't approve a deferral if you'll be in a program that grants college credit. UW-Madison's policy says so directly. Occidental doesn't allow full-time enrollment at another college during the deferral, though it may accept up to two courses taken elsewhere.
• Financial aid. You'll usually have to apply for aid again for the year you actually start. Ask whether a merit scholarship is held for you or has to be won again.
• Length. One year is the norm. If a second year in Israel, called shana bet (שָׁנָה ב׳), is a possibility, ask now whether a second year of deferral can ever be approved. See a second year.

Get the approval and its conditions in writing, and keep the email. If the college says credit from Israel is fine, ask it to say that in writing too.

Credit option 1: a college that makes the year its first year

Two universities run programs in which the year in Israel counts as your first year of college with them. Both require you to be accepted by the university and, separately, by the Israeli school. Both expect you to continue at that university afterward.

Yeshiva University: S. Daniel Abraham Israel Program. YU describes it as a partnership with more than 40 yeshivas and seminaries, in which students are fully enrolled YU undergraduates during the year. YU's catalog says credits earned in the program appear as YU credits on your transcript, though they don't count toward the requirement to complete a minimum amount of study on the New York campus. YU's pages don't give one fixed number of credits, so ask.

• You must apply to YU from high school, during senior year. You're eligible only on your original acceptance out of high school.
• Enrolling means committing to continue at YU. YU says you may not enroll in another college.
• As listed in October 2026: a $3,500 non-refundable program fee on top of the Israeli school's tuition, which includes a $550 enrollment deposit. YU says $2,000 of the fee is applied to your first semester's tuition in New York.
• YU says students in the program have access to federal and state financial aid.

Touro University: Israel Option. Touro says students can earn up to 36 credits for a full year. Its Lander College for Men page breaks that down as 24 credits from Israel Option courses plus up to 12 transfer credits after you return.

• You apply to a Touro college and to the Israeli school, then sign a tuition contract with Touro.
• Touro says the option is not open to students who live outside the US or who were admitted on probation.
• You can't hold a deferral at another college while you're in it.
• As listed in October 2026 on the Lander College for Men page, the administrative fee runs from $1,100 to $1,500 depending on how early you enroll.
• Touro publishes lists of participating schools. The seminary list we checked was dated February 2025, so confirm your school is on the current one.

These programs fit students who already know they'll attend that university.

Credit option 2: credit your program arranges

Many programs have their own arrangement with a college, which issues a transcript for the year. For example, Young Judaea's Year Course says participants can earn up to a year's worth of college credits and lists a US college as its partner.

A transcript is only half the picture. The college you attend decides how many of those credits it accepts and what they count toward. Ask the program which colleges are its partners, then ask your own college what it will do with that transcript. Look for partner colleges on each program's page when you browse all programs.

Questions to ask your college

Email the admissions office, and ask the registrar's office (the office that handles transcripts and credits) about anything to do with credit.

• Do you allow deferrals for a year in Israel? What's the deadline, and what do I submit?
• May I earn college credit during the year? Does doing so change my status from first-year student to transfer student?
• How many credits from my program's transcript would you accept, and would they count toward my major, general requirements or only electives?
• Is my merit scholarship held? When do I reapply for financial aid?
• Is my place in a specific program, honors college or housing held too?
• What do I have to do during the year, and by what dates, to keep my place?

When you're back, getting your college credit covers the transcript steps. For the full calendar, see the application timeline.

Common questions

Will every college let me defer for a year in Israel?

No. Many do, but deferral is a request the college has to approve, and each one sets its own deadline and conditions. Read the college's deferral or gap year policy and ask admissions before you rely on it.

Can I get college credit and still defer?

It depends on the college. Some approve a deferral only if you won't be in a program that grants college credit, and others allow a limited number of outside courses. Ask your college in writing before you sign up for a credit arrangement in Israel.

Do I need to reapply for financial aid?

Usually yes. Colleges generally award aid for the year you start, so expect to file your aid forms again. Ask separately whether any merit scholarship is held for you.

What if I decide to stay for a second year?

Most deferrals are for one year. Some colleges will consider a second year in special cases, and others won't. Ask your college early, before you commit to the second year.

I'm in the UK. How does this work with UCAS?

UCAS calls it deferred entry. It advises contacting the university before you apply to check that it accepts deferred applications. You can usually defer by one year, and you still have to meet your offer conditions in the year you apply.