As we all know, Ivy League schools love to see a “big spike” on college applications.
They love students who are absolutely great at one thing. They love students who show true passion on one thing.
I’m currently a Freshmen at a high school in rural Indiana. Our school is ranked pretty low, but I do great academically.
My biggest interests are finance, economics, and politics. I spend a lot of my free time learning about these topics.
How do I show colleges that I’m truly great at these subjects? We have no extracurriculars related to these topics. Even if I did start a club related to one of these, absolutely no one would join. No one else at my school is interested in these subjects (especially finance and economics).
I need some advice. How do I show a “big spike” on my college application? How do I show colleges that I’m not a well-rounded student, but rather great at one thing? What programs are there that are related to the subjects listed above? What else could I do?
Be careful not to be narrow minded. There’s a difference in showing a strong intrest in a subject and being narrow minded. There’s a reason the vast majority of schools have general education requirements consisting of classes from a wide variety of subjects. They want their students to excel in their chosen area * in addition * to being well rounded. No matter how gifted a mathematician is, if they can’t effectively write about their ideas, they are not going to be as successful as they can be. No matter how gifted a writer is, if they can’t do basic math to keep up with their expenses, their not going to be as successful as they can be. I’m not saying you have to go and do extensive ECs in all areas, just be careful to not miss out onnamazing oppurtunties because of narrow mindedness.
Could you do research? Do an internship? Shadow someone in the field? Take classes at a CC? Do a summer program? Volunteer for a political campaign? Get a job at a bank? Join FBLA?
I’ve heard from some people that developing a huge spike would help your chances with the top colleges. Some people though seem to do a bunch of small things here and there, participate in an excessive amount of volunteer work, join at least every EC in their school, play a varsity sport, etc.