So I’m a sophomore in high school and I have dreams to one day go to Brown. I would really like to work in the medical field in the future. Right now, I’m 3rd in class rank with a 3.971 gpa. I’m secretary of my sophomore class, on the school health and wellness comittee (sophomore representative), features editor on newspaper, member of yearbook, international club, Angel network and math club. I also do volunteer work with my town’s youth commission group. I’m also on the JV tennis team, I’m not really an athletic person. I also know how to play the piano. What can I do now that will help me in the future when it comes time to apply to colleges? Should I join another sports team? I’m really worried that this isn’t enough for to impressed the admissions office when the time comes, any advice please?
Colleges don’t want well-rounded people, they want people who are good at something. It sounds like you are just joining random activities to put on your resume. Find something you like and excel at it.
Stick to extracurriculars that matter to you. Officers can spot application fluff from a mile away - usually by the lack of a significant time commitment or noteworthy achievements in an activity.
It’s impossible to chance you without SAT or ACT scores, but rest assured that your med school and your residency will matter far more than your undergraduate college if your goal is medicine. When you go to see a doctor, the diploma on his/her wall is from a med school - not their bachelor’s in chemistry or biology from the University of College. Med school admissions is based heavily on GPA, so it’s often better to be a top student at your state flagship than a 50th-percentile student at Brown. Don’t get too invested in the outcome of one application.
Thanks for your advice! I’m just kinda worried because I don’t know which extracurriculars to join if I want to be a doctor one day, there’s not exactly a club for that you know? I’m just a little lost on what to do for that. I definitely plan to volutuneer at hospitals and internships over the summer, but is that enough? It worries me because there’s these extremely talented students just like me wanting to go to the same college as I do, and compared to them I just seem ordinary.
Medical research, publications of research, Intel/ISEF awards, International/National Olympiad awards, Starting a company are just some ideas to help you get involved. Obviously you can’t do all these things, so find something you like and invest yourself
Do you have HOSA at your school ? http://www.hosa.org/node/11 It’s a Health Science student organization with state and national competitions related to health care. That would fit nicely with your interests.
Just get a good SAT, maintain your good GPA, and take as many rigorous courses as you can.
Extracurriculars really don’t matter, except any placements or awards.