<p>I joined a math/sci competition club my junior year because I thought it would help me for Ivy/MIT admissions. I think that’s the only thing that I listed on my applications that I did for college - I did do NHS, but left it off. </p>
<p>Hindsights: I’m still extremely glad I did it, and not at all because of college decisions (I highly doubt this was the deciding factor in any of them - 1 rejection and 2 acceptances) - I made a few close friends in that club and ended up being elected to a leadership position, which has turned out to be a rather intense learning experience, although a lot more work than I initially expected.</p>
<p>This thread is really making me start to regret starting the NHS chapter at my school, I started it so that people who wanted to volunteer (every other day) at the local homeless shelter had a way to do so, and now it’s being demeaned because it’s only an application padder? Do people really think the NHS is that hollow?</p>
<p>EDIT: Actually, I don’t regret starting it, I’m just surprised that you all have such negative opinions of it.</p>
<p>Let me tell a story about NHS at my school.</p>
<p>Requirement: 93 weighted avg. write this essay showing leadership, morals.
30% of the kids in a class actually are qualified and joined.</p>
<p>Then, there’s this at my school. You get to wear your NHS thing at graduation. So, there you go. Parents, new staff members, and other people know who the “smart” people are. One senior I knew had a 96 weighted avg. with all honors and APs. She didn’t want to be in NHS, because it was like everyone was in it. Besides, she hated doing community service that wasn’t even community service. NHS community service is just basically going to the homerooms every 2 months or so, and tell them to donate money for the poor. She hated coming to school by 7:30 every Thursday for some dumb NHS meeting. So, she did not apply. At graduation, everyone laughed at her, because they thought she was smart, but apparently not being in NHS changes people’s minds. </p>
<p>1) I started it with a group of friends, that might have been on their minds but it wasn’t on mine
2) I don’t plan on applying to any super-prestigious universities, Hendrix College is my #1 right now
3) I truly enjoy helping out at the homeless shelter, as do a lot of the other people in the club (some are inconsistent about it, though, so I guess I get what you mean).
4) NHS isn’t the only thing I’m a part of. I play bass, I run cross-country, I work summers at my tribe’s summer camp. I do things I enjoy, I just so happen to enjoy NHS and the volunteer work involved.</p>
<p>EDIT: (to the post above)
5) The NHS at my school isn’t really academically based at all, so it probably shouldn’t even be affiliated with the NHS…</p>
<p>^It’s like that in most schools. However, Jaddua, you showed enormous initiative in starting a legitimate chapter of NHS at your school, and it sounds like an impressive community service commitment (unlike at most schools). Don’t be freaked out by these posters–while membership in NHS at 99% of high schools is, to put it as charmingly as everyone else has, “bullcrap,” if you elaborate on this club in your apps it can work very nicely in your favor. I think there’s a place on the CommonApp (not entirely sure, I’m only a junior) for a short statement about your most important EC.</p>
<p>STUDENT COUNCIL. I didn’t want to run in the first place, but many adults/graduates told me it looks really really really good on my resume, so I ran… and I ended up winning. Pfft… caught me by huge surprise. It was the only activity I did freshman year (because I didn’t know any better), and I HATED it… so I never did it again. I found other loves in my life. :)</p>
<p>On a random note, I also skipped a level in Spanish. Um… back then, my teachers said it looked good for colleges, but I really just wanted to learn. Now looking at the app process, I don’t even think colleges realize that I did 5 levels of Spanish in 4 years. :/</p>
<p>1) I stuck with Band all four years although it has put me at a clear disadvantage (~10 early applicants to Yale this year, all with top stats; the only two rejected, rest deferred, were the two who had consistently taken Band and thus had fewer APs).</p>
<p>2) I decided to run for Key Club regional office because it was “leadership.” (However, I joined Key Club as a freshman and remained active as a regular member because I really do like volunteering.) It’s a fun position through which I’ve made friends, but also a significant amount of work/time commitment. Without the niggling thought of college in the back of my mind, perhaps I would have turned down the offer to run (unopposed election).</p>
<p>I’ve co-founded two clubs at my school, but both served an unmet need and allowed me to pursue genuine interests. What drives me bonkers is people who join a club and then never show up to the meetings, or show up for 20 minutes and then leave for “another meeting.” No one should be committed to multiple clubs that meet simultaneously.</p>
