<p>So while all the seniors are getting their acceptance/waitlist/denial letters I'm trying to figure out what my ECs are going to be next year. I'm a junior this year and am trying to figure out which clubs I should run for officer in and I was just wondering if there is such a thing as too many extracurriculars. All of my ECs sort of focus around Community Service, History, and Dance since that's what my interests are, but I was wondering if it is possible to be too involved in school. I'm a member of Key Club (and running for secretary), NHS (considering running for office), History Club (there are no club officers), and Model UN (VP this year and probably next year). I also dance competitively and am a girl scout. I am currently working on my Gold Award (will be done before the school year starts). I also am considering running for Student Advisory Council at my school (sort of like SGA). Coming from a time perspective I know I can handle it all, but will college admissions officers feel like I am just resume building (I'm not I actually thoroughly enjoy all of my ECs). Any input you have would be super helpful! Thanks :)</p>
<p>There is such a thing as too much, but I don’t see what you’ve described as “too much”</p>
<p>I’m the VP of three service-oriented clubs (NHS, Spanish Honor Society, Leo Club), and I’m in some other clubs, too. I think that as long as you show dedication to these clubs, colleges will be happy to see your involvement. </p>
<p>That being said, personally, I would rather be fully committed to a few activities instead of somewhat involved in several activities, but if you can handle it, then go for it!! I think it’s great that you are trying to become more involved in the clubs you are already a member of.</p>
<p>When I was talking to middle schoolers, an ambitious kid asked me how many things he should get involved in. Of course, he was a sixth grader, so I told him to try everything.
Trying everything isn’t a bad idea. But I follow my own made-up principle: The 2-3-3-2 Rule
Pick 2 things that you’ll dedicate A LOT of time and effort into. For me, these are semi-broad categories: Math competitions and science olympiads. You should have leadership in these categories solely on the fact that you’re really good and people appreciate that you put in a lot of effort.
Pick 3 things where you continually work at getting better, but aren’t the best. These are things that you haven’t put too much effort into, but would hate to quit. For me, varsity tennis, speech, and martial arts fall under these categories. Leadership in these are beneficial, but may not be possible.
Pick 3 things that you do for a extended period of time, but not for a very long amount of time. Things like NHS, work experience, and volunteer work would fall under this category for me.
Pick 2 things that you try purely because someone tells you to try it and/or because you think it might be fun. These are short-term, interesting things. Things like summer programs would fall under this category.</p>
<p>You might consider this overkill. I know many that wouldn’t ever do this many things because it feels superficial/shallow. However, you could scale this model down into a 1-2-2-1 Rule, or something similar. Of course, you should NOT FOLLOW what I just said word for word. It is merely a TEMPLATE for basing your extracurricular activities. If you think about it, our extracurricular activities naturally follow this “rule”. You can easily sort your ECs into one of said four groups.</p>
<p>^ I like this</p>
<p>@perfectionist27 do the activities of your 4 service clubs “overlap”? Because if you are a leader of 3 volunteer organizations who do similar local work, do others (teacher/sponsor/other leaders) get mad at you for being a leader in all 3?</p>
<p>@College123college Well some activities overlap but not really. For example, we do adopt-a-family shopping for NHS, Spanish Honor Society, and Leo club, but we have different families to support.</p>
<p>And usually, my club sponsors rely on me as someone who knows information about other service organizations/clubs in the school so we can recruit more students for big activities (Just last week, we had a huge Special Olympics event at my school and NHS recruited help from Leo club). They are very happy of my involvement in other clubs because it allows them to coordinate activities without stepping on another club’s “turf,” while having access to a broad range of student volunteers. </p>