i’m considering volunteering in China for 3 weeks this summer, before senior yr. the program, Cross-Cultural Solutions, seems absolutely amazing. They basically immerse you in one of many cultures (Xi’An, China piqued my interest), and although you may have no familiarity whatsoever with the country’s language, they give you assignments either teaching english to locals, helping with medical care, daycare etc. they of course teach you some basic skills to get around. i highly recommend looking into it
i had the option of instead taking precalculus this summer in order to ensure my adequate performance later on in AP calculus, but the volunteering opportunity seems too neat to pass up. i guess i’ll settle for honors calc (have a weak math background)
Would this sort of project be a greater asset in highly competitive college admissions than AP calc?
i hate the way this all boils down to college-related junk. rather embarrassing. but it matters a great deal to me so…Any advice would be very welcome
<p>Think about this.......how many community service experiences, pay to play, for only 3 weeks do you think adcoms see? What does this say about you? How many kids from your school will apply with the same experience??? One cannot give you a yes/no answer on this without more info. It sure sounds like fun.....</p>
<p>Those experiences reek of privilege and I've read in college admissions process books available at your local Barnes & Noble that most admissions officers HATE privilege. There is a quote in one of those books, "Nothing is worse than volunteering abroad and then writing an essay about it, it stinks with privilege, and Hargadon hates privilege!" (Hargadon is the former Dean of Admissions at Princeton University.)</p>
<p>lol one of my essays was on volunteering in mexico. i dun think they really care as long as there is a point to it and it tells something about u =P</p>
<p>wow. what a load of replies in so short a period of time. argh. well that's frustrating. i have a really strong interest in eastern philosophy.
i initially wanted to find a way go to Asia and experience something like staying in a monastery or something really dorky like that (yea, even though i don't know any other language besides french or english), although that's a bit of a silly fantasy...
i know these volunteering programs are all over the place and figured that one might provide a venue for experiencing first hand a society that is less compartmentalized, and less individualistic, corny as that sounds. i've already read all of the literature! But then again i guess that does seem a bit rich-kid patronizing and all....
i have July free. i don't know what i might do to explore this interest? i dunno....i've never heard of philosophy programs or anything :/ maybe summer college things, but if that's not rich-kid, and besides past the deadline for application, i don't know what to do....</p>
<p>to a college adcom, volunteering (doesn't matter where) for only 3 weeks is seen as an attempt to pad your resume. top colleges want people who have dedicated 4 years in volunteering and really have the spirit of volunteerism, not just do it because it can help you for colleges. so no, volunteering (abroad..or anywhere else) for only 3 weeks won't give you an app boost. the only advantage is, you may be able to write a good essay about the experiences you learned from volunteering abroad. </p>
<p>"i dun think they really care as long as there is a point to it and it tells something about u =P"
it tells that you're volunteering for the sake of boosting your own resume, not because you really want to help the disadvantaged. no offense to the OP, perhaps you really do have a passion for volunteering, but 3 weeks on the college app doesn't translate to that. </p>
<p>"Service to the people anywhere is service, bottom line."
true but did you use that service to directly benefit yourself? would that be really service then? </p>
<p>okay aside from how this volunteering opportunity affects college apps... then i'd recommend it. good experience, similar to studying abroad, you'll get to see things from a different persepective, i dont know if youll be "immersed" into the culture, but it will be a good introduction. if you want to do it for the sake of doing it (and nothing else), go for it!</p>
<p>makes sense.
i don't want it to look like some desperate attempt to pad my volunteering resume; i have enough hours. my motivation is utterly unrelated to that...possible too much so. :/
Although unlikely, if anyone knows about any serious philosophy-related summer activity/program (i mean not basic like "intro to problems of philosophy"), i'd be delighted to hear....
thanks. will go ask in other forum.</p>
<p>The point is, if you want to go to China go anyway, but adcoms probably won't care very much. Summer programs, with the exception of the ones that draw students who wouldn't have problems getting in to HYPMSC anyway (like RSI), are highly overrated in the eyes of most people; doing something phenomal on your own is far more impressive than just going to a summer camp. Go because you want to, not whether or not it will get you in to college.</p>
<p>i dont think he is goign to put this as an ACTIVITY or on his RESUME? lol. it is a unique experience that can be written about in an essay, nothing more. but i completely agree with kfc4u, dont use this trip as a resume booster or mention it on a list of activities that you send. the true purpose for such an experience is to write about it and convey its power and effect it had on you in the college essay. if u are really affected by this trip, in the end it will help since ur essay has the potential to be much more powerful than those of other's =P. </p>
<p>even so, 3 weeks in china will be looked at better than a precalculus class =P</p>
<p>I think international experience is always a good thing. I went to Thailand for six weeks, with a three week homestay/community service project, and then I went to China for three weeks where I visited high schools. I was able to do both trips because I recieved scholarships from the Freeman Foundation. And I think colleges are very interested in this type of thing. When I was called down to Harvard to meet with admissions people, I spent a good amount of time telling them about both trips. They seemed extremely interested...</p>
<p>Don't do it because it <em>might</em> help your college application. Don't do it because you <em>might</em> get a good essay out of it. Do it because you really WANT to do it. That way it will be a win-win situation for you no matter how colleges view it. Enjoy.</p>
<p>Oh, gosh! I'm thinking of doing the exact same thing this summer - my mom has the contact and all at a school in China, and I'm preparing to go for about four weeks, to teach "English" pronounciation/reading/comprehension, apparently, although my chinese is awful.</p>
<p>I'm worried, because I'm only sixteen [well, I will be, anyways], and the people I'm supposedly tutoring are all 18 and older... college students who don't have the money to go to an expensive class. [Since I'm doing this as a volunteer/community service... I don't get paid.]</p>
<p>The head of the program/principal said the students looked forward to have an American student come teach a class - and that he/she'd write me an excellent letter of reccomendation, no matter what. xD </p>
<p>... But still, I'm not 100% positive on going yet. :[ I mean... I'd be a wonderful experience and all, but I should be seriously looking into taking another course this summer...</p>
