Hey all, rising senior here applying to colleges in the fall! Now that high school is winding down, I realize it’s time to stop adding ECs/other commitments and start really focusing on college applications and making sure senior grades are still on top. However, I came across this unique and pretty cool-sounding program called Catapult (http://www.catapultincubator.org) that’s like an entrepreneurial type EC that happens during the fall OR the spring. (I swear I’m not advertising it or anything, I just came across it recently!) I was thinking about doing the program for the fall, so I could enjoy it and also put it on my college application somewhere.
However, the program requires three weekend visits (once a month for three months) and around a 5 hour weekly time commitment for those months. On top of schoolwork, college applications, and other ECs like volunteering/internship/club that are also a couple hours a week, do you think I could reasonably do this program in the fall and mention it on my application? Should I just do it in the spring, and not put it on my app at all and just enjoy it? Or should I just not do it at all (is it even worth it to do it if it’s not mentionable on the app)?
I would love for it to be put on my app (being involved in a startup/business initiative is something that I am interested in) but I would understand if it might be too late to do this sort of thing.
Opinions? Thoughts? What would you do? Thanks guys!
Do whatever you want. Don’t do it for college, do it because you like it.
Make sure to put it below your other more developed EC’s when listing activities on the Common App.
bump! any other suggestions?
I agree with post #1. Don’t do it just to impress colleges. Do it because you love it !
Actually, many students start a “business” or club just so they can list it on their applications. Admissions officers realize that nearly all of these are phony or highly exaggerated and, as a result, give them little to no weight. Unless you write about the program in one of your essays, it would probably not help you in admissions. But because you want to participate in the program, I think you should anyway.
If you have time conflicts, consider dropping one or more of those volunteer / internship / club activities.
@1golfer1 so entrepreneurial programs in general, like MIT Launch, Endevvr, and Catapult don’t really mean much to admissions anymore? Curious because my friend did MIT Launch and she’s a pretty qualified person.
@shadyconcepts That’s not what I said. Admissions officers will check to see if the program coincides with your pre-existing activities or elective courses taken in school. They will also see if you’ve written about it in an essay or short answer. Ultimately, admissions officers are attempting discern whether you started the business to pad your resume or to pursue your interests.
@1golfer1 Thanks for that clarification. I don’t have any other business-related ECs, so it might look a little suspicious. I’m rethinking doing the program; perhaps I will just do it in the spring for fun. Thanks!