Why Colleges Care About Your High School Activities
It is no secret that admissions committees are interested in your academic achievements. Yet so much of your time is spent outside of the classroom! Colleges are equally as interested in how you pursue your passions and capitalize on your talents during your free time.
The activities and extracurriculars you participate in during high school will be critical in earning admission to college. Admissions committees know that students who are involved in activities are better prepared for college and have skills that will make them successful students and future professionals. More importantly, colleges recognize that being involved in extracurricular activities teaches students leadership, communication, and how to manage their time and commitments.
While it may be tempting to say yes to every high school activity, it is important to choose your extracurriculars wisely! Today we are going to teach you how to plan your high school activities so you can leverage your talents, pursue your passions, and earn admission to the college of your dreams.
1. Activities Are Meant to Support Your Academic Achievement
Though colleges are placing more of an emphasis on extracurricular involvement, your activities will never be as important as your academics. Your academic achievement will always count for 75% or more of the decision that admissions committees make. Only after you satisfy the academic requirements of the institution will the committee begin to look at your high school activities. Simply put, incredible extracurriculars will not make up for mediocre academic performance.
Colleges are eager to accept students who excel equally in the classroom and in real life. Academics should always be your first focus, but once you show your academic potential, you will need to show the admissions committee that you can make a meaningful contribution to campus life and eventually the world.
2. When It Comes to Involvement, Less is Often More
The activities that you are involved in say a lot about who you are as a student and person. As colleges review applications, admissions committees are looking for quality and commitment in your high school activities. When it comes to extracurriculars, admissions committees are more interested in the quality of your participation than the quantity of activities you participate in. They want to see that you are doing something you genuinely want to do as opposed to participating in a bunch of activities that are not relevant to your interests or talents.
Admissions committees will be less impressed by limited involvement in a ton of activities than they will be with major involvement in a handful of extracurriculars. Since selective colleges receive thousands of applications a year, they are used to seeing students who claimed to be president in 10 clubs during high school. This will lead admissions officers to question your involvement in the activities as well as your commitment to activities that better serve your unique passions and talents.
Colleges are particularly interested in activities that are connected to your unique talents or passions. For instance, if you are interested in pursuing a STEM major and have done exceptionally well in your STEM classes, colleges will look for activities that are related to your passion for STEM. This passion could take the form of independent research, community service, or leadership in a STEM-related club at your school.
3. Choose Your Leadership Roles Wisely
Serving as an elected official in a club or organization is a fantastic way to show your commitment and passion. As mentioned above, be cautious when choosing to take on leadership roles. Leadership roles in a few activities are preferred over short-term, casual involvement in several activities. Holding an elected office should show that you did more than just become elected by your peers. A great way to explain your leadership role is to use your resume to describe what you accomplished while in leadership.
It is also important to understand that leadership is more than just a title. It is an opportunity to identify a need or begin something new in or outside of your high school. A good way to determine what leadership roles you should pursue is by first reflecting on the issues or causes that matter to you. Do you have ideas about how you can get others involved? Can your leadership help teach others or serve your community in a new and interesting way? Considering those questions will help narrow down the list of clubs you should consider being seriously involved in.
Admissions officers are eager to see that your leadership left a mark on your high school or local community. They are interested in how you used your position of leadership to make your community a better place. If you are able to show them that your involvement was intentional and meaningful, they will see your leadership as a sign that you have something special to offer their campus.
4. Colleges Want to Admit Students Who Will Make a Difference in College and Beyond
One of the best ways that admissions committees predict student success is by looking at what students did while in high school. When reviewing applications, colleges want to sense enthusiasm and passion. Your extracurricular involvement is the best way to demonstrate your ability to make a difference on your future campus.
You can show the depth of your involvement by creating detailed descriptions on your resume. To create these descriptions, think of ways you took initiative and in turn made an impact by reviewing what you have done while in your leadership role.
If you are hoping to attend an Ivy League institution, you will need to show that your extracurricular involvement has had an exceptional impact. In fact, Ivies typically require or expect applicants to have achieved national or international recognition in their extracurriculars. Students who are unable to effectively show their exceptional impact run the risk of not being accepted to an Ivy League school.
Whatever your activities are, make sure they are something you enjoy, as that passion will shine through on your resume. For instance, here is a great example offered by College MatchPoint: You took initiative to create a neighborhood summer camp for kids in your community, which caused 20 kids to register for the camp. This statement will show admissions committees that you know how to take initiative when you see an issue and can make a lasting impact through your leadership.
5. Show Consistency Through Your High School Activities
Among the list of extracurriculars you provide, admissions committees want to see a thread of interest that is consistent across them. This means that your activities should be somewhat linked. Having consistency between your activities will give admissions officers a better idea of who you are, which is critical in the admissions process.
If you have a career or major in mind you should consider finding activities to get involved in that relate to that specific field. Experiencing a possible career field through high school activities is a helpful way to determine what you do and do not want to do in your future. Showing involvement in an activity related to your intended major can also demonstrate your commitment to that major, which is incredibly important to admissions committees.
The best way to create consistency in your involvement is by using your freshman and sophomore year to explore activities that relate to your interests and talents. Attend an activity fair at the beginning of your freshman year to see what your school offers. If you high school does not offer an activity in an area you are passionate about, do some research into community or local organizations that are not school sponsored. These local organizations are a great way to become an active member of your community.
As you progress into your junior and senior year you should have a good idea of the extracurriculars that you want to pursue leadership roles within and those that you do not. Keep in mind that involvement and leadership does not always mean being the captain or president. What is important is showing your continued interest and commitment to the activity.
6. Beware of “Pay to Play”
There are many programs and societies out there that students are able to join based not on their talents, but on their ability to pay the fee to join. On the surface these programs look very appealing and something that would be attractive to admissions officers. In reality, it is just the opposite!
Often, these “pay to play” programs do not convey your leadership, but instead indicate privilege and wealth. These programs are typically very expensive and tend to be just another activity that students list on a resume. Be cautious when choosing whether or not to join these organizations or programs. Only join if you truly want to learn or experience something that is only offered through this “pay to play” opportunity. Joining because you think it will impress an admissions committee will likely have the opposite effect and can turn committees away from your application.
7. The Things You Think Won’t Count, Do Count!
Not all of your activities have to be connected to established clubs or organizations. In fact, your activities can range from paid positions to how you spend your spare time. These unaffiliated activities are great ways for admissions officers to get to know the real you! Examples of these activities could be tutoring, photography, writing, playing instruments, arts and crafts, blogging, or teaching yourself a new language.
Other great examples of involvement include job shadowing or internships. Perhaps you spent your summers running a part-time lawn mowing business or earned multiple certifications as a lifeguard at your local pool. Maybe you spent time taking online non-credit courses for personal growth or spent a significant amount of time in a summer program. These are all incredible ways to show the admissions committee who you are and why you would make an excellent student on their campus.
Colleges and universities are eager to admit students who excel inside and outside the classroom. Developing meaningful involvement in your high school activities is the best way to show admissions officers that you are not only an exceptional student, but a leader who will proudly wear their alumni sweatshirt for years to come.
Are you looking for someone to help your high school student build a reasonable and balanced list of colleges they are excited to attend? Contact North Shore College Consulting today to learn more about our one-on-one, individual college consulting packages.