<p>I suppose NHS counts as a resume padder, too, although at my school it is really low-commitment; basically everyone who qualifies is invited to join, applies, and gets in. I doubt it is “worth” anything for college admissions, but why turn down an honor?</p>
<p>I’ve encouraged my son to get involved in certain things because I think he will actually enjoy them. Sometimes I have had to use the ‘it will look good on a college app’ excuse to get him started.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that she’s dumb for rejected NHS. Of course, she is not. She really regretted it, because all the honors kids had their NHS thing or whatever and went up to the stage. People started alughing at her, because they didn’t know she didn’t want to join. People thought her average was low or something.</p>
<p>You can’t blatantly state that NHS is bullcrap…>.>. Just because many use it as a “resume padder” and the requirements to join NHS aren’t high doesn’t mean that it doesn’t serve a purpose. Even at my school, our NHS club has 70+ kids and sure, many of them will exaggerate their involvement and dedication to NHS. However, that doesn’t dismiss the many of us who have actually volunteered through NHS to do a lot of good. NHS was, in conjunction with American Red Cross, one of my biggest commitments (in terms of time as well as community service). In addition to other community service projects I initiated and worked out outside of school, the club (well, board members specifically) organized a plethora of events that we felt made an impact on our community.</p>
<p>All in all, NHS is a generic club that nearly anyone can join in any school across the country, but that hardly qualifies NHS as blanket “bullcrap”. You may argue that our ulterior motives were “resume padding” but I assure you that many people have sincere compassion for their community. </p>
<p>Oh, and I’m not saying that NHS = high intelligence or anything. I’m just saying that any person can join ANY club and be committed/passionate about it.</p>
<p>Err, people keep saying that this and that E.C. count as “resume padders”. I hope people realize that any and all E.C.'s can be either resume padders or passionate activities. NHS is not automatically a “resume padder” and creating a non-profit organization doesn’t immediately demonstrate a passion for societal improvement.</p>
<p>Frankly, different activities will have different impacts on people.</p>
<p>I’ll be honest here: I joined my school’s Forensics (public speaking) team earlier this year because it had a pretty strong program, and my dad in particular kept emphasizing that it would “look good”. However, as the first semester went by, I discovered that I truly was not cut out for this EC, and to be perfectly frank, I didn’t enjoy it. I ended up dropping it just a couple of days ago.</p>
<p>My other EC’s, on the other hand, are quite focused, but they represent some of my greatest passions and things that I love in my life: </p>
<p>–Foreign language learning/tutoring (grades 9-12, but has actually been ongoing since age 7)
–Piano (grades 9-12, also has been ongoing since age 7)
–Literary magazine/Writing (grades 10-12, didn’t participate freshman year due to lack of interest caused by bad teacher. But I’ve been writing for fun for as long as I knew how to hold a pencil, and was appointed Editor-in-Chief of my middle school newspaper in 8th grade)</p>
<p>Yes, they are only three, and yes, they don’t look like much when compared to what some other people have on this site. However, I’ve earned honors and recognition at the international level for all three of these, and I’m confident that if my essays convey my passions effectively (which I will try to ensure!), I will have no problems in terms of EC’s. This is also one of the reasons why I have vowed never to post a chance thread on CC. :)</p>
<p>I would like to say something here in support of those who make certain choices about ECs, service, or other things because they will help build their resumes for college: if your goal is to get into a good college, I see nothing wrong with taking steps that will help you achieve that goal. We certainly wouldn’t criticize somebody who studies hard for that reason (even though they didn’t enjoy it), or who prepped for the SAT (even though they didn’t enjoy it). But I think you have to distinguish between padding a resume and building a resume. In my mind, padding a resume is doing some fairly bogus activity and trying to make it sound impressive. Building a resume, on the other hand, is seeking out additional credentials that are relevant and really make you more desirable to a college. For example, if you are interested in creative writing, taking an online course in story writing, or attending a writer’s conference, might be a way to build your skills–and your resume. This is no different from what you might do in the working world if you want a better resume.</p>