hope u all get where u want to be!
no they arent... my friend waited a year after getting rejected from oxford and applied again, he got in.. i wish i took a gap year after covid in 2020, and its good if you use it correctly and get in the correct mindset. nothing prepares you for uni like a good productive gap year, some people are built for it, but it never hurts tbh. (deferred entry)
another took 2 years off and did free online courses on dental hygiene and dentistry after he got mediocre results, and got into Queen mary for dentistry. its all about how you use it.
another did biomdical engineering for 2 years after failing to get into medicine, then he applied for medicine, at a different uni, got in.