Extracurricular advice for high school rising sophomore? (interested in poli sci and IR)

Applying to College
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Hi!

I am currently a rising HS sophomore and I want to get into a good International Relations/Political Science school (U Chicago, Columbia, Yale, Harvard, Georgetown SFS, Seton Hall, Indiana University, American University). I also might minor in Film/Media Studies. I am mainly looking for any suggestions on extracurriculars but I am open to any advice!

Demographics
Black male from a rural public high school in NJ

GPA:
97.625 unweighted, 100.625 weighted (7+ points for Honors and 10+ points for AP)
Classes
(freshman) AP World History (4), Honors English I, Honors Biology, Geometry, Spanish II, Art I, Marketing I, PE

I have tried to take the most amount of aps and honors classes available to me. (with the exception of geometry)
Rank
i dont know this yet
Awards
Congressional Award Gold Medal - 400 hours of volunteering, 200 hours of personal development, 200 hours of physical fitness, and a 5-day exploration. (Currently working towards this)
Extracurriculars
Sophomore Class Secretary

Varsity Track and Field (Shotput and Discus)

Volunteering at a local library

Lifeguarding at a water park

this is where I need the most help and advice. I joined debate but I eventually quit and I did DECA for the whole year but I don’t think I will do it next year because I didn’t enjoy it and it doesn’t really fit with my intended major.

Plans for next year:
Classes
AP US History I, Honors English II, Honors Chemistry, Honors Algebra II, Spanish II, AP Seminar, PE
(AP Comparative Gov self-study)
Extracurriculars
I plan on applying to TASP, NSLI-Y, and internships with my local congressman and senator. I also plan on joining my school’s newspaper, no place for hate, and mock trial clubs. I may try to start a model un club or a history club.

What I am really seeking advice on is extracurriculars that fit my passions that will also help me stand out against other applicants.As I previously mentioned I am interested in International Relations, Political science, and Film studies.

Thanks!

P.S I am not trying to do these just for college, I am just looking for ideas for activities that I will enjoy but will also look good/stand out because I know that a lot of weight is placed on extracurriculars.

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There’s a lot more great schools than those.

Here’s my advice - don’t worry about others. Do things you enjoy. Don’t do things because you feel they make you look good because they don’t.

Need money or responsibility ? Get a part time job.

Are you an athelete? Play a sport.

Musician? Join the band.

Love pets? Volunteer at the shelter

It’s ok to be a kid - and kids get into top schools. But again, as a rising sophomore, you’re a bit early to have a list and there’s likely a lot more fine schools out there than you know about.

All that said, pick 2-3 things that you can be passionate about and do them to a great level - and all will be ok.

Don’t try and game the system for sake of gaming it. If you want to work for a congressman, great - but if you’re doing so to look good - stop.

Already I see- you’re in student government, you throw the shotput and discus, volunteer at the library and lifeguard - you have MORE THAN ENOUGH.

The trick is - when you do things - do them well and gain accomplishments that can be quantified - so you can show impact.

Good luck to you.

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Just to support this advice, I note many of the sorts of colleges you mentioned do not have a special IR or Political Science school, and do not admit by major, or at least not for IR or Political Science (which might be unrestricted majors in some sort of Arts and Sciences division). You are just going to be applying for what is known as “general admissions” to their college, or perhaps their Arts & Sciences division. And while you may state an interest in IR/Political Science, that is completely non-binding in such cases. Indeed, typically at those colleges you are expected to explore, and very possibly change your mind, before declaring a major.

And while their students are doing that, they are also participating in a wide range of non-classroom activities in college. Sports, including at the club and intramural level. Student government. Student publications. Charities. What are loosely called identity organizations. Fine or performing arts. All sorts of things just for fun. And so on. All this is a big part of the experience at these sorts of colleges, and so those colleges value students who will likely be enthusiastic participants in some selection of their non-classroom activities.

Since many of the great colleges at which to study IR or Political Science work this way, that is all the more reason not to worry about which ECs you pick. Instead, just pick things you love, things you value for themselves, and dedicate serious effort to making the most of those activities. Because then you will obviously be the sort of student who will do that all again in college.

And I would also very much agree it doesn’t have to be a long list either. Usually admissions officers say they really just focus on the first handful of activities you list, because they assume those are most indicative of your own priorities. And it really doesn’t matter which sorts of things you prioritize, because all that will happen again in college as people focus on a few things among the hundreds of things happening at that college. So, they are fine admitting one person who is big into athletics, another who loves a performing art, another who loves debate and student government, and so on, because there are analogs to all that in college too.

Or you can be the lacrosse captain who loves writing poetry in French. The science fair kid who helps out at the local homeless shelter. The kid who spent summers rock-climbing and birdwatching.

My point is just the very positive images any of that can create in the mind of an admissions officer do not need to be made up of a list of 20 things. It can indeed be more like two or three.

