I stood in the first semester of my freshman year, with my time stretched thin between dozens of clubs, extracurricular activities, and academic responsibilities. While some of my peers bonded by constantly bemoaning the workload and stress of a rigorous high school, others, like myself, kept to themselves, hiding our misery.
And perhaps, I discovered something far earlier than most of my peers, especially once the sports season started. Immediately, I prioritized the sport and dropped many activities that had nothing to do with my future aspirations, which made it far easier on my mental and physical health than anyone could have imagined.
Most people have an unwavering belief in the appeal of the well-rounded college applicant, where colleges prefer a "jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none" over the alternative. However, this has increasingly been proven to be false. The truth is that most universities prefer a person who is passionate about something, excels in a few areas, and will make a great difference in one field rather than superficial differences in many. Of course, there are exceptions, but this is rarely the case.
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1. Prioritize Your Passions
In my freshman year, I joined my school's medical society, UNICEF club, Red Cross, Key Club, the Math team, and all these other cool things that I believed would help me make friends and benefit my future. Once the tennis season started, all of those clubs were cut out and replaced. I was far too busy with tennis, a sport that I excelled at, and chose that over clubs I knew I disliked in the first place.
Once you find the activities you enjoy, accompany your favorite courses with them, and figure out a general career path. As somebody from a family that prioritized STEM and wanted me to go into medicine, I joined many of those "science" clubs, only to end up hating them. I was enrolled in the most advanced STEM track at my school, one that few others took, and ended up loathing chemistry, physics, and calculus, no matter how well I did in them. But I found a secret love for writing, English, history, and the humanities.
In my sophomore year, I loved AP Psychology and AP Art History. While I hated chemical compounds and optics, I loved psychology and the study of behavior and people. I learned through these classes that I also enjoyed public speaking and presenting my ideas. Using my experience, I narrowed my passions down to a select few fields, namely, law, foreign service, and education.
And you can do the same. Find the classes and clubs that you genuinely enjoy and excel in. Even if your friends are all doing something else, follow your passions. Use your talents and your desires to find something that works for you.
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2. Help Your Community
I know you've all heard of the wunderkinds who fly to a third-world country, help build shelters, and teach English for a few weeks, only to get rejected by college admissions officers. The truth is that colleges appreciate somebody who uses their passion and talents to benefit their community. I'm not talking about just schoolwide.
Helping out your school is good, of course. Still, colleges appreciate somebody who goes beyond that and knows their community.
Do some volunteering! Many places in your city need help.
My personal examples were that I was involved in and created several out-of-school initiatives. I became heavily involved in a piano education program, where I and a few other teachers received grants from the city and partnered with a church to teach children of all social and economic demographics the basics of piano. I started a tutoring program at the elementary school I attended, along with a few other friends, helping many kids with homework and projects.
The same friends and I also created a fundraising initiative for several charities around the city, like Children's Miracle Network, raising awareness, money and promoting healthy activities. I also became a seasonal coach for tennis camps around the city.
You can do the same. The secret here is never to be afraid to ask and never be scared to try. Ask your friends to help you if you don't feel comfortable doing it alone, and get your trusted family or teachers involved.
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3. Leadership Roles
You've probably heard this so many times. But maybe the typical class president or officer isn't your thing. Perhaps you joined a club, but you don't really want to run for an officer position. You may feel far more comfortable with creating your own role.
Using my examples, I became the captain of the tennis team and the co-captain of one of the debate teams. But that was just at my school. Of course, there were also the things I did in the last section.
Now, the most crucial part of this section. Do not. And I repeat: do not take a leadership spot and hog it by doing nothing except keeping it around for your college resume.
College admissions officers have read many applications and know how to detect this kind of thing. Not only will doing something in your leadership role prove to them that you have a real goal and ambition, but it also shows that you know how to collaborate with different people.
Leadership roles are important because students develop skills crucial to their future in the workforce. Colleges want this character, and leadership will naturally grow, even if you lean on the shy side. For example, you could become a mentor in a club and naturally be nominated for a role because of what you do.
Don't fake it. Do it.
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Photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash
In Conclusion
Okay, so now, maybe you've done all these things.
What now?
Please understand this is not a "one-way ticket" into the Ivy League. There are many factors the college admissions officers take in, such as your grades and your test scores. Your college essay and extracurricular activities are just as critical as those.
Colleges may de-emphasize those things, but they still matter. They want to know who you are as a person, and having stand-out extracurriculars will help them decide if your application belongs in the accepted pile, the deferred pile, or the rejected pile.
And please make sure that you have some leisure time for yourself. Everybody needs a break for their own mental and physical health. These tips worked for me; a few came from one of my teachers, who worked in college admissions for several years.
Good luck! You've got this.
