I’m thinking of being a political science major and I need some good extracurriculars that I can do this summer to show that I’m passionate about this. Any recommendations or adivce?
Note: My desired school is UCLA
Work a job. Interact with people. Volunteer at the library or nursing home or food bank or shelter or mosque or temple. Mow your parents’ yard. Walk the dog. Be a good brother or sister. Do the dishes. Read some good books – non-fiction too. Not kidding.
You don’t need to show “passion” about PoliSci. You need to demonstrate good academics. Prep for test or re-takes.
Alright, I’m not sure how being a good brother would help elevate my college application to a school like UCLA but I’ve heard that if you intern at political campaigns and join youth leadership groups it can show a passion in political science. Any other advice?
What I’m trying to say is there is no direct line of passionate work that will lead any college admissions officer to say “voila! Here’s the sort of Poli Sci kid we want!” Seriously. If working at a political campaign interests you, do so. If being an advocate for homeless teens or your local committee for whatever, do so. There’s no magic formula to being a wanted potential Poli Sci student – colleges know about 80% of kids switch majors anyway.
The single most important thing you can do is submit your transcript.
Okay, I’m really interested in the governmental and political process, are there any internships or programs over the summer that you know of if that I could do over the summer?
Most of the poli sci majors, who I went to school with, and who wanted to work government and political processes were proactive enough to seek those opportunities themselves by canvassing.
If you are that passionate, why would you want some strangers online to find them for you?
Youre not listening to the previous advice. @T26E4 is absolutely correct^^^^^
He’s trying to tell you, in simple language-that you don’t seem to understand: work with your future constituents.
First of all I don’t recommend crafting an application to try to impress a college admission officer. Do things you are interested in, be involved, be a leader and that will shine through. The activities don’t have to align with your intended major as schools are well aware of the fact that approx. 50% of of the students who come in with a major end up changing their majors while in college.
And you are interested in government and the political process and it is a presidential election year…can’t you figure out something (ex. volunteering for a campaign comes immediately to mind)???
I second happy1"s comment! NEVER do an EC because you think it will help with admissions. ONLY do an EC if you are interested in it and want to do it. Doesn’t matter if it is varsity football or basket weaving - do what you want to do.
Volunteer for a campaign! And I would not think only about “shows passion” but also “exploring the topic and making sure it interests you”