It’s the fall of your senior year, and there’s one thing on your mind: COLLEGE. APPLICATIONS. It’s the one topic you can count on to come up in every conversation you ever have. Admission deadlines haunt your dreams. Maybe a couple of months ago you were regretting not doing more community service or starting that dog walking business you’ve always dreamed about, but now there are bigger fish to fry. You’re so obsessed with writing the perfect essay and keeping track of supplements, the thought that you might have something more to add hasn’t even crossed your mind.
But it’s not too late! You go to high school for four years, not three, and schools want to know about everything you’ve done up until the moment you hit the send button on your common application (and even after).
There may not be that much time, but it’s enough to show just how much you have to offer as a future collegiette!
1. Volunteer
Volunteering is always an excellent way to make yourself feel good, with the added benefit of upgrading your resume. But it’s not always easy to fit service into your high school schedule – what with all-day classes, sports practices, newspaper meetings and more, you may just not have had time. Think about all your community has given you over the years, and how you’ll be leaving it soon. Now, in your last year, may be the time to give something back!
“You can talk with the charity coordinators and administrators at your school to organize some type of fundraiser, whether it be for food or clothes, or just raising money in general,” says Jessica, an Ohio University senior. “It shows you have initiative, organizational skills, and you care about the less fortunate.”
However, make sure you’re volunteering because you love the feeling of helping others, not just because it will look good on your apps. Hyanna, a sophomore at Emmanuel College, started a shoe drive, but in the end realized the service hadn’t been the great experience she envisioned. Instead of doing the shoe drive just because she wanted to help people, she took on the huge project to make her college applications shine.
“I got literally hundreds of pairs!” she said. “ But because my reasons were wrong, it was a pretty stressful and tiring experience.”
If you do volunteer, make sure you find a cause you’re passionate about. Check out listings for your school’s National Honor Society and look around town for flyers. Ask friends and classmates about service projects they’ve worked on, search the Internet for opportunities in your area (Google “volunteer” plus the name of your town or city) and keep your ears open for people talking up various projects. If you don’t have time for an ongoing volunteer project, use www.serve.gov to find a short-term volunteering gig in your area.
If you volunteer because you care about your cause, the glowing additions to your resume will follow.
2. Take initiative
It’s senior year – you’ll be out of high school within a few months and there’s no excuse not to raise your hand and take on a cool project. Even if you weren’t interested in holding leadership positions in high school, that doesn’t mean you can’t shine in your own right.
College counselor Michelle Podbelsek says that adding tons of activities senior year “will be somewhat of a red flag” to colleges. Instead of trying to build a whole new life for yourself senior year, Podbelsek suggests becoming a bigger part in activities you’ve already been involved in.
“Students should look for opportunities that connect with or branch off from what they have already done or liked in the past,” she says.
You don’t have to reinvent your whole life senior year because you feel like you haven’t done enough. Colleges want to see you growing into your own, becoming more involved in various activities as you get older and more integrated in your community.
Sydney, a sophomore at Macalester College, says that as the president of her high school’s National Honor Society she was always looking for seniors to propose and lead projects that NHS students could get involved in.
“You really don’t need to be in a leadership position to increase your involvement or make an activity or club you already do look even better,” she says. “It’s really easy to find non-leadership-oriented ways to get involved and take on temporary tasks that can look great.”
When you go to club meetings, keep an eye out for opportunities to lead in small ways. Offer to head up publicity for a fundraiser by making posters and creating a Facebook group. Tell the dance team that you’ll make all the arrangements for their next performance. You don’t have to be the president of a club to be a star member.
3. Become a TA
Many high schools offer a chance for students to try their hand at teaching in a TA (teacher’s assistant) program. It’s a great opportunity for you to delve deeper into a subject you’re good at and help other students feels as passionate about a topic as you do. Sydney was close to the band teacher she’d had since sixth grade, so she decided to ask her about helping out with the freshman band class during a study hall.
“I really enjoyed this teacher all the years I had her, and the work I did still translates into great letters of recommendations when I need them. I am not a music major, but got great musical experience nonetheless. I conducted the band on several occasions, which could translate into a great career experience if that was the field I was interested in.”
If you’re interested in being a TA, talk to a favorite teacher about helping out in class or tutoring after school. You may have to fill out some forms in your school office to become part of the program, or you may be able to work informally – either way, TA-ing will be a rewarding experience that also looks great on your resume. Who knows – you might even discover an affinity for teaching!
Being a TA also isn’t the only relatively low-commitment job you can do. Podbelsek says she’s seen students take on more hours babysitting, become tour guides at their schools, or help out with freshman orientation. There are plenty of small jobs that don’t require a huge amount of time but nevertheless show that you’re responsible, reliable and dedicated.
Whatever you do right before those college apps are due, make sure you don’t overburden yourself or get too stressed out – senior year should be a time to focus on what is important to you, not to squeeze in every experience and activity that you haven’t yet checked off your list. Don’t forget to keep those grades up, spend time with friends and family, and relax. You’ll have plenty of time to do all this stuff and more – when you’re in college!