Hello! I am an incoming junior and have been a part of an ice skating team for over 9 years now. It’s getting to junior year and my sport is beginning to conflict with my academics, and this year my team is probably going to go on more competitions which will take away even more time for school. I understand both are important for college admissions, but I’m not sure if I should drop my sport during junior year when it really counts. Thanks!
Academics are always the most important factor. Very rarely should an EC take priority over your grades. That being said, it depends on how adversely it’ll affect your grades and what schools you’re looking at.
If it hurts your GPA, you might want to consider it. GPA and test scores are most important in the end. Good ECs are important too, but not as much.
If it’s going to conflict with your academics, then stop it. Grades are the most important period. No EC (bar curing AIDS) is going to make up for bad grades junior year.
Thank you! If I’ve been doing my sport freshmen and sophomore year will it still weigh a lot for college apps? I am also doing a lot of volunteer work so would that cushion me dropping out of sports? @gdlt234 @Frigidcold @rdeng2614
So priority should go like this.
- Grades
- Skating
- Other volunteer work
If you can’t handle 1 and 2, then 1 and 3 is also fine AS long as 1 is met.
2 over 3 because you’ve been doing it longer.
If your sport is getting in the way of your academics, can you drop down to a less competitive level? Or do it recreationally? Your EC doesn’t have to be ‘team based’ in order to count. You are allowed to do something just because you enjoy it and are good at it and want to keep working on your skills - even if you aren’t getting outside or independent recognition by a third party organization.
(It’s a real shame that kids feel forced to give up something they love just because they think if they do it independently it doesn’t count. There are lots of ECs that aren’t team-based or part of a club or organization that make you an interesting person, teach you something important, and give you something of value to contribute to your future college community.)
What is your goal?
Olympic Skater?
Top college?
State U?
If you are doing skating for fun and have no further goals then the academics has to be the most important thing.
Junior year is when you start stepping up your academics and perhaps are taking some AP courses. So if you are looking toward a top college, then you need to focus more on academics. Is there another way you can stay involved in Skating? Perhaps by teaching a class or something? That would show leadership.