<p>I agree with the sentiment that you need to pursue passions. I recently was accepted into Penn, and I have hardly done any community service. I was an athlete in high school, and focused all of my energy towards being successful in that area. I showed that on my application, and it worked to get in. They are trained to see b.s. community hours, just a heads up</p>
<p>You could try the page program in the US House or Senate. That's fun and helpful. :)</p>
<p>In my school they have a program called Community Service where you have to do hours to graduate so technically doesnt that mean you have to have community service hours of any type of service to get into a college? no matter if its your interest or not because colleges knowing you didnt waste all your time in High School....?</p>
<p>Hm.. I agree with the others. 2 months is a very short time to do anything. However, I think your best chance would be attending the upenn summer program and getting a recommendation from one of the professors. But you'd have to study very, very hard to impress them.</p>
<p>All great suggestions, and if I were to truly exemplify my passions, it would be through my interests in astronomy, medicine, and my background (persian).</p>
<p>try and get into a pre-college math and science program-def!!! It'll show that you can work in a highly competitive arena and you can even get recommendations from professors (I just did it-so I should know lol)</p>
<p>yea, but what I'm thinking is then I run the risk of not getting the recommendation, which would help dramatically should i get one.</p>
<p>dont do any volunteer work and say in ur essay how its against your moral convictions, at least you'll stand out that way</p>
<p>I have a question</p>
<p>I'm going to be a Junior next year, and over the summer I'm doing the Center for Talent Developement summer program over at Northwestern University, and I was wondering if this was a bad idea. I've already applied and been accepted, so there's nothing I can do now, but I'm just curious to know if this gives off the impression that i have money, and thats about it?</p>
<p>darkbrwn7691,</p>
<p>If you fear that, then just attend the program, expand your interests and intellectual horizons, meet new friends, have fun, and don't record it on your application.</p>
<p>I went to Davidson as part of TIP when I was in middle school. I only did it once, but it was a great experience.</p>
<p>Does volunteer work mean a lot?</p>
<p>In terms of going to a soup kitchen to work, how substantial is this? Especially when applying for ivies.</p>
<p>Is there like a gauge of how much volunteering will and won't make a difference.</p>
<p>Is 100 the same as 200 hours.</p>
<p>Does 50 hours even mean a thing?</p>
<p>I think if you have 200+ hours then you're set to go. But any sort of community service, no matter how small, should help in some way. For example, if you offer to give a piano recital to raise money for a homeless shelter, your concert might only take you an hour...and you would only be able to log one measly hour of community service. But if you managed to raise $3,000 for the homeless shelter during that hour...then that's a real accomplishment. Sorry for the ambiguous answer...I think it's much better to track your community service by the type of service and committment instead of by hours.</p>
<p>I also desire a career in the health sciences. These are the activities I plan on doing.</p>
<p>I plan to Take Bio at a local college as part of a summer pre-med academy (its a free program so it doesn't show I have money which I don't).</p>
<p>I will continue m neuroscience project at the same college.</p>
<p>I will continue on my dental internship.</p>
<p>I will volunteer for at least 150 hours at a local hospital.</p>
<p>I also plan on obtaining a paid intenship at The American lung Assoication.</p>
<p>Sounds good right?</p>
<p>wow what a rich thread</p>
<p>Volunteering at a hospital is a bit cliche. Even working as a lab assistant is a bit overdone these days (unless you have significant responsibilities). College admissions officers at top schools aim to diversity the incoming freshman class. Therefore, they like seeing quirky, unique, substantive extracurriculars on applications. My two cents.</p>
<p>yea, like software testing (ME)</p>
<p>the thing that will get you into an ivy league would be to go to Africa and help fight AIDS and then work at a orphanage there. Guilt the admission committee into thinking that you are the best person for the place and if they admit you they will be making their school a much better place.</p>
<p>So in a nutshell: AFRICA!</p>
<p>spoon feed african children</p>
<p>this thread has grown beautifully</p>
<p>I am a sophmore in highschool in a school in Bogota Colombia (if you know where that is) and I was first wondering how do I choose what I want to study in college if you still dont have any preference yet? How long does it take to figure out what you want to do in the future? Would a liberal arts college be the best way to choose what i want to study in the future if I still haven't chosen a subject before time for college? Or is it just too early to know what I want to study since I am just a sophmore in highschool? When should I really start thinking about what I want to study in college??</p>
<p>Nikky
xoxo</p>