<p>msincredible-
You’ve received sound advice from T264E and Sikorsky. I’ll add to that a reprint of a letter we received from the college counselors at an area high school regarding summer planning:</p>
<p>Dear Students & Families,
This is the time of year when students often begin thinking about summer plans, and we often hear families wonder what might “look good to colleges.”</p>
<p>What looks good to colleges, we are told, is a student who has strong interests and who has developed these interests in serious, authentic ways. Students who have shown a sense of responsibility, particularly in settings where they may be held accountable for their work and actions, also impresses colleges.</p>
<p>Of course, neither of these things are valued only by colleges; they are important aspects of growing up and gaining maturity. We encourage students to find things that matter to them and to pursue these interests, and we also encourage students to find ways to make this pursuit really fun and exciting.</p>
<p>There are a several kinds of opportunities that truly combine a solid growth experience with the chance to engage with a particular interest:
GET A REAL JOB—not a cushy part-time gig baby-sitting or fetching coffee in a parent’s office, but the kind of job where if you don’t show up on time you get scolded and if you mess up consistently you can be fired. A job where you work with adults and peers from a variety of backgrounds is an especially good thing—an important chance to learn what it’s like to maneuver in a socioeconomically and culturally diverse world. A worthwhile job doesn’t have to be glamorous, just serious—and any job can be interesting, if you make it so.
GET A REAL INTERNSHIP. Find an internship where you have actual responsibilities and accountability—where you are held accountable if you’re late and may be sent away if you mess up consistently. It would be great if the internship were in some way related to your actual personal interests. A set number of hours per week (preferably 25 or above) and a lengthy term (not just 2 weeks) would be a good thing, too.
DO SOMETHING ACADEMIC THAT’S REAL. An actual, credit-bearing, transcript-producing program—either real college classes or real high school courses—can be a good thing; this very much includes programs in the arts, as well. Any so-called “pre-college” program should be investigated to see if it is really academically sound and rigorous; if it’s offered BY a college, that’s probably but not necessarily a recommendation. There are many programs that take place AT college campuses but are run by third-party contractors, but these can just be pricey camp-like experiences without a great deal of recognized academic merit. College admission offices, incidentally, can tell the difference between a program that has real academic value and one that is just a fun summer living in dorms at St. Ivy’s University while getting too much coaching on writing a formulaic college essay between whale watches and field trips to Six Flags. Nonprofit organizations tend to offer the most respected programs, and most serious academic programs, incidentally, offer some kind of financial aid.
TEST YOURSELF WITH A REAL CHALLENGE. A handful of wilderness experience, intercultural travel, and service-learning programs provide truly valuable and highly respected experiences for students wishing to step outside their comfort zones, either physically or culturally. Look for an established program that stresses the learning side of what they do; nonprofit programs tend to focus more on providing truly worthwhile experiences. As with academic programs, the best and most established of these programs offer some kind of financial aid.</p>
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