extracurricular activities

[zztryingzz]

What are good extracurricular activities if I want to apply to an Ivy League?

[gibby]

There is no such thing as a bad extracurricular activity. All selective colleges, the ivy’s included, are interested in students who have made a long term commitment (1 to 3 years) to something outside of the classroom. And they don’t want to see students with a laundry list of activities – it’s far better to have 3 or 4 activities that you are heavily involved in. The idea is that student’s who show commitment, love and passion for an activity or job in high school, have a transferrable set of skills that they will carry with them to college. Here’s what William Fitzsimmons, Harvard’s longtime Dean of Admissions, says about EC’s

The people who have the energy, the drive, and commitment to do something unusual in math, music, athletics, theater, or any activity have transferable sets of skills. It’s human potential that now happens to be directed, say, at women’s rugby, but could also be directed at any other kind of activity during college and later.

The term “extracurricular activities” covers an enormous amount of ground. We are interested in whatever a student does: in addition to school extracurricular activities and athletics, students can tell us of significant community, employment, or family commitments. There are many who spend a great deal of time helping to run their household, preparing meals and caring for siblings or making money with a part-time job to help the household meet expenses.

Unfortunately many schools have had to curtail or eliminate extracurricular activities and athletics, or they charge fees for participation. In addition, many students cannot afford expensive musical instruments or athletic equipment — or have families without the resources to pay for lessons, summer programs and the transportation networks necessary to support such activities.

Admissions Committees keep these factors in mind as they review applications, and are concerned most of all to know how well students used the resources available to them. Extracurricular activities need not be exotic — most are not — and substance is far more important. A student who has made the most of opportunities day-to-day during secondary school is much more likely to do so during college and beyond. This applies to academic life as well as extracurricular activities.

[compmom]

Don’t choose extracurriculars so that you can get into any school. Enjoy high school, work hard, and follow your natural interests. Padding a resume will be transparent for admissions anyway.