<p>NHS is the same at my d’s public hs school. It’s by “invitation only” for jr. & sr’s. The GPA requirement is 3.75. Plus, she had to have 2 recommendations, list all her previous/current cs hrs and write an essay. Once the selection process was over, she received a “congrats” as a member of her school’s NHS. The first meeting she attended at the beginning of the year had maybe 70 students who received the same letter. By the next meeting, there were maybe 1/2 that decided to continue in this ec activity. Why the big drop in participants? At the end of the first meeting, the advisor mentioned a $100 fee to be paid by the next meeting. My d’s school district (like many in the US) are hurting for $$. So, they decided to charge an activities fee for all ec activities just like they do for the athletes at her school. My question to others who have written/responded to this thread is this . . . if you had to pay for ec activities like my d at her school, would you still sign up for the ec just for the sake of padding your resume for your college apps?</p>
<p>That’s so stupid.</p>
<p>Why would you use a website to organize your life when a calendar or notepad works just as well.</p>
<p>I’ve actually thought of something: I wouldn’t be doing CSF (and I’m not actually doing anything in it) if it weren’t for the graduation cord. I just don’t like the kind of stuff they do…I pay the $2 every term and never attend a meeting. :S
But everything else I do because I want to.</p>
<p>I notice that a lot of people are saying that they started an activity for resume purposes and ended up valuing it for its own sake. I would note that for many students, we’re not really talking about the difference between doing an activity for the sake of the resume vs. the activity that the student is *really *passionate about…rather, for many students, the alternative to the resume-building activity is *no *activity, or at least no significant activity.</p>
<p>“rather, for many students, the alternative to the resume-building activity is no activity, or at least no significant activity.”</p>
<p>True. That’s why the reason students get involved in the activity isn’t that important. What they do with the activity is. What they do with the activity may lead to their developing interests or skills – or finding out that they hate the activity – that will help them as they figure out what to do with their lives – in terms of a career and in terms of hobbies.</p>
<p>What they do with the activity also will determine whether the few colleges that care about ECs will be impressed.</p>
<p>Joined a club called Best Buddies and eventually got position as president of the club. As soon as I got enough hours, I dropped it because it was taking up too much of my time. Also joined a club called Big Brother Big Sister for the hours. Honestly, I’m not that passionate about doing these kind of things… I don’t find them fun at all. Don’t get me wrong, the clubs are wonderful and meaningful for what we do to help people, but seriously, I’m not a big fan of staying after school and running around to do those stuff.</p>
<p>Hunt said: “I notice that a lot of people are saying that they started an activity for resume purposes and ended up valuing it for its own sake. I would note that for many students, we’re not really talking about the difference between doing an activity for the sake of the resume vs. the activity that the student is really passionate about…rather, for many students, the alternative to the resume-building activity is no activity, or at least no significant activity.” </p>
<p>I tend to agree. I’d define a resume padder as “someone who lists ECs that they put little effort into and only refrain from quitting so they can put it on their resume.” The reason for this is that you can’t tell why high school students decide to join clubs. Is it because they’re passionate about the subject? They’re intrigued by it? They just need something to do? At the back of their mind, of course, will be college apps but I don’t think that’s the primary reason for joining these clubs. They just want to have something to do. If they love it, then great, they can try to follow up that nascent interest or passion. If they hate it, they should drop it but might choose to stick with it solely because they want to pad their resume.</p>
<p>^^I joined our “buddy” program for a year because my friends were raving about it; I discovered that I really don’t like kids much and dropped it this year with no regrets. It’s a competitive program, admissions-wise, due to limited bus transportation, and I’m sure other kids would appreciate the experience more. (And I did not list it on my resume at all, because it held no meaning for me.)</p>
<p>But can you really get into HYPS without some resume padding?</p>
<p>Actually I would venture to say that most kids that go to HYPS didn’t need to resume pad, since they were pretty awesome individuals even without such superficial activities.</p>
<p>I think that’s something that many people (including a large number who use this website) fail to understand.</p>
<p>People that attend top schools happen to do lots of things. This in itself does not mean that doing lots of random things will lead to attendance at a top school.</p>
<p>I think some of us on the site are deluding ourselves. If I hadn’t had college admissions in mind, I definitely wouldn’t have worked so hard to become an Eagle Scout, for instance. Even though I enjoyed some of the high adventure stuff in Boy Scouts, I absolutely dreaded the inane advancement requirements and probably would have quit after a while.</p>
<p>Let’s get real. “Passion” only goes so far. In real life, we’re spurred to do things by incentives – college, jobs, the ladies, etc.</p>
<p>I think I am the only one brave enough to admit that most of what I do is college-driven.</p>
<p>but I do it successfully - many of the clubs I am now in charge of were defunct, with apathetic members. One particular group was threatened to be cut from the school’s program by the school board until I pretty much turned the whole club around (singlehandedly, btw). I put a lot of time and effort to turn these directionless clubs into flourishing ones, so I think I’ve kind of earned the right to ‘pad’ my resume a bit even if my intentions are not completely altruistic.</p>
<p>…oh well. I don’t really mind, it fills up my days with something productive rather than just watching TV.</p>
<p>“I think I am the only one brave enough to admit that most of what I do is college-driven.”</p>
<p>same-ish. i will say, though, that it’s mostly due to growing up hearing my father’s mentality of “from here on out, every single thing u do should be in preparation for college” & “think of these next 4 years as a race against every other kid in your school”. eh, slightly crippling considering i’m pretty passive by nature & not even that successful at the things that i do put my mind to, lol.</p>
<p>i guess the main thing was approaching one of my friends for help in co-founding a volunteer club at my school my sophomore year. except for-as i mentioned before-i’m not really even the leader type [pretty lazy] & i pretty much suck at my co-presidency, even though i do like volunteering, occasionally. i have always felt pretty guilty that i put on this whole leadership facade, when, in reality, i’m just not that good at it. i feel even guiltier that i can’t wait until college because i won’t have the responsibility anymore :</p>
<p>I feel the same thing I joined every single honor society, participated in competitions, did summer camps, community service solely to get accepted into BROWN, im a current junior. I hate high school because of all the pressure but what keeps me going is attending a good college and having the time of my life in it with not much responsibility. I also do all of this because i want to prove myself that im ready to go to an elite college, and do good in it</p>