The Extracurricular Edge

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Quality over Quantity

Is your high schooler's life a whirlwind of school, homework, soccer practice, volunteering, flute lessons, debate team, and more? If your teen is on the college track, you've probably heard that extracurricular activities can make a difference in getting into college.

How Activities Help

Louis L. Norbeck, a school counselor in Annapolis, Maryland, confirms that with college admissions getting increasingly more competitive each year, extracurricular activities can give students an edge. Norbeck explains that while a student's transcript and test scores are still the most important criteria to college admission boards, what students do during non-school hours demonstrates other important qualities that grades alone don't reveal, such as responsibility, an ability to work with others, and personal commitment.

Everything in Moderation

While participation in a range of activities is clearly valuable, there is a misconception that the more activities on your child's resume, the better. Like anything else in life, extracurricular activities should be done in moderation.

Just as enrolling in too many challenging classes may jeopardize your child's grades, participating in too many activities can take away from your child's study time, and consequently your child's ability to take more honors and AP® classes. This, in turn, can hurt your child's chances at more competitive colleges. Very-involved students and their parents should watch for burn-out and exhaustion. High school can be a stressful and busy time, so it's important for students to prioritize their schedules.

Get Passionate

Even college admissions boards don't advocate participating in too many activities. Admission officials are more likely to consider an applicant who is very committed to one or two activities, rather than a student who's taken on too many activities, and hasn't shown serious commitment to any single one. Colleges want students who can bring unique skills and interests to the student body. The emphasis should be on quality, not quantity, and depth, not breadth.

Helpful Hints for Your Child

Here are some tips for your child on how to make the most of extracurricular activities:

Make a commitment to a couple of activities that truly interest you, rather than dabbling in many.
Make your academics a priority.
Show leadership skills;, for example, start a book group or public speaking club in your school.
If sports interest you, find one that you truly enjoy and stick with it through your high school years.
Show initiative by getting a job; consider a summer job for a great experience that won't interrupt your high school work.
Pursue a service-based activity in an area that interests or excites you—you'll demonstrate your commitment to community and can explore careers that might suit you.

Encourage your child to explore just a couple of activities and to stick with them through high school. Not only will it strengthen college applications, it will also develop skills and interests that can last a lifetime.