Answer 1

Admissions officers usually look for QUALITY over quantity.  If your son / daughter is showing committment to a handful of extracurricular activities, he / she is on the right track. He / she doesn't need to do everything with everyone. He / she is showing passion, dedication, and hard work for a particular cause / hobby. Hopefully he / she is also taking on some leadership roles in these organizations.

Regarding extracurriucular activities, I always advise students follow their passions, whatever that may be. There is no magic number of clubs to join and hours to volunteer.  Don't pursue activities just to put them on your college application. These pursuits are more about having a worthwhile, meaningful activity outside of the classroom that helps the student grow as a person.

Answer 2

I would agree. It is always quality over quantity. I know that sounds hard to believe when students compare themselves to each other but it is true. Better to be committed to an ongoing activity during the school year to show responsibility and dedication even if only one activity as in maybe being a volunteer EMT person. One of my former students worked at our local soup kitchen but, not only on Sundays - he worked there 3x per week for close to 4 years. This was his only activity in order to have ample time to support his coursework. During the summer, he maintained employment using his days to save money for school. When it came time to respond to the CA question of "Is there anything else you would like to share" he shared how his peers were involved in various activities but that he had wanted to work specifically with the homeless thus his time, his ongoing dedication, to the soup kitchen. Good Luck!

Answer 3

Two activities -- one school related and the other involves giving back to the community. A good combination. Sometimes, students or families think more is better in terms of school activities ,but the truth is how many clubs or groups can one belong to and have an active role in each. College admission officers " see" thru those resumes that have a never ending list of school based activities. What is important is the length of time a student has been a member of a club , what committees have they served on, have they chaired any committees and how many hours per week are they spending at meetings and actual club activities? Using your summers to do volunteer work is worthwhile. It is a very good learning experience, the student comes into contact with all types of people, learns to be on time and it helps develop good work habits. There are students who can not join a club or perhaps volunteer because they must work after school, on weekends and during the summer. Working is just as important as any other school or community activity in the college application process and no one would suggest to that working student " you need more activities". Two activities is what your son has selected to put his energies into, so that is what he will present on his application.