3 Things High School Students Can Do to Show That They Are “Interesting”
Top colleges say that they are looking for kids who are “interesting”.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? And what can your teen do to become more “interesting” to admissions officers at highly selective schools?
An “interesting” teen is one whose engagement with academic and extracurricular activities clearly demonstrates deep curiosity, intellectual vitality and the maturity to focus on a subject over an extended period of time. In the pile of tens of thousands of applications, these teens are the ones who STAND OUT.
Um…that sounds stressful. Actually, it’s not! Let’s take a step back. Most of us of our teens ARE interesting, especially as they move deeper into high school and become more fully formed people. But few teens can actually SHOW colleges how and why they are, in fact, interesting people.
Here are three simple things that any teen can do to DEMONSTRATE this:
1. Make sure to pursue at least some unique extracurriculars
Teens today are very busy, and it’s easy to fall into the trap of doing the same school and locally-based activities as everyone else. Even if these activities are genuinely enriching, there’s a good chance your teen looks like most other teens from his school on paper. Not interesting.
Make sure to enhance ordinary school and local community-based activities with unique, different and memorable ones that are UNCOMMON relative to what everyone else is doing.
But how? Supplement everyday activities (like school sports and student government) with citizen science, self-directed community projects and participating in competitions. (Remember: You do NOT need to win a competition to be able to talk about the experience of participating). Even just a few well-chosen activities can really add WOW to a profile.
2. Engage deeply with academic and extracurricular interests
GOING DEEP is the easiest and most obvious way to show college admissions officers a seriousness of purpose and focus, as well as genuine interest. As a happy coincidence, teens who go deep often find themselves more engaged, curious and rewarded by their extracurriculars.
What’s the easiest way for teens to show that they are going to thrive and make a positive impact on a college campus? Demonstrating that they’ve already done it before. A teen who has really locked into a series of activities that unite academic and extracurricular interests and strengths is more likely to be “college ready”.
3. Make an IMPACT on your local community
Anyone can do adult-led community service. Very few teens can show how they have - on their own - made a positive impact on their community. And those who can are inherently more interesting to college admissions officers.
Pick an issue in the community. Bonus points if it relates to a larger theme or interest for the teen. Brainstorm a simple solution to the problem that could be authentically teen-directed. Research and plan. Engage others in the community, including adults, to help. Carry out the project, even it is a small one.
There are an infinite number of possibilities for local teen-led projects. It’s a fantastic way to both drive positive change at home AND show colleges your potential to be a change-maker on campus. These kids are VERY interesting to top colleges.
Don’t be intimidated! With a few strategic tweaks, almost every teen can show that they are actually “INTERESTING” and interested!
P.S. There are tons of unique and interesting activities in our amazing Extracurricular Database, including quick citizen science projects, competitions, publications and Standout Projects. Click here to learn more and help your teen make the most out of summer!