<p>In high school, being in tons of different clubs can usually be easy considering the fact that many student organizations don't really do much. However, is it difficult to be heavily involved in college without sacrificing one's grades?</p>
<p>I plan on rushing, writing for the school paper, being in the Ad Club, and working. Plus, I'll more than likely be in the Honors Program. Will this be overwhelming for a freshman? </p>
<p>I'm usually perform pretty well under stress, but I just want to know what current college students think.</p>
<p>College is not like HS. You should participate in college EC’s only if you find them enjoyable.
Generally speaking, EC’s in college do not give you an advantage in future endeavors such as in the grad school admission’s process or employment. </p>
<p>First and foremost, your college GPA and research experience should take priority over any participation in a college EC. In other words, if you find that an EC is taking too much time away from your studying and your ability to achieve a solid GPA, drop it.</p>
<p>Actually, EC’s can definitely give you an edge in the admissions process for grad school, especially if you hold any sort of legal position within its purview. Keep into account that I’m not advocating for one to join a generic EC simply because it holds potential to better your standing resume. </p>
<p>Moreover, if you find that an EC is taking too much time from studying, definitely don’t simply drop it, but try to manage your time more efficiently.</p>
<p>Most activities can accommodate various levels of commitment. For example, as a regular columnist or staff reporter on the student newspaper you might be expected to write several articles each week. Or you could submit an occasional Opinion or Letter to the Editor piece as a guest writer. You can find on-campus jobs with as little as 2 and as many as 20 hours per week. </p>
<p>You will see how much time you have once you get to college and can plan your activities accordingly.</p>
<p>Extracurriculars are just as important as they were in high school. If you’re majoring in anything in the liberal arts or business (and engineering to a lesser extent), extracurriculars are a great way to demonstrate your leadership ability and your ability to deliver results. It is a lot easier to get internships if you have something to talk about in your interview that demonstrates how you can benefit the organization or company.</p>
<p>As a freshman, I think that it would be good for you to stagger when you start to do all those things. Rushing usually takes up a crap load of time, so you might not be able to get involved in the paper until later (it shouldn’t be a big deal to join later).</p>
<p>“Extracurriculars are just as important as they were in high school.”</p>
<p>^I respectfully disagree with this statement. Grad schools do not pay attention to EC’s.
They are focused on GPA, research experience, job experience, professor recommendations, and GRE scores. They don’t care if you were a part of Greek life, intramural teams, or clubs.</p>
<p>Participate in college EC’s for enjoyment only.</p>
<p>Internships are different. Internships are separate from campus involvement and are important.</p>
<p>I’m really involved, but it’s a lot of work. In addition to class, I’ve got a spring internship, a campus job, and I’m on several different committees in addition to being a member in a few career-oriented clubs. It’s a really fantastic way to network; there’s a group of 25-ish people who are super involved in committees and leadership programs, and we all know and see each other which is great. Since we all work for campus services, we’re the first to know about new opportunities, and that’s actually how I got my spring internship. I’ll probably rush next semester. And my GPAs still up there. </p>
<p>You should see my google calendar though. I have naps, work outs, and eating scheduled to make sure I don’t accidentally over-schedule. As a rule of thumb, I don’t schedule anything on Friday or Saturday nights (no one else really wants to either, so it isn’t a problem).</p>
<p>I wholeheartedly disagree. You certainly want to do as well as you can academically, but college ECs may be equally important to your success in life. Earning 120 credit hours with such and such an average may get you to grad school and then to an entry-level job. But at that point, your upward mobility - and frankly, much of your enjoyment of adult life - will depend upon your ability to work with others in pursuit of goals, your capacity to be a productive team member, and your leadership capabilities. These are taught only sporadically in the classroom, but they’re at the heart of the out-of-class experience. As an employer, I don’t have a lot of regard for applicants whose only accomplishments and learning experiences are letter-grades.</p>
<p>@nysmile: For kids who are doing chemistry, physics, engineering what you said is very true (research > extracurriculars) , but for everyone else those things are not quite as important.</p>
<p>As a business major, this is a vastly simplified progression of how important my campus involvement was:
Year 1: Got involved with a large on-campus initiative
Year 2: Ran that initiative<br>
Year 3: Got internships paid, full-time, related to my major in a large part due my experience from running that initiative
Year 4: Got an interview with almost every job I applied for and ended up receiving several job offers, because of my internships and experience from running that initiative</p>
<p>Extracurriculars aren’t just social groups. At my school, students (in various student orgs, greek orgs, etc) plan pretty much every major event with substantial backing from the administration; there are so many organizations that can provide great experiences in team-work and achieving actual tangible results. Plus, I met some of my good friends by working side by side with them.</p>