“Extracurriculars require social connections, disposable income, and the ability to travel.”
At elite schools, anyway, I see admissions offices jumping for joy when they see kids becoming assistant manager at Burger King, raising younger siblings, being involved at church, and writing about it well.
It is a myth that travel produces better resumes or better essays. Some of the kids I find toughest to help are the ones who want to write about their scuba trip in the Phillippines. You want to rub in the admissions officer’s face that you’re taking fancy vacations the officer will never be able to afford? And you didn’t even earn the trip? Not good strategy.