<p>Let's say your kid is taking all honors and AP classes. Is a two sport varsity athlete and has a part-time job. How many volunteer hours per year are reasonable? Thanks!</p>
<p>Perhaps 100+ is reasonable but any amount of hours should do the trick if it shows dedication and leadership skills :)</p>
<p>Having a part time job and being a two sport varsity athlete is a huge accomplishment in and of itself. Colleges will recognize the time commitment. That being said, if your student selects an activity ( yearbook, student council, an outside agency etc- whatever his interests are) and shows dedication and leadership within that activity, the " correct" number of hours will naturally happen.</p>
<p>BD: there are NO requirements for any volunteer hours by colleges. That’s a myth. Your school district may require some but no one is going to look at your 2 varsity sport, part time worker and say:" he’s a slacker". Won’t happen.</p>
<p>This volunteer hour thing is a myth. More propaganda than anything else. I’m 100% for students to get involved. However, that people leverage the possible detrimental affects on college admissions is baloney.</p>
<p>I’d add to the above that it would be a sad lesson if a child learns that the reason that you help others is just to get something from it.</p>
<p>Thanks! She definetly does not volunteer for any other reason other than its the right thing to do. It’s just that she generally has very limited time at the end of the week. But I’d say she’s around two hours per week.</p>
<p>Colleges are clued-in to “Twerk4him’s” way of thinking, so I think they totally discount volunteer hours. FWIW: Both my kids are currently attending Ivy League schools and neither one of them had one hour of volunteer service. Zero. Zilch. None.</p>
<p>BTW: @Twerk4him: When colleges say they are interested in leadership qualities, many students like you assume they are looking for captains of athletic teams, or presidents of student councils, or editors of newspapers or whatever a student dedicated themselves to – and sometimes they are. But more often than not, as colleges are academic institutions, they are looking for leaders in the classroom. They are looking for students who not only contribute to the classroom conversation, but dynamically lead the discussion. They are looking for students who constantly raise their hands and have thoughtful opinions. Colleges are looking for your teachers to confirm your leadership qualities in their recommendation letters, with concrete examples such as those that are on MIT’s website: [Writing</a> Recommendations | MIT Admissions](<a href=“http://mitadmissions.org/apply/prepare/writingrecs]Writing”>How to write good letters of recommendation | MIT Admissions). It’s not enough just to have great essays, EC’s and awards. Selective colleges are looking for students in the classroom who will make a difference, those who will be remembered for years to come.</p>
<p>My daughter didn’t have any volunteer hours either. She did have service to school in form of Honor Cabinet, calling center for donations to the school, though that wasn’t on the resume, I don’t think. Had other school involvement, also a multi varsity athlete, rigorous academic schedule.</p>
<p>B&Tboy: volunteer activity or another extra curricular activity – doesn’t matter to colleges.</p>
<p>“What would be considered leadership” – well, what you list is leadership but is it meaningful? If you have to ask, then probably not. But also know that “leadership”, extra-curriculars and voluntarism is not evaluated for the vast vast majority of US colleges.</p>
<p>And then, only at those among the very selective ones.</p>
<p>Gibby is correct about schools wanting leaders in the classroom, and this will come out in the letters of recommendation. These are also the same kids who go the extra mile academically ie buying novels to read during the summer that are written in Spanish or French to prepare them for their AP class without being instructed to do so. That being said, being the editor of the yearbook or the president of the youth chapter of an outside organization ( ie diabetes association etc) also shows leadership. There are many kids out there who fit this description in addition to having amazing grades and test scores. These kids are not " padding their r</p>