<p>has anyone done this and found it be a rewarding experience but also has helped them in the admissions process?</p>
<p>I'm really struggling to find a fulfilling way to spend my summer that will also "look good for colleges"</p>
<p>If a good writer wrote a satire of the college admissions process, I bet it would sell millions and be hilarious.</p>
<p>its unlikely to help in admissions. The adcoms have wised up to this attempt to polish one's resume for college applications, from what I've read. Its the rare community that doesn't have problems right here in the USA, no need to volunteer overseas if helping out is truly the goal and not building a list of ECs that stand out to colleges.</p>
<p>Of course it helps. If you write about it in your essays, you can talk about how your experience has increased your global awareness, made you more knowledgeable about other cultures, and learn more about yourself. I don't care what anybody says, volunteering overseas is different from volunteering here.</p>
<p>most people can't afford to go overseas to do community service, so colleges wouldnt count volunteering abroad as better than volunteering locally.</p>
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<p>Exactlllyy</p>
<p>If you'd like a rewarding experience, there are lots of great volunteer programs, but you should not do it to polish your admissions resume. I remember one very forthcoming admissions officer at an info session saying, "if I read one more essay about volunteering in Africa to save the world . . . " Her point wasn't that they don't appreciate volunteerism, of course, but that: a) it doesn't have to be an expensive, overseas program; and b) it's not exactly a unique experience to volunteer abroad any more. </p>
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[quote]
If a good writer wrote a satire of the college admissions process, I bet it would sell millions and be hilarious.
[/quote]
Someone's thought of it:</p>