I’m finishing my freshman year of high school. I fenced this year, but I’m not great at it and I think I want to quit. Should I quit and funnel my energy into more academic ec’s and harder classes?
Life is too short to voluntarily do things that you don’t like.
Pursue your interests.
I don’t think sports matter much on college apps. It’s probably better to show demonstrated interest in a field you like (ie STEM).
Yes.
Sports do matter a lot on colleges which have holistic admissions, often more than demonstrated interest in a field.
However, engaging in a sport which does not interest you never works out well. An EC which interests a person is ALWAYS better than one which a person does “to look good for colleges”.
@jen1871 The best ECs are the ones in which you are interested. if you do not enjoy fencing, drop it, and engage in ECs which you enjoy more, whatever they happen to be.
I do, however, recommend that you engage in some type of physical activity, whether it be hiking or ultimate frisbee. It will help you academically and mentally. Do not fall into the trap of making decisions based on “which is the best thing for colleges?”. Take classes which both interest and challenge you academically, and choose ECs which interest you, and where you can accomplish something.
Don’t set up your classes and ECs based on what you think that may help you in another 2-3 years when you apply to colleges. Set your classes and ECs up so that, in three years, when you graduate high school, you could look back and say “I am proud of what I accomplished”.