But seriously, just do what you love and value with dedication, and it will work out well.

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This. Trying to pad you resume to impress adcoms…just don’t do that.

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Agree with others, but for the sake of this sentence will add…How about interning with your state senator or assembleymember? My D did that in high school and found it quite rewarding. How about your city council? Sometimes they have various committees where (non-elected) members of the public can serve - such as social justice committee, arts committee, transportation committee, etc. You could see if there are any city committees you can serve on to learn more about the workings of local politics. How about volunteering with a nonprofit? Maybe there’s a local nonprofit that works with, say, refugees that would give you some interesting insights into the dynamics of international relations? If you speak a foreign language, you could help translate. Perhaps you could volunteer to help them with things to get them better settled, or perhaps you could fundraise for the organization? Just some examples. Obviously, you should do what is of interest to you and locally available.

Fully agree with this.

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These are all great suggestions. I just want to add a quick note that I think in some circles, there has been a real distortion of a good idea into a not-so-good idea.

The good idea is if you are thinking about a possible major and eventually a career in some field, it can be well worth seeing how that job field actually looks up close. Internships, volunteer positions, shadowing opportunities, normal jobs available to HS kids, and so on . . . all can give you a window into the real working side of things.

And in fact, sometimes you will learn what you thought might be a cool career field is maybe not so much for you. Or, there are parts of the field you love, parts you don’t. And so on.

So these experiences can be great for that purpose. And to the extent they are valuable in that way, they can show up in college application essays, including “Why us?” or “Why this major?” essays.

OK, so that’s the good idea. The not-so-good version is when people start treating these experiences like qualifications. Does it “look good” to colleges? Is it “impressive”? Is it “prestigious”? That sort of thing.

And my understanding is like 99 times out of 100, the answer is no, it isn’t going to be “impressive”. Even among the successful applicants to the most selective colleges, very few have done anything truly impressive in that sense.

Because–and no offense, kids–most serious organizations do not trust HS kids with the sorts of things that could even plausibly be truly impressive. They will instead give you tasks that they trust that an intelligent, hard-working kid can do. And therefore you won’t really be showing you are more “impressive” than other intelligent, hard-working kids.

But that’s OK! You are not wasting your time, because again virtually no one actually does stuff like that. As long as YOU get out of it something valuable, including a better idea of what you may or may not want to pursue as a career, then it has served its purpose.

And colleges will be totally fine with that, because they actually do want you kids to do well in life. And so they have zero problem with kids wisely spending some of their time in such ways–if they so choose.

But if they want to do sports or music or debate or whatever instead, that’s good too.

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Extracurriculars need not be pre-professional, nor do they need to show your commitment to your major – do what you love, and find ways to dig deeper into those activities to get the most out of them (for you, not your applications). However, given your interests, I imagine you could be interested in any of the following: Model UN, volunteering for a local politician (could be anything from school board to senator – try volunteering on campaigns or for the political party of your choice), school journalism, get-out-the-vote campaigns, community service with refugee or immigrant communities (even better if you speak a language that would help you serve these communities), volunteering at a local historical site or museum.

I see above that you’re thinking about starting any number of these activities, so figure out which makes the most sense for you and take the initiative.

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Congratulations to your great academics thus far.

You’ve gotten good, specific hints already.

Let me just add, whatever cause you get involved with (regardless if it’s related to your possible major), pick something that you feel strongly enough about, and have the means, to carry through for the next 2 1/2 years.

ECs may be valued more, if they imply serious commitment, not just another one-year “check box” thing.

(I know of rising seniors who just NOW are going to start volunteering for soup kitchen, as they are working on their college essays. While I appreciate their time, I hope their motivation is solely community service, not to impress admission counselors.)

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Not to be overly confessional, but my worst moment as a parent in this process was when I was briefly encouraging my kid to maybe volunteer for the local organization my wife and I support the most. My intentions were not exactly check-boxey, I actually thought it would be a cool experience, but I realized (pretty quickly, fortunately), that my kid was way more comfortable volunteering time at school as a tutor and peer counselor and such.

Which of course is fine. But I also learned my lesson about providing counsel only when asked, because this is very much not my journey.

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Have you tried Model United Nations (MUN)? I highly suggest it if your school (or maybe one nearby) has a team. My son really enjoyed it. There are inter school competitions as well as national. It is also something that you can continue on a college level as well. Perfect for anyone interested in foreign relations, politics and history. Basically you act as a delegate (as part of a team) of a particular country and defend or promote your positions for given scenarios.

There is an element of debate but this is very different (my son didn’t like debate either but really enjoyed MUN.)

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Thank you for your suggestion! I will definitely consider trying to start a MUN at my school if I can find a club advisor.

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Thanks a lot for your suggestions! I will try to find a nonprofit around me to volunteer with.

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