College admission questions (maybe kind of silly)

[clarabelle]

My DD is in 9th grade a good student.
She is not however a joiner -and is not really doing any extra curricular right now.
I know colleges look at that kind of stuff -but when does it need to start?
How important is it -and what kinds of things are good -especially if she is not musical or athletic.
Thanks!

[Sparx]

honestly, most colleges don't look at that stuff.

i'm a freshman in college, so i just went through all of this mess. i filled out an application to many colleges, and NONE asked about anything besides my act (possibly sat depending on where you live) score, class rank, and gpa. none asked or cared about any extra curricular. i also have about 17,000/year to my university (middle tennessee state university) and none of my scholarships were based on being a member of a group. all of them are from filling out my fafsa, and doing my college's private scholarship applications.

the only colleges that really ask those kind of questions are the ivy league, private type university.

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Things must have changed b/c all my college aps for schools in the state of Florida asked for all that. All public schools. I got into UF which was very competitive then and even more so now.


The important thing--it doesn't member what you are a member of as that question isn't meant to be a checklist of popularity.

It is meant to find out what you DID while in school.

So--what does your dd like to DO!

My brother was all about art, so that's what his "extra" was--all art related. Hardly very much a joiner at all.

The things I did--I did television production--so did the tv club or whatever it was called where we actually produced a weekly news show. (Was applying with intentions of that degree, so very pertinent.) and I did Swim Team.

And when she gets a job--that counts, too!

Or if she volunteers--or does things outside of school, that all counts.

Don't worry if she is not a joiner--I only did things I was interested in and really didn't care about a resume of crap just for college.

I'm sure she will find something at some point that is her niche that is above and beyond academics and her college application process won't suffer.

[clarabelle]

Thanks!!
She does a little volunteer work through church -but nothing official.
How do they know you are telling the truth?

[Shmily1]

I have DS19 and DD18 both in college now. Both applications ask that, neither were into volunteering much, and both are doing great and got accepted to the colleges they chose--their first choice.

I will add that even though the college didn't seem to be looking for that, I do know the college scholarship applications do look for that so if you are going to be applying for scholarships, now is the time!! I know this from DS and DD but also from DH being on a scholarship committee.

[Sparx]

maybe its the norm around here that the public schools don't ask about group involvement?

[gm]

ds goes to an Ivy league so if that is what your daughter wants to do, please start now.

I would start now in joining clubs that she enjoys. Also keep in mind that if she wants to go to an Ivy league, it will matter alot especially if she wants a scholarship because they are looking for "well rounded individuals".

DS joined mostly all groups, Mu Altha Theta,National Honor Society,Band Club,Writing Club and even formed his own club called Club United nations which he was founder and president at his school and also tutored after school in addition to having a job and being in band.

I dont know if or how they check but we included all the club form papers in when he applied and letters from many of his teachers.

My DS wanted to go to an Ivy League since 9th grade so he was so focused on it. All his friends went to UT which did not require alot of joining clubs and such since it is a state school. So it depends where she wants to go. She if she can start her own club maybe at school.

Since Ivy leagues are more competitive, they will look at everything.

Hope that helps.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by Sparx

honestly, most colleges don't look at that stuff.

i'm a freshman in college, so i just went through all of this mess. i filled out an application to many colleges, and NONE asked about anything besides my act (possibly sat depending on where you live) score, class rank, and gpa. none asked or cared about any extra curricular. i also have about 17,000/year to my university (middle tennessee state university) and none of my scholarships were based on being a member of a group. all of them are from filling out my fafsa, and doing my college's private scholarship applications.

the only colleges that really ask those kind of questions are the ivy league, private type university.

Around here they ask for these things on college applications-state schools and private schools--we just got done doing this for DS17.

OP, schools are looking for well rounded individuals, not just the top student in the class. If she volunteers at church, that will be important-you would list it much like you do on a resume "assisted in the religion class at church helping 6-8 year old with learning activities, outings and faith development" or whatever she does.

She should probably join a club or two at school. What does she like to do? Most likely she will want to join whatever her friends join, not a big deal. Most colleges just don't want students that went to school, came home studied for 6 hours, went to bed, repeat.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by clarabelle

Thanks!!
She does a little volunteer work through church -but nothing official.
How do they know you are telling the truth?

They just expect people to be honest on their applications-not that people don't embellish some.

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Originally Posted by clarabelle

Thanks!!
She does a little volunteer work through church -but nothing official.
How do they know you are telling the truth?

They don't. But volunteering doesn't have to be official.

I'm sure they have their methods of sorting the BS from the real stuff. I am not sure if I provided evidence of anything as I remember little else from my applications.

[ashleybea]

I just finished with my college applications last week. Each asked me about my after school activities, and any volunteer experience.
Your daughter should defiantly look into joining a couple of clubs. A couple of clubs that look good on resumes are clubs that involve the community. Like at my school we have a K.E.Y club and S.A.D.D (Students against drunk driving).

[Christine]

How much it matters just depends.

For many of the public universities here in Virginia, our experience was that what mattered most was GPA and test scores. If you made the cut in those two areas, you were just in. If it came down to being borderline, they probably took a look at your extracurriculars and made a deciding factor on that.

Very, very picky schools (like University of Virginia for instance) certainly do look at the WHOLE PACKAGE for each student that makes it past the rigorous GPA/SAT guidelines.

So, my thought is that if your child gets pretty good grades and wants to go to a "regular" public university, it probably won't matter much. We filled out many applications and the did all ask for something in that area. My daughter was not involved in sports but did volunteering with the Special Olympics and a peer outreach group.

[mom2travel]

DS's high school has a list of clubs on its web site - maybe your's does too. It sure was a much longer list and a wider variety than I was expecting.
Maybe you can help your DD list her interests and suggest she talk to a counselor at school for suggestions if you can't find a list.

[asta]

A couple of good programs to look into are Model United Nations and Youth Legislature. I think that these two programs are sponsored locally by the YMCA. These programs run mock governments and high schools from around the state send students. We have found that both of these activities give a lot of opportunities for involvement and leadership. It is easier to run for an office in an environment where you are removed from that whole high school clique atmosphere. While school elections seem to only involve the "popular" students, anyone can run for an office in these organizations. In addition to having something to put on her college apps, she will gain experience in making speeches and networking with others.

I would also like to mention that I personally believe that most selective schools' admission decisions are based on SAT/ACT scores. Some of them may claim otherwise but I think many schools use test scores as bragging points so it only makes sense that they want their students to have high scores. Other things may be considered but nothing like getting a high score to ease your way into a selective school.

[clarabelle]

Thanks everyone.
I have a lot to learn! She goes to a private prep school right now. She may want to go to a more selective college (not Ivy league) -depending on if she is able to keep her grades up.
Her dad went to UNC Chapel Hill -but we are out of state -and I hear it is really hard to get into now.